Disclosed is a lithographic composition for forming a resist underlayer film, which can be used as a lower layer antireflection film by which an exposure light striking on a photoresist formed on a semiconductor substrate is inhibited from being reflected from the substrate in a lithographic process of manufacturing semiconductor equipment, a planarization film for flattening a semiconductor substrate having a rugged surface used in order to fill in a hole formed on the semiconductor substrate, a film which prevents a photoresist from being contaminated by a substance generated from a semiconductor substrate during heating/burning, or the like. The lithographic composition for forming a resist underlayer comprises a polymer having a structure of formula (1): (where Y represents a C1-10 alkylene group or a C6-14 aromatic ring, provided that the alkylene group and the aromatic ring have one or more hydroxyl group(s) being not larger than the number of the replaceable hydrogen atom of the alkylene group and the aromatic ring); and a solvent.