Nellie Bly decided to travel around the world in 72 days in 1889 in an attempt to beat the fictional record of the character Phileas Fogg from Jules Verne's novel, 'Around the World in 80 Days', and to prove that women were capable of such feats.
When Nellie Bly decides to travel around the world in 1889, she is clearly inspired by Jules Verne's adventure novel: Around the World in Eighty Days. In this very popular book at the time, the fictional hero Phileas Fogg takes on the challenge of completing this grand journey in just 80 days. Nellie thinks to herself that if an imaginary character can do it in 80 days, she, a very real and determined journalist, can achieve it in an even shorter time. In fact, she is so inspired that she even meets Jules Verne in person in France during her journey, directly exchanging with the author who sparked this somewhat crazy bet in her.
At the time, the best-known time to travel around the world was held by the fictional character Phileas Fogg, the hero of Jules Verne's novel. He completed his journey in precisely eighty days. Nellie Bly, bold and highly competitive, therefore decided to beat this record, not only to prove that a woman could do it but also to inscribe her own name in history. By aiming for an ambitious record of just 72 days, she wanted to surprise everyone and make an impression. Her goal was to concretely demonstrate, with a stopwatch in hand, that reality could surpass fiction.
By the end of the 19th century, women's daily lives were mostly limited to domestic roles. Nellie Bly wanted to challenge these outdated stereotypes. She believed that women were more than capable of achieving everything men had been doing for a long time. Her journey was a powerful way of saying: look, a woman can travel alone around the world, handle her difficulties on her own, be courageous, independent, and bold. This challenge was not just a personal achievement; it embodied the struggle for a fairer vision of women in society. She wanted to prove to the world, with concrete evidence, that a woman could succeed where no one expected her to.
At the time, newspapers were constantly looking for captivating stories to sell, and Nellie Bly's bold project fit perfectly into that logic. Her crazy idea of traveling around the globe in just 72 days was buzzing even before her departure, and the New York World, which employed her, clearly wanted to capitalize on this media attention. This adventure became an exciting real-life serial for the public, who could follow her exploits almost day by day. Thanks to this intense media coverage, Nellie Bly quickly became a sort of international star, captivating an audience fascinated by this unprecedented challenge.
Nellie Bly was constantly driven by the desire to surpass herself. Before this trip around the world, she had already made a name for herself by infiltrating a psychiatric asylum to expose the horrible conditions of confinement. This new challenge of completing a solo trip around the world in 72 days represented a concrete way to test her own courage, physical endurance, and mental tenacity. At the time, such a journey was risky, uncomfortable, and unpredictable, but Nellie wanted to prove to herself as well as to others that she was capable of rising to the challenge. She pushed past her fears, faced the unknown, and demonstrated her unwavering determination in the face of difficulties.
After her journey, Nellie Bly used her fame to pursue journalistic investigations into the precarious working conditions of women and children in the United States.
To travel more quickly and with as little luggage as possible, Nellie Bly brought only one small suitcase with her, demonstrating impressive organization for the time.
Elizabeth Cochrane Seaman was the real name of Nellie Bly. She adopted this pseudonym as a journalist to avoid the sexism of the time in a predominantly male environment.
During Nellie Bly's journey, a competing journalist, Elizabeth Bisland, from Cosmopolitan magazine, attempted to beat her record by departing on the same day but in the opposite direction.
Nellie Bly's success represented a significant symbolic advance for women in the 19th century. Her achievement demonstrated to her contemporaries that women were more than capable of accomplishing ambitious challenges that had previously been reserved for men. Thus, she became a role model for many women seeking emancipation and independence.
Today, Nellie Bly remains an iconic figure of journalistic courage and feminism. She paved the way for many women journalists and adventurers, inspiring them to challenge prejudices and constantly push their personal boundaries.
Nellie Bly, whose real name was Elizabeth Cochran Seaman, was a pioneering American journalist in investigative reporting and advocate for women's rights. Known for taking on the challenge of traveling around the world in just 72 days in 1889, she was also famous for her courageous reporting, particularly on the psychiatric conditions in asylums.
The previous fictional record was 80 days, drawn from the famous novel "Around the World in Eighty Days" by Jules Verne. However, no real journey had yet broken this record before the audacious feat of Nellie Bly, who accomplished it in just 72 days.
The public followed Nellie Bly's journey through the frequent articles published in the newspaper "The New York World." The enthusiastic and detailed accounts of her trip, transmitted by telegraph, allowed readers to track each stage of her adventure almost in real time, creating a true media frenzy.
The work of Jules Verne directly inspired Nellie Bly: she wanted to demonstrate that the journey around the world in 80 days described by the author was achievable, and even faster. During her trip, she had the opportunity to meet Jules Verne in person in Amiens, France, thus sharing a key moment in her journey and literary history.
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