Light versus darkness: Chiara Guidi | The Land of the Earthworms

Similarly to Euripides' Alcestis, Chiara Guidi's The Land of the Earthworms revolves around the bipolar contrast of light versus darkness. Hades, the Underworld is identified with darkness. Alcestis, upon dying, descends to Hades, and will never see the light again, as no light exists in the Underworld. When she no longer sees the light, she is no longer alive. In the same way, the land of the earthworms is dark and black. Through the flickering glimmer of a faint light, the Chorus leads Love and the children to the deeps, so that they may find the dead and bring them back to life. This faint light is the hope of return, the consolation of those who are gone. Love will, in the end, bring light to the land of the earthworms, so that they may all return to light, to life.