Characteristics of 20th Century Poetry

 Introduction

The modern English poetry might be said to have begun from 1911, when The
Everlasting Mercy of John Masefield was published; but it can be said to have also begun from
Thomas Hardy. Some of the last Victorians were the first Moderns. Therefore, it is so difficult to
say where it exactly began from.

Modern poetry in English marked with a democratic note, cynicism and realism. It is
much more complex than Victorian poetry. Modern English poets are perfect rebels in matters
of style and diction. There is an outstanding variety of themes in modern poetry.

 What is Modern Drama?

The drama which had suffered steep decline during the Victorian Age was revived with
great force at the beginning of the 20th century and the course of six decades has witnessed
many trends and currents in the 20th-century drama. The drama of Modernist Movement in
England was much less innovative in technique than it was its poetry and novel.

 Characteristics

[1] Realism

Realism is the most significant and outstanding quality of the Modern English Drama.
The dramatists of the earlier years of the 20th century were interested in naturalism and it was
their try to deal with real problems of life in a realistic technique to their plays. It was Henrik
Ibsen, the Norwegian dramatist who popularized realism in Modern Drama. He dealt with the
 problems of real life in a realistic manner of his play. His example was followed by Robertson
Arthur Jones, Galsworthy and G. B. Shaw in their plays.

[2] Rise of Problem Plays

Modern drama has developed the Problem Play and there are many Modern Dramatists
who have written a number of problem plays in our times. They dealt with the problems of
marriage, justice, law, administration, and strife between capital and labor in their dramas.
They used theatre as a means for bringing about reforms in the conditions of society prevailing
in their days. Henrik Ibsen’s play A Doll’s House is a good example of problem play.

[3] Drama of Ideas

Modern Drama is essentially a drama of ideas rather than action. The stage is used by
dramatists to give expression to certain ideas which they want to spread in the society. The
Modern Drama dealing with the problems of life has become far more intelligent than ever it
was in the history of drama before the present age. With the treatment of actual life, the drama
became more and more a drama of ideas, sometimes veiled in the main action, sometimes
didactically act forth. G. B. Shaw holds a special place for his Drama of Ideas Man and
Superman.

[4] Romanticism

The earlier dramatists of the 20th century were Realists at the core, but the passage of
time brought in, a new trend in Modern Drama. Romanticism, which had been very dear to
Elizabethan Dramatists found its way in Modern Drama and it was mainly due to Sir J.M.
Barrie’s efforts that the new wave of Romanticism swept over Modern Drama for some years of
the 20th century. Barrie kept aloof from realities of life and made excursions into the world of
 Romance. The Professor’s Love Story, Mary Rose and What Every Woman Knows are the
examples of it.

[5] Revival of Comedy of Manners

There is a revival of Comedy of Manners in modern dramatic literature. Oscar Wild,

Maugham, N. Coward etc. have done much to revive the comedy of wit in our days. The drama
after the second has not exhibited a love for comedy and the social conditions of the period
after the war is not very favorable for the development of the artificial comedy of the
Restoration Age. The reputation of Oscar Wilde as a playwright rests on A Woman of No
Importance and The Importance of Being Earnest.

[6] Impressionism

It is a movement that shows that effects of things and events on the mind of the artist
and the attempt of the artist to express his expressions. Impressionism constitutes another
important feature of modern drama. In the impressionistic plays of W.B. Yeats, the main effort
is in the direction of recreating the experience of the artist and his impressions about reality
rather than in presenting reality as it is. Some of the best dramas are Land of Heart’s Desire and
The Hour Glass.

[7] Influence of Irish Theatre Movement

L A new trend in the Modern English Drama was introduced by the Irish dramatists who
brought about the Celtic Revival in the literature. In the hands of the Irish dramatists like Yeats,
J.M. Synge, T.C. Murray etc. drama ceased to be realistic in character and became an expression
of the hopes and aspirations of the Irish people from aspirations of the Irish people from
remote ways to their own times.
[8] Expressionism

It is a movement that tries to express the feelings and emotions of the people rather
than objects and events. Expressionism is another important feature of modern drama. It marks
an extreme reaction against the naturalism. The movement which had started early in Germany
made its way in England drama and several modern dramatists like J.B. Priestly, Sean O’ Casey,
C.K. Munro, Elmer Rice have made experiments in the expressionistic tendency in modern
drama.

[9] Lack of Dramatic Action

One of the distinguishing features of Modern English Drama is a lack of dramatic action.
The Modern English Drama is more of an intellectual affair and it lays much emphasis on
discussion rather than action.

 Conclusion

The development of Modern Drama that began in the last decades of the nineteenth
century is characterized as the Renaissance of English Drama. Whatever confusion there may
be and whatever failure may occur, however, it is certain that the Renaissance of English Drama
heralded in the nineties of the last century has not lost its vital force, and the Modern Drama is
a tremendous literary force in twentieth century literature.

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 Characteristics of 20th Century Poetry

 Introduction

Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thought has found
words.

The modern English poetry might be said to have begun from 1911, when The
Everlasting Mercy of John Masefield was published; but it can be said to have also begun from
Thomas Hardy. Some of the last Victorians were the first Moderns. Therefore, it is so difficult to
say where it exactly began from.

Modern poetry in English marked with a democratic note, cynicism and realism. It is
much more complex than Victorian poetry. Modern English poets are perfect rebels in matters
of style and diction. There is an outstanding variety of themes in modern poetry.

 Characteristics

[1] Humanism and Democratic Notes

Modern poetry is marked with a note of humanitarianism and democratic feeling. The
modern poets, more than Wordsworth, are interested in the life of laborers and workers and
others. Masefield, Gibson, Goldsworthy are mainly interested in the common man and his
sufferings. In their poetry, there is a note of sympathy for their struggles and sufferings.
Masefield’s Consecration is a representative poem bringing out the modern poets’ concern
with the life of common people. The poet says –
 Other may sing of the wine

And the wealth and the mirth,

The poetry presence of Potentates goodly in girth,

Mine be the dirt and the dross,

The dust and the scum of the earth.

[2] Realism

The poetry of the 20th century is marked with a note of realism. Realism in modern
poetry was the product of a reaction against the pseudo-romanticism of the last century over
and above the influence of science. The modern poet sees life and paints it as it is with all its
wait and ugliness. He tears the veil which the romanticists had hug between life and art. Robert
Frost, Edmund Blunden, and Gibson are the poets of realism in modern poetry. The best
expression of realism in modern poetry is also found among the war poets.

[3] Imagism

Imagism is another important characteristic of Modern poetry. The origins of Imagism

and cubist poetry are to be found in two poems by T. E. Hulme that were published in 1909 by
the Poets' Club in London. The Imagist Movement was given rise by T. E. Hulme. The imagists
reacted against Georgian poetry which they criticized facite. The imagists argued that the
Georgians were escapists. Hulme insisted that the poetry should restrict itself to the world
perceived by the sense. The imagists defined poetry as –

Poetry is the presentation of a visual situation in the fewest possible concrete

words.
 The lead given by Hulme was followed by Ezra Pound and Hilda Doolittle. In the beginning, Mr.
Eliot came under the influence of the Imagists Movement started by T. E. Hulme. It was this
background that T. S. Eliot appeared with his The Waste Land in 1922.

[4] Romanticism

Inspite of the preponderance of realism in modern poetry, the spirit of romance

continuous to sway the minds of certain poets like Walter De La Mare, W. B. Yeats, John
Masefield and Edward Thomas. The works of these poets have proven the fact that the spirit of
romance is as old as life itself. Walter De La Mare’s poetry is saturated with the true romantic
spirit boarding on supernaturalism. The dim moonlight of romance and chivalry hovers over the
early poems of Gibson. In these poems, the voice of the true romanticism is heard in the
following lines:

The Song of Lovers and She Praised my Songs,

The White the King Looked on her with cold Eyes.

[5] Pessimism

There is a note of pessimism and disillusionment in modern poetry. The modern poet
has realized the pettiness of human life and the tragedy and suffering of the poor have made
him gloomy and sad.

Poetry as the expression of the feeling has become autumnal in tone T. Hardy, Huxley
and T.S. Eliot are the poets of Pessimism and disillusionment in modern poetry. The Waste Land
by T. S. Eliot presents before us the immense panorama of futility and anarchy which is
contemporary history. A note of Pessimism can be seen in the following lines of The Waste
Land –

What are the roots that clutch?

What branches grow

Out of this story rubbish? Son of man

 You cannot say or guess, for you know only,

A heap of broken images.

[6] Mysticism

The modern age is the age of science, but even in this scientific age, we have poems
written on the subject of religion and mysticism. G. K. Chesterton, W.B. Yeats, Francis
Thompson, Robert Graves are the great poets who have kept alive the flame of mysticism in
their poetry. The poetry of W. B. Yeats is marked with a mystical dream like quality. One of the
most notable aspects of his poetry is his imagery. Chesterton, being the great mystic poet of
modern age, evokes the feelings of mysticism in his poems Ballad of White Horse and The
House of Christmas.

[7] Complexity and Psychology

Some modern poets are interested in delving deep into the recesses of the subconscious
mind. Some of the poems of T. S. Eliot and Ezra Pound are difficult to follow because of their
psychological complexity and difficult imagery. In the last hundred years, complexity has been
more and more heavily born in all of us.

[8] Love and Nature

Love forms the subject of many modern lyrics Robert Bridges has produced fine sonnets
of Love in The Growth of Love. I Will Not Let Thee Go are some of the lyrics that shows Love
in the poetry. W.B. Yeats’ When You are Old is a fine poem of Love.

Nature attracts the modern poet no less than the poets of the earlier ages. But for the
modern poet, nature is not a mystic. He does not find any spiritual meaning in nature. He feels
jolly at the sight of nature’s loveliness. Masefield, Robert Bridges, Edmund Blunden etc are the
great poets of nature in modern poetry.
[9] New Styles

Modern poets have a preference for simple and direct expression. Modern poets have
chosen to be free in the use of meter. They have followed freedom from trammels of verse.
Verse rhythm is replaced by sense rhythm. There is free movement in 20th-century English
poetry.

 Conclusion

Thus, the modern poetry has almost everything in it – stark realism, some romanticism,
spirituality, mysticism, new techniques, nature description, love for beauty, vision and
frustration and some other things. In short, modern poetry is the reflection of modern life. It is
realistic in tone and expresses the spirit of the age. It can safely take it place of pride in the
kingdom of poetry produced from the time of Chaucer to the modern times.

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 Use of Symbols in Sons and Lovers

 Introduction

David Herbert Lawrence was an English novelist, poet, playwright, literary critic and
painter. He was born in Eastwood, Nottinghamshire in England in 1885. D. H. Lawrence was one
of the most remarkable figures in literary world between the two wars. He was the novelist of
physical passion and animalism. Lawrence’s style is vigorous and forceful.

Sons and Lovers is a 1913 novel by the English writer D. H. Lawrence. The Modern
Library placed it ninth on their list of the 100 best novels of the 20th century. It is today
regarded as a masterpiece by many critics and is often regarded as Lawrence's finest
achievement. In Sons and Lovers, Lawrence makes an effort to resolve his deep emotional crisis
by projecting in fiction and thereby sees it more clearly. It is a deliberate exploration of an
experience that has not been fully understood in real Life.

 Theme of The Novel

[1] Oedipus Complex

Lawrence’s novel Sons and Lovers deals with Oedipus Complex. However, Lawrence’s
treatment of this complex is problematic n order to create a dramatic effect. D. H. Lawrence
uses theme of Oedipus Complex to explore Paul’s relationship with his mother.

[2] Family
The book is titled Sons and Lovers, so it must be about family. The conflicts within a family
throughout the novel shows the use of the theme of Family especially the weird webs of love
and hate that form between people who've known each other their entire lives.
[3] Passion
Each of the characters in Sons and Lovers feels overcome with passion at some point in the
novel. Mrs. Morel passionately loves her sons, William and Paul. However, both boys struggle
to find their own passions under the suffocating shadow of their mother's love for them.

[4] Love
The theme of love is perhaps the main theme of the novel. In Sons and Lovers, love has been
treated in an unusual manner. Miriam satisfies Paul’s spiritual needs; his longing for physical
love is satisfied by his affair with Clara.

 Characters in The Novel

[1] Walter Morel Walter Morel is the patriarch of the Morel family. He is a hard-drinking,
often violent coal miner who swings between abusing his family and
feeling guilty for hurting them. His family, especially Mrs. Morel, despises
him.

[2] Gertrude Morel Gertrude Morel is the mother of Paul and William who has unhappy
marriage with Walter Morel. She suffocates them with her obsessive love.
She is first obsessed with William, but his death leaves her empty and
redirects her energies toward Paul.

[3] William Morel William Morel is the oldest child in the Morel family and the initial focus
of Mrs. Morel's obsessive love. His death plunges Mrs. Morel into grief.

[4] Paul Morel Paul Morel is the artistic third child in the Morel family. He is the
protagonist of the novel and is sensitive, temperamental, (a painter), and
unceasingly devoted to his mother.
 [5] Miriam Leivers Miriam is a virginal, religious girl who lives on a farm near the Morels, and
she is Paul's first love. However, their relationship takes ages to move
beyond the Platonic and into the romantic. They seem destined for
romance but have different views of passion and commitment.

[6] Clara Dawes Clara is an older women estranged from her husband, Baxter Dawes. She
is the sensual older woman and has an affair with Paul after his break up
with Miriam.

[7] Baxter Dawes Baxter Dawes is Clara's estranged husband. He resents Paul for taking
Clara, but over time both the men become friends.

 Coal – Pits: A Concrete Reality

The Coal – Pits, standing on the horizon, are the presenters of a concrete reality. The
entire life of the mining community depicted in the novel depends upon the coal-pits. The coat-
pits are not indispensable for a better understanding of the novel but they are symbolic of a
particular attitude towards life. Paul associates with them not only with virility but also being
alive. The descent and ascent of the coal pits is a symbol of the sexual rhythm or a rhythm of
sleep and awakening. The naturalness of the coal pits stand in contrast against the artificial way
of life of the sophisticated people.

 Blood Tie between Mrs. Morel and Paul

In the very beginning of the novel when Mrs. Morel has a quarrel with her husband, in
an outrage of anger she is hit with a drawer which is flung at her. The wound bleeds profusely
and two drops of blood fall on the hair of Paul who is in the hands of Mrs. Morel at the
moment. The blood is not cleared away but it gets soaked in to the scalp of Paul. This small
incident is symbolic of the disillusioned and tattering relationship of the husband and wife and
 the subsequent reversal of attitude of Mrs. Morel towards her husband and the ultimate
substitution of her sons in place of her husband. The scene is also symbolic of the contract of
soul between the mother and son which is sealed with a blood tie.

 Benediction from Nature

Lawrence makes nature send its benediction to his characters who wish to live willfully.
He fiercely condemns anything that obstructs the natural flow of Life. In a scene before Paul’s
birth, Mr. Morel shuts out Mrs. Morel into the garden. Here she feels the presence of nature
under the blinding August moon. Along with the child, she felt herself melting away in the
moonlight. Later, when she is allowed into the house by Mr. Morel, she smiles upon herself
seeing her face smeared with the yellow dust of lilies. This yellow dust is symbolic of the kiss of
benediction for both the mother and the child.

 The Symbols of Flowers

The scenes of picking flowers are quite symbolic. It takes place when Paul, Miriam and
Clara are all together walking in an open field with many “Clusters of Strong Flowers.” All of
them started to pick flowers. Though, there is a natural beauty in his bunches, Paul picks
flowers almost scientifically. Miriam, though she picks the flowers lovingly and reverentially yet
she seems to derive the life out of them; her bunches lack elegance. But Clara does not pick
them at all, defiantly asserting that flowers should not be picked because it kills them. What she
means to say is that she does not want to be picked by any man.

 Symbol of Swing

The Swing at Willey Farm is symbolic of the love – hate relation that is characteristic of
Paul – Miriam relationship. Similar to the background and forward movement of the swing, Paul
loves Miriam for one thing but suddenly hates her for another. Though, his hatred for her is also
 transitory and is soon replaced with love. Hence, the movement of the swing symbolizes the
two extremes of their attitude towards each other. Love for one moment and hate the other
moment.

 Conclusion

Inspite of being a great novel, it cannot be denied that the novel Sons and Lovers does
suffer from certain down backs. In the end, the novel looses earlier interest. But to the last,
despite its few flaws, the novel is a great work of art and its reading provides one with a rich
and satisfying experience.

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 Oedipus Complex in Sons and Lovers

 Introduction

David Herbert Lawrence was an English novelist, poet, playwright, literary critic and
painter. He was born in Eastwood, Nottinghamshire in England in 1885. D. H. Lawrence was one
of the most remarkable figures in literary world between the two wars. He was the novelist of
physical passion and animalism. Lawrence’s style is vigorous and forceful.

Sons and Lovers is a 1913 novel by the English writer D. H. Lawrence. The Modern
Library placed it ninth on their list of the 100 best novels of the 20th century. It is today
regarded as a masterpiece by many critics and is often regarded as Lawrence's finest
achievement. In Sons and Lovers, Lawrence makes an effort to resolve his deep emotional crisis
by projecting in fiction and thereby sees it more clearly. It is a deliberate exploration of an
experience that has not been fully understood in real Life.

 Theme of The Novel

[1] Oedipus Complex

Lawrence’s novel Sons and Lovers deals with Oedipus Complex. However, Lawrence’s
treatment of this complex is problematic n order to create a dramatic effect. D. H. Lawrence
uses theme of Oedipus Complex to explore Paul’s relationship with his mother.

[2] Family
The book is titled Sons and Lovers, so it must be about family. The conflicts within a family
throughout the novel shows the use of the theme of Family especially the weird webs of love
and hate that form between people who've known each other their entire lives.
[3] Passion
Each of the characters in Sons and Lovers feels overcome with passion at some point in the
novel. Mrs. Morel passionately loves her sons, William and Paul. However, both boys struggle
to find their own passions under the suffocating shadow of their mother's love for them.

[4] Love
The theme of love is perhaps the main theme of the novel. In Sons and Lovers, love has been
treated in an unusual manner. Miriam satisfies Paul’s spiritual needs; his longing for physical
love is satisfied by his affair with Clara.

 Characters in The Novel

[1] Walter Morel Walter Morel is the patriarch of the Morel family. He is a hard-drinking,
often violent coal miner who swings between abusing his family and
feeling guilty for hurting them. His family, especially Mrs. Morel, despises
him.

[2] Gertrude Morel Gertrude Morel is the mother of Paul and William who has unhappy
marriage with Walter Morel. She suffocates them with her obsessive love.
She is first obsessed with William, but his death leaves her empty and
redirects her energies toward Paul.

[3] William Morel William Morel is the oldest child in the Morel family and the initial focus
of Mrs. Morel's obsessive love. His death plunges Mrs. Morel into grief.

[4] Paul Morel Paul Morel is the artistic third child in the Morel family. He is the
protagonist of the novel and is sensitive, temperamental, (a painter), and
unceasingly devoted to his mother.
 [5] Miriam Leivers Miriam is a virginal, religious girl who lives on a farm near the Morels, and
she is Paul's first love. However, their relationship takes ages to move
beyond the Platonic and into the romantic. They seem destined for
romance but have different views of passion and commitment.

[6] Clara Dawes Clara is an older women estranged from her husband, Baxter Dawes. She
is the sensual older woman and has an affair with Paul after his break up
with Miriam.

[7] Baxter Dawes Baxter Dawes is Clara's estranged husband. He resents Paul for taking
Clara, but over time both the men become friends.

 Meaning of Oedipus Complex

Oedipus complex is a term used by Sigmund Freud in his theory of psychosexual stages
of development to describe a child's feelings of desire for his or her opposite-sex parent and
jealousy and anger toward his or her same-sex parent.

The name Oedipus has been derived from the Greek mythology, according to which
Oedipus was the son of King Louis of Thebes. He was prophesied to kill his own father and
marry his mother and have children by her. However, he had done all this unknowingly and
when the truth was finally revealed to him, he blinded himself. And therefore, the term
Oedipus Complex began to use.

 Oedipus Complex in Lawrence

It has now been established that Lawrence, in trying to portray his own experiences in
Sons and Lovers, also brings out the fact that he himself was a victim of Oedipus Complex. His
mother, Lynda Lawrence, had a very strong hold on him. In 1910, Lawrence hastened the
publication of the White Peacock so that his dying mother could see it during her life – time.
 Lawrence’s early poems are also a witness to the fact that Lawrence and his mother loved each
other.

 Oedipus Complex in Sons and Lovers

In his discussion of Sons and Lovers, Graham Hough once said that –

The whole situation in the novel presents the Oedipus in almost classic
completeness.

Disillusioned with her husband Walter Morel, Mrs. Morel gradually casts him off and
takes her two sons William and Paul as substitutes one after the other, wrecking their
emotional life. Thus, the whole novel presents to us the Oedipus Complex of it.

Apart from Mrs. Morel, William, Miriam, Paul and Clara also shown to have Oedipus
Complex throughout the novel Sons and Lovers.

 Oedipus Complex in Mrs. Morel

The damaging influence of the mother – fixation in the story is not only confined to
William but also it extends more intensely in the case of Paul Morel and his relationship with
Miriam and Clara. It was the poor health of Paul forced his mother to pay special attention to
him. He was very much dependent on his mother and trotted after her like a shadow. Later, he
is shown to love her.

 Oedipus Complex within Family

Gertrude Morel and Walter Morel married at younger age of their. Their life was happy
but it did not last long. Mr. Morel started to drink and both of them started to quarrel with
each other. Mrs. Morel started feeling frustrated with her husband’s behavior. William and Paul
resented their father and readily fought for the cause of their mother. The mother, totally
 frustrated and disgusted with her husband, turned for emotional fulfillment towards her sons
and turned them into husband – substitutes. Therefore, here, we can say that there is Oedipus
Complex within the Morel Family in Sons and Lovers.

 Conclusion

Inspite of being a great novel, it cannot be denied that the novel Sons and Lovers does
suffer from certain down backs. In the end, the novel looses earlier interest. But to the last,
despite its few flaws, the novel is a great work of art and its reading provides one with a rich
and satisfying experience.

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 Look Back in Anger as a Dark Comedy

 Introduction

John James Osborne was an English playwright, screenwriter and actor, born in 1929 in
London. He is known for his excoriating prose and intense critical stance towards established
social and political norms. The success of his 1956 play Look Back in Anger transformed English
theatre.

Look Back in Anger is a realist play of 1956 written by John Osborne. The play focuses on
the life and marital struggles of an intelligent and educated but disaffected young man Jimmy
Porter and his equally competent, his wife, Allison. Osborne drew inspiration from his personal
life and failing marriage with Pamela Lane while writing Look Back in Anger.

 Theme of The Play

[1] Love and Innocence

Jimmy believes that Love is Pain. Suddenly, when Helena decides to leave him at the end of the
play, Jimmy reacts with scorn and derision. He says –

Love is Strength and guts.

[2] Class and Education

Alison and Jimmy’s relationship is the main place where class tension unfolds. Alison was from
an upper class background that is very different from Jimmy’s background which creates
conflicts between them. Also the theme of education is an important part of the play.
[3] Anger and Hatred

Jimmy Porter operates out of a deep well of anger. His anger is directed at those he loves
because they refuse to have strong feelings, at a society that did not fulfill promises of
opportunity, and at those who smugly assume their places in the social and power structure
and who do not care for others.

 Characters in The Play

[1] Jimmy Porter Jimmy Porter is the play's main character. He is the "Angry
Young Man" who expresses his frustration for the lack of
feelings in his placid domestic life. He can be considered as the
hero of the play. He can also be considered a villain for the
ways in which his anger proves to be destructive to those in his
life.

[2] Alison Porter Alison Porter is Jimmy's wife. She comes from Britain's upper
class, but married into Jimmy's working class lifestyle.

[3] Helena Charles Helena Charles is Alison's best friend. She lives with them in
their apartment while visiting for work. Helena is from an
upper class family. She is responsible for getting Alison to leave
Jimmy.

[4] Cliff Lewis Cliff is a friend to both Jimmy and Alison. Cliff lives with them
in their attic apartment. He is a working class Welsh man and
Jimmy makes sure to often point out that he is "common" and
uneducated.

[5] Colonel Redfern Colonel Redfern is Alison's father. He was a military leader in
India for many years before returning with his family to
England.
 Meaning of Dark Comedy
Dark comedy, also known as Black Comedy, is a comic style that makes light of
subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to discuss.

This species of comedy is so called because of an element of cynicism and bitterness in

it. Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure is the best example of dark comedy. This play is cynical
and bitter and hence the best presenter of the darker side of comedy.

 New Kind of Drama

The staging of Osborne’s Look Back in Anger heralded the beginning of new age in the
history of English drama. Look Back in Anger is an important landmark for Osborne because it
introduced new kind of drama to the English stage, not because it was a categorized with the
comedies of Sheridan or Oscar Wilde. The theme of the play is basically the hidden class war
between those who have grown up in comfortable middle – class homes. Thus, the play marks a
beginning of a new kind of drama in English literature.

 The Angry Young Man

The popularity of Look Back in Anger can be traced with the use of phrase “Angry Young
Man.” This phrase came to be associated with those who, like Jimmy Porter, were unhappy
with the injustice and inequality which seemed to loom large in British Empire despite the
recent “Victory for Democracy” in the World War II.

 Look Back in Anger as a Dark Comedy

Look Back in Anger can be taken as a Dark Comedy as it has the elements of bitterness
and cynicism and presents the darker side of Life. The hero of the play Jimmy Porter is the
representative of the frustrated British youths victimized by the British social set up through his
bitter comments mocks at the contemporary society, making fun of people and institutions. His
 wit is marked by sarcasm and bitterness. We get the best example of his bitter with against
Alison and her family. Through the comic elements, he mocks at the religious practices of the
people like sacrificing animals and offering their blood. The darker side of Life is presented in
the play. And therefore the play can strongly be considered as a Dark Comedy.

 Other Dark Comedies

The Birthday Party, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? A Resounding Tinkle are some of the
best examples of Dark Comedies of English Literature.

 Conclusion

Look Back in Anger is considered one of the most important plays in the modern British
theater. Osborne presents strong bitterness of the society with humour in the play. The two
iconic motifs of the play are the aforementioned concepts of the Angry Young Man and the
Kitchen Sink drama. This established the play's notoriety and helped it eventually build an
audience.

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 Aldous Huxley

Born: July 26, 1894

Death: November 22, 1963

Profession: Writer, Novelist

Education: Balliol College, Oxford

 Life and Career

Aldous Leonard Huxley was an English philosopher, writer and novelist born in 1894 in
Surrey, England. He was educated from Balliol College, Oxford. He has written around fifty
books among which his novel The Brave New World was the most popular works. Early in his
career, Huxley published short stories and poetry. He further published travel writing, film
stories, satire and some other works. By the end of his life, Huxley was widely acknowledged as
one of the pre – eminent intellectuals of his times. He was nominated for the Noble Prize in
Literature seven times. In 1962, he was elected Companion of Literature by the Royal Society of
Literature.

 Works
1. Chrome Yellow

2. The Brave New World

3. The Doors of Perception

4. Island
5. Point Counter Point
6. The Art of Seeing
7. Eyeless in Gaza

8. Time Must Have Stop

9. Those Barren Leaves
 H. G. Wells

Born: September 21, 1866

Death: August 13, 1946

Profession: Novelist, Teacher, Historian, Journalist

Education: Royal College of Science (Imperial College London)

 Life and Career

Herbert George Wells was an English writer, historian and journalist born in September
1866 in Kent, England. He was prolific in many genres such as writing dozens of novels, short
stories, and works of social commentary, satire, biography, and autobiography, including even
two books on war games. He is now best remembered for his science fiction novels and is often
called a "father of science fiction." During his own lifetime, however, he was most prominent as
a forward-looking, even prophetic social critic who devoted his literary talents to the
development of a progressive vision on a global scale. His science fiction imagined time travel,
alien invasion, invisibility, and biological engineering. Brian Aldiss referred to Wells as the
"Shakespeare of science fiction".

 Works

1. The Outline of History

2. The Country of the Blind
3. The Red Room

4. The Time Machine

5. The Invisible Man

6. The First Men in the Moon

7. When the Sleeper Wakes
 Harold Pinter

Born: October 10, 1930

Death: December 24, 2008

Profession: Playwright, Screenwriter, Poet

Education: Hackney Downs School

 Life and Career

Harold Pinter was a British playwright, screenwriter, director and actor born in 1930 in
England. He was one of the most influential modern British dramatists. His writing career
spanned period over more than 50 years. He has also directed and acted in radio, stage,
television, and film productions of his own and others' works. He attended the Royal Academy
of Dramatic Art but did not complete the course. Pinter's career as a playwright began with a
production of The Room in 1957. His early works were described by critics as "Comedy of
Menace." Pinter received over 50 awards, prizes, and other honors including the Nobel Prize in
Literature in 2005.

 Works

1. The Room
2. The Birthday Party
3. Family Voices
4. The Dumb Waiter
5. Silence

6. The Homecoming

7. Landscape
8. Betrayal
9. No Man's Land
 James Joyce

Born: February 2, 1882

Death: January 13, 1941

Profession: Novelist, Short Story Writer and Poet

Education: University College Dublin

 Life and Career

James Joyce was an Irish novelist, short story writer and poet born in Dorset in 1882. He
is regarded as one of the most important authors of the 20 th century. He was the main
exponent of psychological novels. In 1904, he married to his partner Nora Barnacle. Joyce’s
early experiment was in direction of writing short stories published in a volume called
Dubliners. In 1921, Joyce completed a psychological novel Ulysses. It was the best work of 20 th
century. The novel is extremely formless. Diana Neill rightly remarks –

The book is unintelligible and its formal complexities have left the readers
confused…

 Works

1. A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man

2. Dubliners
3. Exiles
4. Ulysses
5. The Critical Writings of James Joyce
6. Finnegan’s Wake
 John Galsworthy

Born: August 14, 1867

Death: January 31, 1933

Profession: Novelist, Playwright

Education: New College, Oxford

 Life and Career

John Galsworthy was born in 1867 in Surrey, England. He was an English novelist and
playwright. His father was a solicitor. Galsworthy was educated from New College, Oxford.
Galsworthy actually studied law but later, he turned to writing. From The Four Winds, a
collection of short stories was Galsworthy’s first published work in 1897, but it was not under
his name as an author. Then in 1904, The Island Pharisees published for the first time, his name
as an author. He has written notable works including, The Forsyte Saga, A Modern Comedy and
The End of The Chapter. A number of John Galsworthy’s papers and letters are held at the
University of Birmingham Special collections. He has won Noble in Literature in 1932.

 Works

1. The Forsyte Saga

2. A Modern Comedy
3. End of The Chapter
4. The Island Pharisees

5. The Silver Box

6. Justice
7. The Country House
 Philip Larkin

Born: August 9, 1922

Death: December 2, 1985

Profession: Poet, Librarian, Novelist

Education: St John's College, Oxford

 Life and Career

Philip Arthur Larkin was an English poet, novelist and librarian born on 9 th August, 1922
in England. He has received many honors include the Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry. After
graduating from Oxford in 1943 with a first in English language and literature, Larkin became a
librarian. Later, he started to write in English Literature. Influenced by W. H. Auden, W. B. Yeats,
and Thomas Hardy, his poems are highly structured but flexible verse forms. In 1973 a Coventry
Evening Telegraph reviewer referred to Larkin as "The Bard of Coventry." And in 2008 The
Times named him Britain's greatest post-war writer.

 Works

1. The Whitsun Weddings

2. High Windows
3. Trouble at Willow Gables

4. Jill
5. The Less Deceived

6. Love Again
7. The Building
 Somerset Maugham

Born: January 25, 1874

Death: December 16, 1965

Profession: Playwright, Novelist, Short Story Writer

Education: St Thomas's Hospital Medical School (King’s College

London)

 Life and Career

William Somerset Maugham better known as W. Somerset Maugham, was a British

playwright, novelist and short story writer born in 1874 in Paris, France. He was among the
most popular writers of his era and reputedly the highest-paid author during the 1930.
Maugham eventually trained and qualified as a physician. The initial run of his first novel, Liza of
Lambeth, sold out so rapidly that Maugham gave up medicine to write full-time. During and
after the war, he travelled in India and Southeast Asia; these experiences were reflected in later
short stories and novels.

 Works

1. Of Human Bondage
2. The Moon and Sixpence
3. Cakes and Ale

4. The Razor's Edge

5. The Seventh Sin

6. The Hour Before the Dawn
 Virginia Woolf

Born: January 25, 1882

Death: March 28, 1941

Profession: Novelist, essayist, critic

Education: King’s College London

 Life and Career

Virginia Woolf was an English novelist, essayist, publisher and critic born in Middlesex,
England in 1882. During the interwar period, Woolf was a significant figure in London literary
world. In 1912, she married to Leonard Woolf. Virginia Woolf was a prose writer of a higher
order. She worked as a conscious artist. Her importance was established with the growth of
feminist criticism in 1970s. She began writing professionally in 1900. Her first novel “The
Voyage Out” was published in 1915. She was died in Sussex in 1941.

 Works

1. The Voyage Out

2. Night and Day
3. The Waves