Post-War British Literature: A Look at The Movement and Beyond
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Post-War British Literature: A Look at The Movement and Beyond
The Cultural Landscape of Post-War Britain
The cultural landscape of the post-war period reflects a sense of fragmentation and absurdity, echoing the punk and anarchist movements and exemplified by the Theatre of the Absurd. This existential futility is underscored by the trauma of events like the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Consumerism created an illusion of prosperity, masking widespread disillusionment. This disappointment found its voice in the writings of the Angry Young Men.
The Angry Young Men
These writers, often from working-class backgrounds, found themselves alienated from both the middle and working classes. Key figures included John Osborne, John Braine, and Alan Sillitoe. Their work highlighted the contradictions and frustrations of their generation.
The Movement: A Reaction Against Modernism
The Movement was a group of poets, largely from middle-class and Oxbridge backgrounds, who shared a common perspective. Their poetry embraced realism, rejecting modernism and romanticism. While some maintained this style, others later diverged. Key poets included Philip Larkin, Ted Hughes, and Seamus Heaney.
Characteristics of The Movement Poetry:
- Reaction against the poetry of Dylan Thomas
- Sparse use of imagery
- Lucid, technical, and smooth style
- Opposition to the Thirties poets in social and political terms
Other characteristics of the movement included:
- Anti-romantic attitude
- Rejection of tradition
Elizabeth Jennings, while part of The Movement, offered a distinct voice, focusing on interior feelings in her work.
Philip Larkin's Poetry: Key Features
Larkin's poetry is characterized by:
- Silence: Larkin described his books as "interruptions of silence"
- The passing of time and oblivion
- An attempt to preserve humanity and past values
- Use of dramatic monologues and mask lyrics
- Detachment: the poet's ability to detach half of their soul
- A search for less-deceived positions, acknowledging the hidden nature of truth
- Traces of Romanticism