SOURCE: “Off the Track,” in Jack Kerouac, Twayne Publishers, 1986, pp. 46-57.

In the following essay, French discusses key differences among The Subterraneans, The Dharma Bums, Pic, and Kerouac's other major novels.

Gi; the Subterraneans (1953, 1958) =~ Sthe Subterraneans (1953, 1958)

While The Subterraneans is usually looked upon as part of the Duluoz Legend, it would take very extensive revision to fit this nearly hysterical tale into the whole panoramic work.¹ In the first place, the name used here for Kerouac's alter ego, Leo Percepied, occurs only in this brief novel and was apparently not a substitution required by cautious publishers. It is difficult, therefore, to ignore the symbolic implications of the name, which could be translated “Lion with a Pierced-Foot,” suggesting some kind of primitive jungle king disabled by a crippling wound or with an Achilles' heel. Although the novel has been praised by those close to Kerouac for its verisimilitude, its...