20th century - English and American literature

The twentieth century: English and American literature during the World Wars, main features and authors

The twentieth century was a dramatic period from a cultural and historical point of view. During this phase, literature expresses disorientation and anxiety in the face of such historical tragedies (such as the World Wars).
In particular, the novel was the most suitable genre to express such feelings and to grasp the contradictions and dramas of the modern era.
In the United States, the 1929 crisis had caused a terrible wave of poverty and unemployment. So, the writers were mainly engaged in recording social reality and demystifying everything.
The main American writers of this period were William Faulkner, John Steinbeck, John Dos Passos, and Ernest Hemingway.
English literature was also aimed at social commitment and was based on the representation of social reality.
In particular, during the twentieth century, the interest in the social tensions caused by the global economic crisis was raised, prompting a reflection on the issues of civil policy and coexistence.
Among the most important British writers who were engaged in dealing with ethical and social content themes, we recall: Walter Greenwood, Wyndham Lewis, Aldous Huxley, William Golding, Graham Green, Evelyn Arthur Waugh and George Orwell.