Loving, Reading, and Traveling: A Psychological and Semiotic Reading of Jules Verne's Around the World in 80 Days

In Jules Verne's Around the World in 80 Days, an ostensibly straightforward tale of global adventure unfolds as the enigmatic Englishman Phileas Fogg accepts a wager to circumnavigate the globe in just eighty days. At first glance, Jules Verne’s novel is a product of its time (the 19^th Century); the plot is an ode to technology, exploration, and British punctuality. However, by employing a dual theoretical lens, Erich Fromm's humanist psychology and Roland Barthes' semiotic critique, the characters emerge as vessels of deeper truths. Through these perspectives, we can interpret the novel not only as a travel story but as an exploration of love, identity, and the symbolic operations of narrative.

The Exterior and Interior Protagonists

Mr. Phileas Fogg, with his clockwork routine and emotionless disposition, initially appears as a flat protagonist. His actions drive the plot, but his personal transformation remains subtle. In contrast, his French valet, Jean Passepartout, provides the emotional arc of the novel. Verne introduces Fogg as a man who "never hurried and was always ready" (Verne, ch. 1), a figure ruled by reason. Passepartout, however, is the relatable counterpart: reactive, humorous, and often overwhelmed by the chaos of the journey.

While Fogg is the external agent of the story plot’s motion, Passepartout is the internal witness, growing visibly throughout the narrative. Their dynamic mirrors Fromm’s dialectic between sterile conformity and authentic engagement with life. Both characters complement each other having the reader question who the real protagonist of the story is; both can be a good response to the doubt their interaction in the plot presents.

Frommian Love and Human Transformation

In The Art of Loving, Erich Fromm posits that love is not a fleeting emotion but an art, one requiring maturity, discipline, and the overcoming of narcissism. Dr. Fromm writes, "Love is the active concern for the life and the growth of that which we love" (Fromm, 1956, p. 25). Early in Verne’s novel, Fogg embodies what Fromm would label as automaton conformity, a state in which man suppresses individuality to fit societal mechanisms. This is evident in Fogg's regulated lifestyle and emotional aloofness. Based on the idea of Victorian society, Phileas fits society and its mechanisms thoroughly.

However, as the journey unfolds, Fogg undergoes a subtle evolution catalyzed by two essential figures in the story’s plot: on the one hand we have Passepartout, and, on the other hand, there we have Aouda. Passepartout exhibits Frommian brotherly love through his loyalty, concern, and emotional responsiveness toward Phileas. Passepartout often chooses conscience over convenience, such as when he intervenes in Aouda's rescue from suttee in India, an act that disrupts Fogg’s schedule but aligns with moral duty and the way an English gentleman is meant to behave under the circumstances described in the novel.

Aouda, the rescued Parsi widow, becomes the emotional catalyst for Phileas Fogg. Her presence introduces vulnerability and mutual care. When Fogg learns that he has seemingly lost the wager, his first instinct is not despair but to ensure Aouda's well-being and her peace of mind. In her words, "You are more than brave; you are good" (Verne, ch. 35), affirming Fogg’s latent emotional depth that is only emerging through, at the beginning, his relationship with Aouda. His eventual proposal to Parsi widow suggests that Fogg has finally learned Fromm’s productive love, rooted in care, respect, and responsibility, rather than passion or possession.

Semiotic Structures and Barthesian Myth

While Fromm emphasizes inner transformation, Roland Barthes invites us to read the novel as a system of signs, revealing how characters function less as individuals and more as ideological symbols. In Mythologies, Barthes argues that myth is a type of speech: "Myth transforms history into nature" (Barthes, 1972, p. 129). In this sense, narratives like Jules Verne’s mask their ideological underpinnings by presenting them as neutral or universal individuals.

Phileas Fogg, in this light, is the mythic subject of imperial rationality: self-possessed, efficient, and in control of what happens in his life. He is not merely an Englishman; he is England or rather, what England imagines itself to be at that moment in history. His mastery of time and space, epitomized by his calm response to calamities and unexpected events, enacts the colonial fantasy of global domination through logic and machinery that the Brits projected at that moment in time.

Jean Passepartout, by contrast, is a semiotic disruptor. He constantly interferes with Fogg's plans, unintentionally introducing chaos and thereby injecting spontaneity into the text, something that can be described as the opposition of what Phileas is or represents. Barthes would likely interpret Passepartout as the reader's surrogate, puncturing the illusion of control and revealing the constructed nature of the narrative. Passepartout is the foil character that makes sense for the story in the plot’s narrative.

Aouda, in Barthes' framework, is a problematic figure. Though she provides emotional depth to the story, she also represents the Orientalist trope, the exotic woman rescued and civilized by the Western man. As Edward Said notes in Orientalism, the West often constructs the East as "a passive object of representation" rather than a subject with agency (Said, 1978, p. 108). Aouda’s symbolic function is less about autonomy and more about fulfilling narrative closure through romantic resolution.

Detective Fix, the comic and obnoxious antagonist, embodies the paranoia of the modern surveillance state that wants to know what individuals are up to. His relentless suspicion of Phileas Fogg, despite mounting evidence of his innocence, operates as what Barthes calls a hermeneutic code, a narrative delay that sustains tension while masking deeper ideological patterns.

Synthesis: Love and Ideology in Motion

By marrying Fromm's ethics of love with Barthes' structuralism, we gain a fuller understanding of Verne's novel. Fromm helps us see Fogg’s journey not just as physical but spiritual, a movement from detachment to connection. Barthes, on the other hand, exposes the ideological undercurrents of that same journey, revealing how cultural myths of Western supremacy, gender roles, and progress are embedded in the text.

As Terry Eagleton notes, "Literature does not exist in some aesthetic realm divorced from ideology. It is itself a form of ideology" (Eagleton, 2008, p. 19). Around the World in 80 Days is therefore both a narrative of emotional awakening and a map of 19th-century semiotic ideologies. Phileas Fogg becomes a man capable of love, but he remains a signifier of empire. Passepartout grows as a human but also functions as a comic safety valve for the story's tensions. Aouda catalyzes moral growth but also reflects cultural reduction.

In the end, Verne’s novel, like the journey it depicts, oscillates between freedom and control, between authentic love and cultural myth. The question is not simply whether Fogg wins his wager, but whether he becomes more fully human. And through the eyes of Fromm and Barthes, we see that perhaps he does but only just.

References

Barthes, R. (1972). Mythologies (A. Lavers, Trans.). New York: Hill and Wang.

Eagleton, T. (2008). Literary Theory: An Introduction. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

Fromm, E. (1956). The Art of Loving. New York: Harper & Row.

Said, E. (1978). Orientalism. New York: Pantheon Books.

Verne, J. (1873). Around the World in 80 Days (translated by George Makepeace Towle). Public domain translation available via Project Gutenberg. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/103

10 Possible Topics for Literary Criticism Enthusiasts

1	Passepartout as the true protagonist: emotional arc versus mechanical precision.
2	Time, clocks, and punctuality: Verne’s obsession with mechanized life.
3	Aouda and Orientalism: rescuing or silencing the “other”?
4		Inspector Fix as the embodiment of the surveillance state.
5		Colonial geographies: what does it mean to “travel the world” in the 19th century?
6		The wager as existential metaphor: is Fogg betting against life itself?
7		Technology and transportation: progress or illusion of control?
8		Humor and chaos: Passepartout as Barthesian punctum in a structured narrative.
9		Fromm’s art of loving: Fogg’s transformation into a man capable of intimacy.
10		Adventure fiction as ideology: Eagleton and Said on Verne’s narrative of empire.

Literary Reflective Journaling on Jules Verne’s novel, August 2025: My Notes

Phileas Fogg: The Exterior Protagonist	Function: Fogg is the novel's driving force. He makes the wager and sets the journey in motion. Personality: Stoic, precise, emotionally restrained — almost machine-like. Role in Narrative: He is the external protagonist whose actions dictate the plot's structure (locations, pacing, deadlines). Transformation: Subtle. His rigid logic begins to soften through the journey, especially after meeting Aouda.
Jean Passepartout: The Interior Protagonist	Function: Passepartout is the reader’s surrogate — curious, emotional, reactive, and constantly evolving. Personality: Loyal, impulsive, comic, human. He reflects the chaos that Fogg’s structure tries to suppress. Role in Narrative: While Fogg moves the plot forward, Passepartout generates conflict, humor, and character development. Transformation: He undergoes more visible growth. He learns from Fogg’s composure but also helps Fogg rediscover humanity.
Interplay Between Fogg and Passepartout	Their relationship mirrors order vs. spontaneity, reason vs. instinct, British stoicism vs. French vitality. Passepartout often complicates Fogg’s schedule — yet his errors and intuition often lead to eventual success (e.g., rescuing Aouda). The bond between them evolves from formality to deep friendship, with Passepartout becoming emotionally invested in Fogg’s success.
Aouda: The Catalyst	Role: Adds an emotional dimension to Fogg’s life. Her presence brings out his compassion. She is symbolic of the human consequences of Fogg’s rational decisions. Her growing closeness to Fogg causes both men (Fogg and Passepartout) to reevaluate their priorities.
Detective Fix: The Antagonistic Foil	His misunderstanding of Fogg as a bank robber introduces suspense. He reflects the limits of logic without context, a contrast to Passepartout’s intuitive understanding of Fogg’s character. While he opposes Fogg’s goal, he ironically aids in achieving it.
So, Who’s the Central Character?	Technically, Phileas Fogg is the protagonist — he makes the bet, the story revolves around his deadline, and he experiences personal change by the end. However, Passepartout is arguably the central narrative consciousness: He’s more emotionally accessible to the reader. We see Fogg’s transformation partly through his eyes. He provides the tension, the comic relief, and many of the moral stakes.
In Literary Terms	Fogg = flat character with slow but meaningful growth (a classic Verne archetype of reason and progress). Passepartout = round character who actively changes, feels, fears, and learns — more relatable and dynamic.
Conclusion Both are central, but in different ways: Role Phileas Fogg Passepartout Drives the Plot ✅ ⚪ Provides Perspective ⚪ ✅ Changes the Most Emotionally ⚪ ✅ Controls the Stakes ✅ ⚪ Emotional Anchor ⚪ ✅

 

Final Juxtaposition: Fromm vs. Barthes

Final Juxtaposition - Fromm vs. Barthes by Jonathan Acuña