[Engels] Geschiedenis van de Engelse literatuur

Engeland kent een grote geschiedenis van literatuur, de 20e eeuw heeft voor Engeland een aantal grote schrijvers voortgebracht en er is veel gebeurt in de literatuur geschiedenis van Engeland in de 20e eeuw. Hier een beknopte beschrijving van deze geschiedenis.

1940-1970

This period started with the horrific second World War. Germany was punished so severely after WW1 that they had no other option than to start a war again. Hitler built his Reich on the economy of war. After this war the Marshall plan made sure that all countries could rebuild their economy.
England was never occupied and therefore not eligible to receive funds from the Marshall plan. This means that the British economy recovered more slowly than the economies of the other countries in Europe. Add to this the fact that the empire the British once had was now totally independent you can imagine that England and the United Kingdom had a tough time recovering.
The world is now in the hands of two superpowers who in a joint effort defated the German army. America and Russia rule the world and they heavily mistrust each other. The atmosphere of Cold War and the threat of a nuclear war weigh heavily on the minds of those that lived in that age.

In Europe the governments decide that they have to create welfare states. Leftish governments are elected all over Europe and the united States fears all that seems like communism. The united States get involved in a number of conflicts in shich they always try to fight expanding communism. Vietnam is the best example. Another good example of the mistrust and nearly escalating conflict is the Cuba-crisis, which nearly prompted a WW3

1970-now

In Great Britain the unions go regularly on strike crippling the economy and by the end of the nineteen seventies England is clearly behind in their development compared to the other European nations. The troubles in Northern Ireland become more and more and often lead to violent clashes between army and protesters. England is fed up with the government of its time and it chooses the Iron Lady to rule the country. After a long rule the British again turned to labour to rule their country.
In the United states the country is literally ripped apart. The older generatoin and younger genration clash over issues like politics, war etc. The young generation becomes very anti government, since the government is a corrupt political system destroying the lives of peace loving individuals.
The gap between black and white is still enormous in the US and this leads to radical and violent black organisations like the Black Panther and the Black Muslims.
The Watergate affair was the deepest scar in this age. The belief in politics was gone and the idea that the government manipulated the people was proven. America balanced on the edge of a civil war until President Reagan united the country. From this moment on the feeling of "one nation under God" has steadily increased. The atrocities of September eleventh 2001 have shown how united the country is today.
In art the British artists used their art to rebel against all conventions. The Beatles, Rolling Stones used lyrics that breathed protest. In the United States we see that the young generation is also rebelling in art against the older generation.

Poetry

Poetry in the modern era has become very diverse. It is those who try something new that get the attention. Although there is always a very thin line between something new and something absurd.
The poets of these days are no longer craftsmen. This means that they don't restrict themselves to certain rules like 10 syllables in one line, a certain rhyme scheme or figures of speech. These says poetry is much more about conveying a certain feeling to your audience. Since modernism it is also no longer necessary to understand poetry, you have to undergo it.
The subjects of poetry have not changed. Some are very social and others have to do with the ancient topics of love, hate, death and nature. © 2006 - 2008 Sonisch, gepubliceerd in Buitenlands (Educatie en School) op 11-12-2006. Het auteursrecht van dit artikel ligt bij de infoteur. Zonder toestemming van Sonisch is vermenigvuldiging van dit artikel verboden. Meer...

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