Contemporary/Postmodern Literature(1950-Present)

Lit Book pg. 905

Major Events/Eras• 1945: the Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima brings in the Nuclear

Age– Mushroom cloud represents both the height

of scientific ingenuity and its potential for total destruction

• 1960s: Vietnam war sharply divides the nation, causes American disillusionment (again)

• 1970s: The Watergate Scandal and America’s Bicentennial sharply contrast disappointment and patriotism

• 1980s: Regarded as the “Me Generation”; saw the end of the Cold War

• Has the concept of the individual been lost in the fast-paced, computerized world?

Contemporary Fiction• Postmodernism: a term still being defined; sees contemporary

culture as change from modernism• Postmodern writers allow for multiple meanings and multiple

worlds• Postmodernists ask themselves, “Why choose one version? Why

limit ourselves?”• Structured in nontraditional forms and does not follow

conventional rules• Literature comments upon and critique itself; encourages readers

to come up with their own interpretation• Contemporary fiction incredibly diverse, blends genres and time

periods• Gallows Humor: ironic humor arising from acknowledging the

absurd or grotesque

Contemporary Nonfiction• Since the 1970s, nonfiction also

considered art• Problems with nonfiction:– Traditional literary terms don’t apply– Ideas of accuracy and truth

• New Journalism– Uses literary devices– Does not keep personal opinions/

experiences out of writing

Truman Capote

Tom Wolfe

Hunter S.Thompson

Contemporary Poetry• Modernist poetry (impersonal and intellectual)

declined after WWII• Poets felt the need to challenge 1950s culture of

conformity• The Beat Poets– Focused on ideas of

nonconformity and self expression (Howl by Allen Ginsberg)

– Beat lifestyle included poetry, jazz, late night coffee houses

– Places like San Francisco and Greenwich Village (NYC)

I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness…

Contemporary Poetry• Confessional School – Poets focused on their own private

lives (unlike the Moderns)– Deals with personal experiences frankly

and sometimes brutally• Overall, American poetry since the

1970s characterized by its diversity, reflecting growing diversity of American audiences

Full Circle• Contemporary fiction still deals with universal

themes as American Literature from the 1800s• Today’s literature takes influence from

Transcendentalists, Dark Romantics…. and even the Puritans