In the next chapter we will see that Giorgio is the novel's allegory for Liberty as a political cause. The position of his hotel is thus symbolically significant, relating to Nostromo's assessment of Liberty. The sea in Nostromo stands for ultimate human freedom, which is seen both in a positive light as escape from all bondage , and a negative light as the fractious ungovernability of mankind. In both lights the novel treats it as a force in human affairs rather beyond the scope of politics. Giorgio's hotel, representing the attempt to achieve Liberty through politics, is thus placed halfway between the sea and the town -- belonging fully to neither.