Around the World in Eighty Days

Phileas consistently records the progress of his voyage using his passport, a repetition that symbolizes the protagonist’s dedication to the honorable completion of the wager. The passport is thus an important aspect of Phileas’s characterization and a symbol of honor within the theme of Victorian Honor, Integrity, and Ideals.

Phileas keeps not only a passport but also an itinerary. In this carefully maintained itinerary, he records all aspects of the voyage necessary to make informed decisions about travel and complete the journey on time. The narrator describes the notebook as exceptionally organized: It is a “methodical record” that is “divided into columns, indicating the month, the day of the month, and the day for the stipulated and actual arrivals at each principal point” (39). This description illustrates the strict order the protagonist maintains throughout the novel, a character trait that symbolizes his role within the theme of Victorian Honor, Integrity, and Ideals.

Clocks are important symbols in the theme of Punctuality, Time, and Time Management. Passepartout’s pocket watch is a representation of his unique