Adventure Theme Analysis

The driving action of Journey to the Center of the World is the titular journey: Professor Lidenbrock and his nephew Axel travel to Iceland, where their guide Hans accompanies them down a volcanic crater to search for the center of the earth. The voyage is an incredibly perilous one, as the men face sea monsters, a hurricane, and the constant threat of becoming lost underground. The dangers that most directly threaten the characters’ lives, however, are seemingly the most mundane: the logistics of rationing food and water. After a wrong turn costs them days’ worth of water, the men nearly die of dehydration. Later on, Axel briefly loses his grasp on reality when he finds himself alone and without food, water, or light for four days—the lack of provisions and his fear of dying alone underground are enough to drive him nearly to madness. Adventures, this suggests, are certainly exciting and can lead to amazing sights and discoveries (such as humans living underground). But, of course, an adventurer won’t be able to enjoy their journey without access to basic necessities. Thus, the novel pays painstaking attention to the logistical details of the men’s journey and shows that adventure and planning aren’t mutually exclusive. The adventurers constantly check their location, their rations, and the temperature to ensure that they remain on course and out of danger—and it’s satisfying, for them and for readers, when their careful planning and data collection lead to their success.