Transcript The Lost Generation

The Lost Generation
“The Lost Generation”
• The years immediately after WWI brought a highly vocal
rebellion against established social, sexual, and aesthetic
conventions and a vigorous attempt to establish new values
• In general this generation was disillusioned by the huge
number of deaths brought about by the war and rejected
many of the previous generations’ ideas about appropriate
behavior, morality, and gender roles
What would you call this generation?
Key Figures
A group of American writers who moved across the ocean to
write and work
• Bohemian lifestyle, connection to reality, religion
• “Both within and without”
• Gertrude Stein
• Coined the term
• Ernest Hemingway
• Popularized it
• Referred to the group of men and women who came of age during
WWI and felt disillusioned in the unfamiliar post-war world
• Fitzgerald
Let’s go to Paris!
• Ex-patriots
• Self-exiles who chose to
leave a homeland they felt
artistically, intellectually,
politically, racially, or
sexually limiting
•Greenwich Village
•Chicago
•San Francisco
-Isms
• Romanticism, Dark Romanticism,
Transcendentalism
(Louisiana Purchase, figuring out the role of
government, industrialization vs. nature)
• Realism
(Reaction to the Civil War, push to make literature
relatable)
• Modernism!
Historical Context of Modernism
• World War I brought the horror of modern warfare, creating a
feeling of disillusionment that was reflected in literature.
• Writers began exploring the antihero and questioning traditional
values.
• In 1919, Prohibition made the sale of liquor illegal, leading to
bootlegging, speakeasies, and widespread lawbreaking, and
competitive gangs.
• After a brief recession in 1920-21, the economy boomed. New
buildings appeared everywhere, creating new downtown sections
in many cities.
• Radio, Jazz, and movies arrived…entertainment!
What is Modernism?
•
Evolved from Realism & Naturalism Movements and still influencing modern
literature today.
•
Marked by a strong and intentional break with tradition. This break
includes a strong reaction against established religious, political, and social views.
Questioning authority.
•
There is no absolute truth. All things are relative and there is no way to know
everything.
•
Belief that the world is created in the act of perceiving it; that is, the world
is what we say it is.
•
Pessimism: finding meaning in the world in the wake of chaos. Idealism turns
to cynicism.
•
Loss of innocence is a key theme throughout many works during this time.
•
Disillusionment sets in, particularly when discussing the American Dream.
Modernism Continued
•
Celebration of inner strength and the individual.
•
Disjointed timeframes; no longer sequential plots.
•
Narration through fragmented or multiple perspectives & viewpoints.
•
Characters are generally from lower or middle class.
•
The use of “stream-of-consciousness” emerges.
•
Poetry followed Walt Whitman by abandoning traditional forms in favor of free
verse.
•
The unreliable narrator takes off. The anti-hero emerges.
•
Experimentation of form and genre.
•
Some authors abandon the use of decorative language, using blunt,
straightforward diction and simple dialogue & sentences (Hemingway)
but not all of them did.
American Modernist Authors
• F. Scott Fitzgerald
• Ernest Hemingway
• John Steinbeck
• Toni Morrison
• Robert Frost
• William Faulkner
Hemingway
• Served in WWI
• Moved to Paris
• Known for his style of writing: a
break in traditional narrative
• Sparse, deliberate choices to break
from flowery language of the past
• Left out essential information of
the story in the belief that
omission can sometimes
strengthen the plot of the novel
What differences and similarities do you
see between Hemingway and
Fitzgerald?
Your task:
Rewrite the two passages in the style of the other author
(Keep in mind style, format!)
Hemingway’s Style: Iceberg
Theory
• The Iceberg Theory (Theory of Omission) is the characteristic
writing style of Ernest Hemingway.
• Hemingway chooses to give very little context or interpretation
in his stories. His style is minimalistic and focuses on surface
elements without specifically explaining underlying themes.
• Hemingway believed the deeper meaning of a story should not
be evident on the surface, but should shine through implicitly.
• You start with the tip of the iceberg, but there is much more
complexity and meaning beneath the surface.
• Critics argue that this Iceberg writing style functioned to
distance Hemingway from his characters.
What would Hemingway say?
Why did the chicken
cross the road?
To die. In the rain.
Homework:
Fitzgerald & Hemingway Valentines
In the spirit of Valentines Day, you must create two Valentines, one
written in the style of Fitzgerald and one written in the style of
Hemingway
Demonstrate your understanding of style and format, as well as Modernism.
Be creative & have fun!
Due Friday, 20 points
• 10 pts for demonstrating an understanding of each author’s style and
format
• 10 pts for creativity and presentation
Six Word Stories
For sale: baby shoes, never
worn.
What does this story reveal to the reader?
How does Hemingway manage to tell us an
entire story in just a few words?
Homework:
Create your own six word story!
In the spirit of Hemingway, you are going to
create your very own six word story.
Be creative & have fun!
Due tomorrow, 15 points
• 10 pts for your six word story
• 5 pts for creativity and presentation