Underwater Encounter
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Cousteau's encounter with the ocean after a serious accident catalyzed his exploration of underwater breathing mechanisms.
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Ah, sir, live, live in the heart of the sea! Independence is possible only here! Here I recognize no master! Here I am free! |
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Interview with Cousteau biographer Susan Schiefelbein, The Legacy of Underwater Explorer Jacques Cousteau (CNN), 2012
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Jacques Cousteau's pivotal encounter with the undersea world came when he was recovering from a terrible car accident in 1936. He was given a pair of goggles to aid him on daily swims to recover his strength. The intensity of this experience changed his life.
I waded into the Mediterranean and looked into it through Fernez goggles... I put my eyes under again and civilization vanished with one last bow. I was in a jungle never seen by those who floated on the opaque roof. |
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As a young man seeking to recover his health, freedom was paramount. When France was invaded by Germany in 1940, Cousteau responded to the German occupation by continuing his work for the French Navy and seeking freedom beneath the waves.
The Germans considered me a harmless nut. And I did all I could to reinforce the impression. I dived in the worst weather, and used the excuse that I was spear fishing. |
Jacques-Yves Cousteau (Rocketboom News), 2010
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Cousteau was awarded the French Legion of Honor for espionage during WWII (French Legion of Honor, 2012, Casemate)
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As Cousteau explored underwater breathing techniques, he hoped to create a way for divers to breathe with freedom of movement. Restrictive diving suits prevented divers from traveling away from their above-water air supply, and skin diving provided freedom only as long as a diver could hold their breath.
Always I rebelled against the limitations imposed by a single lung-full of air. In lightning dives, we could only get a glimpse of the sea's enigmas. |
