摘要：This study examines the widespread myth of the hero in the underworld in diverse contexts. In the first part of the paper, after, a brief examination of the myth in Greek mythology, several ancient literary texts in which the underworld descent occurs are analysed. Recurrent motifs and imagery are examined in their poetic and psycho-social meanings. The second part of the paper concentrates on the underworld descent as an episode in Homer's Odyssey and Joyce's Ulisses. The comparison of the descent in these two episodes focuses on both thematic considerations, to relate the episode to other underworld descents, and narrative questions, to relate the episode to the work of which it forms a part. Ancient and modern approaches to myth and its uses are summarized in the conclusion and an appendix discusses the underworld descent in 20th century literature.
