Some people say you can only experience London as you walk it. Others say that riding
the London Tube gives you the real picture of the city as you receive different
perspectives.
Indeed, the world’s oldest and largest underground, is one of the city’s most prominent
and prototypical features. For more than 140 years, a diverse range of people such as
tourists, visitors, provincials and commuters have travelled the metropolis by
underground. Yet all of them for the same reason: to get from one place to the other.
From the opening of the first line in 1868, the London Underground also attracted the
attention of many writers who depicted this means of transportation in their works. In
fact, the London Underground still fascinates many contemporary authors such as Doris
Lessing and Charlie Higson.
Reading Lessing’s In Defence of the Underground or Higson’s The Red Line you are
taken along on a journey below the city, exploring the metropolis. While the story’s
characters travel through London they organize space. When riding one of the
underground lines, certain places and linked together. As the story continues, the
narrative structures unfold to be spatial syntaxes that take the reader along on a tour
through the metropolis.
In this paper I will argue to what degree texts about the London Tube as well as the
London Underground maps can be considered a way of organizing the space of London.
First of all, I want to give a short introduction on spatial theory and a definition of the
concept of spatial stories. Afterwards, I will apply my findings on spatial stories to the
London Underground texts In Defence of the Underground and The Red Line.
Moreover, I will discuss the different representation of London within the two texts.
Finally, I want to examine to what degree London Underground maps can be considered
a way of organizing the space of the city.
[...]
At a glance
- Grade: 1.7 (1.0 is the best grade)
- Applies spatial-story theory to works by Doris Lessing and Charlie Higson
- Examines Simon Patterson’s The Great Bear and a satirical map by Mulville and Swash
- Uses Michel de Certeau’s distinction between space and place
- 17 sources in the bibliography
Contents
1. Introduction
2. Spatial Theory and Spatial Stories
2.1. Michel de Certeau on Spatial Theory
2.2. Spatial Stories
3. Contemporary Spatial Stories about the London Underground
3.1. In Defence of the Underground – Travelling the Jubilee Line
3.1.1. A Brief Summary
3.1.2. In Defence of the Underground as a Spatial Story
3.1.3. The Representation of London in Lessing’s In Defence of the Underground
3.2. The Red Line – Travelling the Northern Line
3.2.1. A Brief Summary
3.2.2. The Red Line as a Spatial Story
3.2.3. The Representation of London in Higson’s The Red Line
4. The Representation of Space in London Underground Maps
4.1. The Early Underground Maps: a Map from 1910
4.2. The Recent London Underground Maps: a Map from 2006
4.3. Underground Maps and Spatial Stories
4.4. Remapping London I: The Great Bear by Simon Patterson, 1992
4.5. Remapping London II: A Satirical Map by Jimmy Mulville and Colin Swash, 1997
5. Conclusion
Aims and Topics
This study asks to what extent prose about the London Underground and Underground maps organize the space of London. It applies the concept of spatial stories to two literary works and considers how geographical, schematic and artistically altered maps represent the city.
- Michel de Certeau’s concepts of space and place
- Travel narratives as spatial stories
- Doris Lessing’s Jubilee Line journey
- Charlie Higson’s Northern Line story
- Geographical and schematic Underground maps
- Artistic and satirical remappings of London
Excerpt from the Book
1. Introduction
Some people say you can only experience London as you walk it. Others say that riding the London Tube gives you the real picture of the city as you receive different perspectives.
Indeed, the world’s oldest and largest underground, is one of the city’s most prominent and prototypical features. For more than 140 years, a diverse range of people such as tourists, visitors, provincials and commuters have travelled the metropolis by underground. Yet all of them for the same reason: to get from one place to the other. From the opening of the first line in 1868, the London Underground also attracted the attention of many writers who depicted this means of transportation in their works. In fact, the London Underground still fascinates many contemporary authors such as Doris Lessing and Charlie Higson.
Reading Lessing’s In Defence of the Underground or Higson’s The Red Line you are taken along on a journey below the city, exploring the metropolis. While the story’s characters travel through London they organize space. When riding one of the underground lines, certain places and linked together. As the story continues, the narrative structures unfold to be spatial syntaxes that take the reader along on a tour through the metropolis.
In this paper I will argue to what degree texts about the London Tube as well as the London Underground maps can be considered a way of organizing the space of London. First of all, I want to give a short introduction on spatial theory and a definition of the concept of spatial stories. Afterwards, I will apply my findings on spatial stories to the London Underground texts In Defence of the Underground and The Red Line. Moreover, I will discuss the different representation of London within the two texts. Finally, I want to examine to what degree London Underground maps can be considered a way of organizing the space of the city.
Chapter Summaries
1. Introduction: The author introduces the London Underground as both a means of travel and a subject of literary representation, and sets out the study’s questions.
2. Spatial Theory and Spatial Stories: This chapter introduces Michel de Certeau’s distinction between space and place and explains how narratives can connect places, people and experiences.
3. Contemporary Spatial Stories about the London Underground: The author examines works by Doris Lessing and Charlie Higson as spatial stories and compares their representations of London.
4. The Representation of Space in London Underground Maps: This chapter considers geographical and schematic maps alongside artistic and satirical adaptations, asking how each organizes urban space.
5. Conclusion: The concluding chapter brings together the discussion of prose narratives and Underground maps as representations of the city.
Keywords
London Underground, spatial theory, spatial stories, urban space, Michel de Certeau, Doris Lessing, Charlie Higson, Jubilee Line, Northern Line, Underground maps, urban representation, Simon Patterson, The Great Bear, cartography
Frequently Asked Questions
What is this work about?
It examines how prose and maps associated with the London Underground represent and organize the space of the city.
What are its main topics?
The main topics are spatial theory, travel narratives, representations of London, Underground maps and artistic remappings.
What is the central research question?
The author asks to what extent texts about the Tube and Underground maps can be understood as ways of organizing London’s space.
What method does the author use?
The study uses interpretive textual and map analysis informed by spatial theory, particularly the concept of spatial stories associated with Michel de Certeau.
What does the main body examine?
It analyzes two literary journeys, compares their portrayals of London, and discusses geographical, schematic, artistic and satirical Underground maps.
Which keywords characterize the study?
Key terms include spatial stories, urban space, London Underground, cartography, Doris Lessing and Charlie Higson.
Which literary works are examined?
The study considers Doris Lessing’s In Defence of the Underground and Charlie Higson’s The Red Line, which feature journeys on the Jubilee and Northern lines respectively.
How are Underground maps approached?
The author considers how maps link stations and places, comparing an early geographical map with a later schematic map and with altered versions.
What artistic adaptations are discussed?
The study examines Simon Patterson’s The Great Bear and a satirical Underground map by Jimmy Mulville and Colin Swash.
- Citation du texte
- Ulrike Miske (Auteur), 2007, The representation of space: Prose and maps about the London Underground , Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/115298
