The Man Who Lived Underground | Existentialist Parable

In the following essay, Gounard calls ''The Man Who Lived Underground" an "existentialist parable'' in which the protagonist is ''the symbol of loneliness and anonymity surrounding man in a materialistic and unfeeling society.''

During the summer of 1941, Richard Wright read an article in the August issue of True Detective which assumed a special significance for him. This article, "The Crime Hollywood Couldn't Believe," was about a 33-year-old man, Herbert C. Wright. Unemployed and aimless, Richard Wright's namesake had lived for more than a year in the sewers of Los Angeles. His subterranean existence had enabled him to get whatever he wished by entering stores through their sewer systems and helping himself. A close watch by the police eventually led to his arrest.

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