The Modernist Period
What is The Great Gatsby?
This novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald captures the Jazz Age and the moral decay of American society through the tragic story of Jay Gatsby.
What Influenced the Contemporary Period?
World War II, cold war, Social Justice Movements, Technological Advancements
What is Modernism?
This cultural movement in the early 20th century, which heavily influenced modernist literature, rejected traditional forms of artistic expression in favor of abstraction and innovation.
What is identity?
In the contemporary period, this theme, involving the exploration of identity and belonging, is often explored in novels dealing with race, ethnicity, and immigration.
Who is Virginia Woolf?
This modernist writer’s novel Mrs. Dalloway uses the technique of free indirect discourse, blending the thoughts of different characters in a single narrative stream.
Who is T.S. Eliot?
This poet, often associated with modernism, wrote “The Waste Land,” a key work reflecting the fragmentation and disillusionment of the post-World War I era.
Movements in Contemporary Literature
Black Mountain Poets,Confessional Poetry, Beat Generation
What is realism?
The modernist period is known for its rejection of this literary style, which had been popular in the 19th century, characterized by its focus on realism and social issues.
What is postmodernism?
This narrative technique, used by authors like Thomas Pynchon and Don DeLillo, involves a self-aware, often ironic approach to storytelling, questioning the nature of reality and representation.
Who is Francis Scott Fitzgerald
Francis Scott Fitzgerald was an American novelist and short story writer, widely regarded as one of the greatest authors of the 20th century
Who is F. Scott Fitzgerald?
This author’s 1925 novel The Great Gatsby critiques the American Dream, set against the backdrop of the Roaring Twenties and the excesses of the Jazz Age.
Characteristics of Contemporary Period Literature
Reflects the current political, social, and broader personal issues of the time. Very realistic characters. Writing styles that are easy to read. The desire to experiment with new genres.
What is fragmentation?
Modernist works often reject traditional narrative structures in favor of fragmented, nonlinear plots. This reflects the impact of World War I on the perception of time and history.
What is magical realism?
The genre of magical realism blends fantastical elements with realistic settings. This style was popularized in contemporary literature by authors such as Isabel Allende.
who is Ernest Hemingway ?
Ernest Hemingway was an American novelist, short story writer, and journalist, often considered one of the most influential writers of the 20th century.
Alienation and Loss, give definition
Characters often feel like they don’t belong or can’t understand the world around them. They might be lost in a society that’s changing too fast for them to keep up.
What is Beloved?
This Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Toni Morrison, published in 1987, deals with the haunting effects of slavery and the ghosts that continue to shape African American identity.
The major work of Ernest Hemingway
The Sun Also Rises (1926)
This theme is especially evident in the work of authors like James Joyce and Virginia Woolf
The Search for Identity
Who is Kurt Vonnegut?
This author’s work Slaughterhouse-Five combines science fiction, history, and autobiography, centered around the bombing of Dresden in World War II.
the major work of Haruki Murakami
Kafka on the Shore