American Literature After World War II

April 30th, 2012

Agenda

Brief WWII backgroundSocial/political effectsThe Beat Generation Introduction Writers (Videos) LegacyOther postwar novels

World War II

1939 – 1945 Involved many world powers Caused by Europe’s instability German treaties with Italy & Japan Invasion of Poland Pearl Harbor (1941) 45-60 million casualties United Nations USSR & US Cold War

Social / Political Aftermath

Life was dull and static Idyllic prosperity McCarthyism / Red Scare America = closed society Industrialization Atomic era (Cold War) Political uniformity Censorship

The Beat Generation“ A w h o l e b u n c h o f p e o p l e o f a l l n a t i o n a l i t i e s w h o b e l i e v e d s o c i e t y s u c k e d ”

Post WWII writers (1950’s) Rebellion against societal conservatism Embraced non-conformity Liberation of the spirit and mind Enlightenment (Eastern religions) Influences:  Thoreau, Emerson, Whitman Existentialism/transcendentalism Spontaneous prose (Whitman’s free verse) Counterculture effect: ‘The Beatniks’

Writers“ T h e f i r s t t h o u g h t i s t h e b e s t t h o u g h t ”

Jack Kerouac (1922 – 1969)On the Road 2012 Movie

Allen Ginsberg (1926 – 1997)Howl

William Burroughs (1914 – 1997)Naked Lunch

The Beat Goes On…

Set the tone for the 1960’s Music: The Beatles, Bob Dylan, etc. Art: Andy Warhol, Jackson Pollock Liberation from censorship Spiritual, sexual liberation Respect for nature/people Demystification of drugs Impact on literature

Postwar Novels

The End

Works Cited http://is.muni.cz/th/65693/pedf_m/diploma_thesis_dorian_marsalek.pdf http://www.sfu.ca/english/Gillies/Engl20701/amww2.htm http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?

c_id=466&objectid=10801124 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_literature#Depression-

era_literature http://www.worldwariihistory.info/WWII/aftermath.html http://www.museum.tv/eotvsection.php?entrycode=censorship http://zul.lakesideschool.org/lswiki/index.php?title=Beat_Poetry http://www.altx.com/io/beatgeneration.html http://www.bluesforpeace.com/beat-generation2.htm http://

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1315869/Germany-end-World-War-One-reparations-92-years-59m-final-payment.html

http://americanhistory.about.com/od/worldwarii/a/wwiioverview_4.htm