The horrors of alcoholism have never been so vividly, so comprehensively, or so sympathetically described as they are in Under the Volcano. Equally vivid is the picture of alcohol's attractions: the blessed painlessness that beckons from within the bottle. Against a backcloth, brilliantly described, of the magnificent, uncaring Mexican mountains, the Consul examines his disastrous life; he understands the pain he is causing to all who love him; he is aware that salvation is within his grasp; and yet he cannot save himself; he does not want to save himself...