The Life Below the Ground: A Study of the Subterranean in Literature and History

by Wendy Lesser

The underground as a symbol in novels, poems and movies takes many forms, from Dante's hell to moles or double agents in spy thrillers. Lesser, who edits Threepenny Review, notes how frequently Graham Greene's characters have sudden revelations in womb-like hiding places. She sees the underworld in detective fiction as a metaphor for a corrupt society. Whereas Jules Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth conjured up the labyrinthine possibilities of scientific discovery, for Lewis Carroll, Alice's descent into Wonderland was a means to probe the uneasy connection between body and mind. Ralph Ellison and Richard Wright were influenced by Dostoyevsky's Notes from Underground in their portrayals of blacks as invisible, nameless outsiders. This original, eye-opening study maps uncharted terrain. (Publishers Weekly)

207 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 1987

About the author

Wendy Lesser a critic, novelist, and editor based in Berkeley, California.

She is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and has received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, National Endowment for the Humanities, and the New York Public Library's Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers.