A scholar of Romance languages based in New York City, Vial (1904-85) synthesizes information about the concept of the unconscious that scores of researchers, scholars, and writers in many
fields gathered and dispersed across Europe in books and articles. In the first half of his work, he surveys the unconscious in Russian and Scandinavian literature, in Bergsonism, in
experimental psychology, and in psychoanalysis. The second half focuses on French literature, with discussion of the first manifestations of the unconscious, the unconscious as a means of
psychological exploration, the unconscious in surrealism, and opposition to the unconscious. The manuscript was complete at his death, and Barral, former student, family friend, and colleague,
reviewed the text, clarified some passages, and filled in and sometimes corrected bibliographical references. Annotation 穢2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
