Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Journey to the Center of the Earth, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Science and Discovery
Maturity and Independence
Intuition vs. Evidence
Nature vs. Civilization
Adventure
Summary
Analysis
Stapi is a beautiful village full of natural phenomena that surpasses the works of great artists and architects. It is the last stage of the cross-country journey; after this, Hans will accompany Axel and Lidenbrock into the crater. They find a priest willing to host them, but this supposedly holy man is far less welcoming than the tradesmen and peasants the group has stayed with in the past. Lidenbrock is eager to leave the man behind, so he leaves to explore the volcano before the men travel into its crater.
Axel’s narration describes the natural beauty of Stapi as more impressive than man-made creations. He has so far described the landscape of Iceland as simply desolate, but he recognizes that nature is also capable of great beauty. Axel finds that nature can be threatening and barren, but if also offers wonders that surpass those of civilization.
Themes
Faced with the reality of the volcano, Axel’s anxiety returns. Still, he does not voice his concerns to Lidenbrock, reasoning that if he was going to speak up, he should have done so back in Hamburg. He worries that Saknussemm was right about a passage to the center of the earth, and that the travelers will become trapped down there. He also worries that Snäffel is not dormant and will kill them in an eruption.
Axel’s previous excitement and sense of freedom fade when he has to confront Snäffel. Despite his mounting worries, Axel does not argue with Lidenbrock, instead reverting to the submissive, obedient role he has always played.
Themes
Axel decides to confess his fears to Lidenbrock, but when he does, Lidenbrock simply says that he predicted Axel’s fears and has studied the volcano to ensure it will not erupt. He shows Axel the proof, and tells him that “when science has spoken, it is for us to hold our peace.” This does nothing to calm Axel, but the next morning, he joins his uncle, Hans, and three other Icelanders on their way to the crater.
Lidenbrock has been impulsive on the trip to Snäffel, but now that the men have reached the volcano, he recovers his dedication to evidence-based logic. He tries to comfort Axel by presenting him with data. His claim that “when science has spoken, it is for us to hold our peace” asserts that when evidence concretely proves something, that fact cannot be argued. Lidenbrock intends this to be comforting to Axel—but it isn’t really.
Themes
