HISTORY, BACKGROUND AND MAIN EVENTS OF THE POST MODERN PERIOD: 1950s – 2000s After the Second World War A reaction against ‘Modern’ sensibilities Also had certain similarities to the Modern Age. After WW II the power dynamics turned and US became a world power instead of Britain. Cold War Post Colonialism Theatre Act of 1968: Abolished censorship of the stage in the UK. Theatre bloomed up in Britain again. Lord Chamberlain’s Office was abolished. Lord Chamberlain’s office was responsible for the reading of scripts and passing of them – kind of like a censor board. THE LITERARY CHARACTERISTICS OF THE POST MODERN WRITING: Pastiche: Taking up old ideas and writings and pasting them together to form a new write up. Inter-textualities: Acknowledging/Referencing one literary work in another literary works. Similar to that of Modern Writers. Metafiction: Art of writing about writing. Making readers about the fictional nature of the fiction they’re reading. Example:The Thought Fox by Ted Hughes. Temporal Distortion: Use of non-linear timelines and narrative techniques in a story. Minimalism: Use of characters, plots and settings that are decidedly common and not exceptional. Maximalism: Organized, lengthy and highly detailed writing. Example:Ulysses by James Joyce.
Very much related to inter-textuality. Magic Realism: Introduction of impossible or unrealistic events into a narrative that is otherwise realistic. Faction: Mixing of actual historical events with fictional events without clearly defining what is fact and what is fiction. Different from Historical fiction – In Historical fiction, we know what the actual history is. Reader Involvement: Direct address to the readers. Open acknowledgement of the fictional nature of events.
NOVELISTS OF POST MODERN PERIOD: 1)Agatha Christie: b.1890 – d.1976 ‘Queen of Crime’ Did not attend school; no formal education. Follower of Arthur Conan Doyle. Served in a hospital during WWI She was rejected 6 times by publishers. During WWII, she worked as a pharmacy assistant. She wanted to have the knowledge of poison. Married to Archie Christie who had an affair with another woman. Knowing of the affair, Agatha Christie disappeared for 11 days. Guinness Book of World Records lists Agatha Christie 3rdafter Shakespeare and Bible in the list of most read/most quoted writer. Works: i.The Mysterious Affair at Styles: 1920 First novel. Introduces Hercule Poirot. One of the first ten books published by Penguin Books. ii.The Murder of Roger Ackroyd: 1926 Hercule Poirot retires to his friend’s village where he finds thata murder has taken place. iii.And Then There Were None: 1939 Originally published as ‘Ten Little Niggers’ About a group of people who are lured to an island and killed.
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