Quote:
Originally Posted by fantasyfan
[...] The ending did seem a bit lame because it isn’t really credible that the obsessively punctilious Fogg would have forgotten that the International Date Line would have caused him to arrive a day early. But there’s lots of fun on the way.
|
The Wikipedia article for this book points out that at the time of publication the International Date Line existed only in practice, not in law. At the start of the story we are given to understand that Fogg is very knowledgeable of the world, that "He must have travelled everywhere, at least in the spirit.", but as that quote suggests, he may not have travelled in person. So it is arguable that someone who may not have actually traversed the date line would not need to be aware of this practical detail.
I find it an acceptable loophole, and my guess is that it was even more acceptable to readers back in 1873.