The Contemporary Period (1945-present)
Introduction
The contemporary period of literature was between the years 1945 and 1970. At this time in history, technology was expanding and the war was over. Since the fighting was over, Americans had to deal with the aftermath. Fortunately, World War I brought our country out of the deep despair and poverty from the Great Depression. It was a consumer economy. People began buying more goods and the economy benefitted. On the other hand, Americans held fear. They had seen so much death, and they lost their loved ones. They almost lost hope. Because of the disillusionment from the Modern period, people realized that war was not as good as it was expected to be. Our country became powerful, but Americans wanted to return to pre-war life. Americans also had to deal with racism that was sparked by the Civil War. The United States was trying to get back on its feet from the recent wars, as well as, deal with an ever changing country.
These changes were made evident in literature. Americans wanted all of the new technology, so they bought it. They needed money, so Americans tried very hard to become prosperous. They wanted the typical American dream of "Rags to Riches." Writers noticed this trend, and they used it to influence their literature. Authors wrote many stories about characters trying to achieve success, and dealing with the trials that came along with it.
The 1960's were troubling and rebellious years. Our President, John F. Kennedy, was shot and killed. Our country was also involved in the in the Vietnam War. The United States was not happy about the involvement with vietnam. After two world wars, Americans did not want to fight another war. They rebelled in a different way. They rebelled against the culture itself instead of the Government. In literature, this theme is obvious. Authors wrote about people that were dealing with any kind of rebellion, because our country was rebelling against itself.
The Civil War was over, but racism was not. Stories were based on the unfair advantage white people had over black people. Characters also struggled with figuring out what their American dream really was. The racism made our country question our beliefs and motives. Americans did not like how racism affected their country. Americans, as well as, the characters focused on establishing the true American dream was, and they tried to deal with racism and Civil rights. Americans began to see that all were not treated equal.
Although our country dealt with many struggles, we made it through. Wars and racism affected our society. There was a lot of hope lost. We became powerful, but Americans preferred the less powerful version of our country. They liked the country we had before the wars affected us. Consequently, they tried to change. They tried to become prosperous and achieve the American dream, or change it where it had faults. Americans also dealt with racism and civil rights to make our country fair and just. Authors let this reflect in their literature.
These changes were made evident in literature. Americans wanted all of the new technology, so they bought it. They needed money, so Americans tried very hard to become prosperous. They wanted the typical American dream of "Rags to Riches." Writers noticed this trend, and they used it to influence their literature. Authors wrote many stories about characters trying to achieve success, and dealing with the trials that came along with it.
The 1960's were troubling and rebellious years. Our President, John F. Kennedy, was shot and killed. Our country was also involved in the in the Vietnam War. The United States was not happy about the involvement with vietnam. After two world wars, Americans did not want to fight another war. They rebelled in a different way. They rebelled against the culture itself instead of the Government. In literature, this theme is obvious. Authors wrote about people that were dealing with any kind of rebellion, because our country was rebelling against itself.
The Civil War was over, but racism was not. Stories were based on the unfair advantage white people had over black people. Characters also struggled with figuring out what their American dream really was. The racism made our country question our beliefs and motives. Americans did not like how racism affected their country. Americans, as well as, the characters focused on establishing the true American dream was, and they tried to deal with racism and Civil rights. Americans began to see that all were not treated equal.
Although our country dealt with many struggles, we made it through. Wars and racism affected our society. There was a lot of hope lost. We became powerful, but Americans preferred the less powerful version of our country. They liked the country we had before the wars affected us. Consequently, they tried to change. They tried to become prosperous and achieve the American dream, or change it where it had faults. Americans also dealt with racism and civil rights to make our country fair and just. Authors let this reflect in their literature.
Literary Themes
Rebellion and the fight for the American dream were two main themes in the Contemporary period of literature. The assassination of our president is what sparked most rebellion. There was also rebellion within racism. African-Americans began to stand up for themselves. Women fought for their rights as well. Authors would write stories about people that stood up for what is right, or they wrote about rebellious people. Americans tried to discover what the American dream was. They originally thought it was prosperity, but it wasn't. They saw their culture becoming something terrible, so they tried to rediscover themselves. Literature told all about rediscovery of individuals, and the rebellion of individuals. It also told the stories of men and women dealing with be treated wrong because of their gender or race.
NelleHarper Lee
Nelle Harper Lee, a literary legend, was born April 28, 1926. Her parents were Amasa Coleman Lee and Frances Cunningham Finch Lee. She grew up in a small southern town, Monroeville, Alabama. Her father's career changed a few times. Throughout his life, he had been a newspaper editor, a proprietor, and a lawyer. For most of Harper Lee's childhood her father served as a lawyer on the state legislature. She was a very smart young girl; she was always interested in reading. She was not very girly, and she spent her time playing with Truman Capote. They remained friends throughout childhood. Although she had a very fun childhood, she was forced to grow up very fast.
Her dad's job left her no choice but to grow up and mature. Lee was exposed to many of his cases, which were mainly interracial. The first case young Lee was exposed to concerned the rape of two white women, and nine black men were blamed. A medical test showed that the girls had not been raped, but the defendants were still found guilty. All but one of the men were initially sentenced to death. The one boy that was not given this punishment was only freed because he was only twelve years old. Eventually, ten more men were freed or put on parole. One of them was put to death. These trials, along with many more, shaped Harper Lee. She did a lot of growing up because of her father.
Lee decided to go to college to further her education. She began at Huntington College in Montgomery, Alabama. After one year she transferred to the University of Alabama. During her time there, she also attended school abroad at Oxford University in England. After college, she worked as a reservations clerk for Eastern Airlines in New York. Then, she began to focus on her writing career. She would travel home to Alabama only to care for her sick father. She also went to Holcombe, Kansas as a research assistant for her childhood friend, Truman Capote, who was also a writer. She aided him in the process of writing "In Cold Blood."
One year after helping Capote write, Harper Lee wrote a book of her own in 1960. It was her only book; it was entitled To Kill a Mockingbird. Lee was surprisingly successful for for a one-time novelist. Her book sold more than fifteen million copies, and in 1961 it won a Pulitzer Prize. This novel was about the daughter of a lawyer in a small Southern town; the girl befriended a young boy. Harper Lee obviously let her own life influence her novel. To Kill a Mockingbird even told the story of a court case involving a white girl that claimed that a black man raped her. The black man was convicted. Her novel is a slightly different version of her life told on paper. The book was made into a movie in 1962.
This novel brought Harper Lee some unwanted fame. President Johnson named her to the National Council of Arts in 1966. She also received honorary doctorates. She never wrote another book. She preferred to stay out of the spotlight, it is very rare of her to appear in an interview. She did write a few very short essays, but nothing more than that was published.
Harper Lee remains in New York. Sometimes she returns to Monroeville, Alabama. She is such a talented writer, and many people are baffled by the fact that she didn't further pursue her writing career. The simplicity of her career might be what left the biggest impact. She didn't write for fame or fortune. She wrote because it is what she loved to do.
Her dad's job left her no choice but to grow up and mature. Lee was exposed to many of his cases, which were mainly interracial. The first case young Lee was exposed to concerned the rape of two white women, and nine black men were blamed. A medical test showed that the girls had not been raped, but the defendants were still found guilty. All but one of the men were initially sentenced to death. The one boy that was not given this punishment was only freed because he was only twelve years old. Eventually, ten more men were freed or put on parole. One of them was put to death. These trials, along with many more, shaped Harper Lee. She did a lot of growing up because of her father.
Lee decided to go to college to further her education. She began at Huntington College in Montgomery, Alabama. After one year she transferred to the University of Alabama. During her time there, she also attended school abroad at Oxford University in England. After college, she worked as a reservations clerk for Eastern Airlines in New York. Then, she began to focus on her writing career. She would travel home to Alabama only to care for her sick father. She also went to Holcombe, Kansas as a research assistant for her childhood friend, Truman Capote, who was also a writer. She aided him in the process of writing "In Cold Blood."
One year after helping Capote write, Harper Lee wrote a book of her own in 1960. It was her only book; it was entitled To Kill a Mockingbird. Lee was surprisingly successful for for a one-time novelist. Her book sold more than fifteen million copies, and in 1961 it won a Pulitzer Prize. This novel was about the daughter of a lawyer in a small Southern town; the girl befriended a young boy. Harper Lee obviously let her own life influence her novel. To Kill a Mockingbird even told the story of a court case involving a white girl that claimed that a black man raped her. The black man was convicted. Her novel is a slightly different version of her life told on paper. The book was made into a movie in 1962.
This novel brought Harper Lee some unwanted fame. President Johnson named her to the National Council of Arts in 1966. She also received honorary doctorates. She never wrote another book. She preferred to stay out of the spotlight, it is very rare of her to appear in an interview. She did write a few very short essays, but nothing more than that was published.
Harper Lee remains in New York. Sometimes she returns to Monroeville, Alabama. She is such a talented writer, and many people are baffled by the fact that she didn't further pursue her writing career. The simplicity of her career might be what left the biggest impact. She didn't write for fame or fortune. She wrote because it is what she loved to do.
Key Literary People
“Hiroshima” by John Hersey
“The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner” by Randall Jarrell
“The Life You Save May Be Your Own” by Flannery O’Connor
“The First Seven Years” by Bernard Malamud
“Constantly Risking Absurdity” by Lawrence Ferlinghetti
“Subway Birthday” by Charlie Todd
“Mirror” by Sylvia Plath
“Courage” by Anne Sexton
“Cuttings” by Theodore Roethke
“Cuttings (later)” by Theodore Roethke
“The Explorer” by Gwendolyn Brooks
“Frederick Douglass” by Robert Hayden
“One Art” by Elizabeth Bishop
“”Filling Station” by Elizabeth Bishop
“The Rockpile” by James Baldwin
“Life in His Language” by Toni Morrison
“Inaugural Address” by John Fitzgerald Kennedy
“Letter from Birmingham City Jail” by Martin Luther King Jr.
“The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
“Good Night, and Good Luck” by George Clooney and Grant Heslov
“The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner” by Randall Jarrell
“The Life You Save May Be Your Own” by Flannery O’Connor
“The First Seven Years” by Bernard Malamud
“Constantly Risking Absurdity” by Lawrence Ferlinghetti
“Subway Birthday” by Charlie Todd
“Mirror” by Sylvia Plath
“Courage” by Anne Sexton
“Cuttings” by Theodore Roethke
“Cuttings (later)” by Theodore Roethke
“The Explorer” by Gwendolyn Brooks
“Frederick Douglass” by Robert Hayden
“One Art” by Elizabeth Bishop
“”Filling Station” by Elizabeth Bishop
“The Rockpile” by James Baldwin
“Life in His Language” by Toni Morrison
“Inaugural Address” by John Fitzgerald Kennedy
“Letter from Birmingham City Jail” by Martin Luther King Jr.
“The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
“Good Night, and Good Luck” by George Clooney and Grant Heslov