Under the Volcano

Content Warning: This section of the guide discusses depictions of addiction to alcohol that feature in the source text.

The two volcanoes of Under the Volcano are a near-constant presence throughout the plot. At no point do any of the characters move out of the range of the volcanoes, and many chapters end with these characters looking upon the volcanoes and reflecting upon their situations. The volcanoes, though active, stay at rest throughout the novel, and while they do make themselves seen, they are never actually heard. Their constant presence, and the lingering threat that they pose as active volcanoes, introduces the motif of chaos and unpredictability to the novel. There is a double meaning, then, in the title of Malcolm Lowry’s text, for under a volcano there is lava, gas, and the immense power to burn and destroy everything around it. And yet, the title Under the Volcano most directly references the characters operating under the shadow of the volcanoes, and the chaos each one holds and the ability they have to destroy their own relationships. However, like many of the themes and symbols of the novel, this motif also reflects the state of the world around the characters.