Realism in the post- war English literature: Ch. P. Snow’s writing

After World War II the novel continued to be the dominant genre in postwar literature and many writers depicted the postwar world in realistic colours. Several major writers like С.P. Snow, Gr. Greene came to the fore in interwar period, but their specific manner outlined itself most markedly in their postwar work.

In the fifties there appeared a very interesting trend in literature, the followers of which were called "The Angry Young Men." The postwar changes had given a chance to a large number of young people from the more democratic layers of society to receive education at universities. But on graduating, these students found they had no prospects in life. Unemployment had increased after the war and besides that, English society continued to follow the old conservative rules of life and apparently did not need them. No one was interested to learn what their ideas on life and society were. They felt deceived and became angry. The young people's disillusionment determined the character of fiction created by a group of writers, among them were Kingsley Amis, John Wain, John Osborne. Through their characters these writers were eager to express their anger with society.

Many works of English writers of the period were dedicated to the philosophical problems. The influence of existentialist ideas left a profound impression on the creation of Iris Murdoch. She created a series of intricate novels thatdeal with the nature of man and his delusions. With I.Murdoch the trend in creative writing moved to philosophical fiction.

William Golding's novels and especially his most successful novel "Lord of the Flies" are notable for their symbolic treatment of human nature.

The proclaimed need was, in fiction for a return to straightforward narrative with no symbolic trickery, interesting plots and well-rounded characters in the approved 19th century way. "The novel should not only tell a story," it should take an intelligent observant interest in the world in which ordinary people lived their day-to-day lives. And in poetry there was a demand for strict forms. There was a natural desire to cling to familiar cultural forms in a strange and unsettling world.

C.P. Snow, in full Charles Percy Snow, Baron Snow Of The City Of Leicester (born Oct. 15, 1905, Leicester, Leicestershire, Eng.—died July 1, 1980, London), British novelist, scientist, and government administrator.

Snow was graduated from Leicester University and earned a doctorate in physics at the University of Cambridge, where, at the age of 25, he became a fellow of Christ’s College. After working at Cambridge in molecular physics for some 20 years, he became a university administrator, and, with the outbreak of World War II, he became a scientific adviser to the British government. He was knighted in 1957 and made a life peer in 1964. In 1950 he married the British novelist Pamela Hansford Johnson.

In the 1930s Snow began the 11-volume novel sequence collectively called “Strangers and Brothers” (published 1940–70), about the academic, public, and private life of an Englishman named Lewis Eliot. Several of Snow’s novels were adapted for the stage. Later novels include In Their Wisdom (1974) and Coat of Varnish (1979).

As both a literary man and a scientist, Snow was particularly well equipped to write a book about science and literature; The Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution (1959) and its sequel, Second Look (1964), constitute Snow’s most widely known—and widely attacked—position. He argued that practitioners of either of the two disciplines know little, if anything, about the other and that communication is difficult, if not impossible, between them. Snow thus called attention to a breach in two of the major branches of Western culture, a breach long noted but rarely enunciated by a figure respected in both fields. Snow acknowledged the emergence of a third “culture” as well, the social sciences and arts concerned with “how human beings are living or have lived.” Many of Snow’s writings on science and culture are found in Public Affairs (1971). Trollope: His Life and Art (1975) exemplifies Snow’s powers in literary criticism, as does The Realists: Eight Portraits (1979).

The typology of realistic novel in the post- war period

Major themes:

1. Britain’s home and foreign policy

2. Shift of social power, political values

3. Nationalization of economy

4. Burocracy, political populism

5. Stratification of class

6. Education

7. Br. Provinces

8. Consumer’s society

9. Status of women

Genres of novels:

1. Political novel(green,shaw, aldridge)

2. Anti-colonial novel(aldridge, devidson)

3. Socio-psychological(green,shaw

4. Campus novel(amis''lucky jim''snow, waine)

5. Novel of fomation(snow)

6. Social novel(lindsay)

7. Working class novel(chaplin '' the big room'', sillitoe's nigth and sunday morning'')

8. Satirical novel(waine''harry on down'', braine''the room at the top'', amis.spark)

The “ angry young men” and their literary activity

The Second World War left a tumultuous impact on the civilization. The post-World War II era was essentially characterized by depression and anxiety as the postwar reforms failed to meet exalted aspirations for genuine change. This very desolate prospect is also evident in the literature of the 20th century. These adverse impacts of World War II helped to create several new traditions in literature. One such movement made its way in the early 1950s. This radically new age was labelled as the Angry Young Men Movement. The literature of this age chiefly represented a rebellious and critical attitude towards the postwar British society. The “angry young men” comprised a group of English novelists and playwrights, mostly having lower-middle or working-class, and university background. The label “angry young men” is assumed to have borrowed from Leslie Paul’s autobiographical book Angry Young Man (1951). After critical acclamation of Osborn’s play Look Back in Anger, the British Newspapers employed the label to encapsulate the mode and temperament of this group of writes.

Characteristics

The major characteristics of the Angry Young Men Movement are as follows:

• Revolt against Social Inequality: A major concern in Angry Young Men Movement writings is the dissatisfaction of the lower-class towards the established socio-political system which inequitably valued the middle and the upper classes.
• Criticism of Mannerism: Literature of this age fiercely criticises the hypocrisy of the middle and the upper classes.
• Portrayal of Social Status of Youth: Another frequent subject in this age is the depiction of abject position of the youth in society. The writers often portrayed the central hero being disillusioned with the life and dissatisfied with their job and a society where he is unfit and deprived of normal rights.
• Revolt against conventionality: Angry Young Men literature strongly revolted against all the accepted norms and ideals.
• Unconventional Hero: Typically the hero is a rootless, lower-middle or working-class male psyche with a university degree. He expresses his dissatisfaction towards social ills with excessive anger and sardonic humour. He often indulges into adultery and inebriation to escape from complexities of life. In fine, he is the very epitome of a frustrated post-World War II generation.

Chief Representatives

The chief representatives of the Angry Young Men Movement are as follows:

John Wain (1925–1994)
Wain, John, English poet, novelist, and critic, who portrayed the repressions of society in lively comic situations. He is assumed to have showed Angry Young Men temperament in his first novel Hurry on Down (1953). It is a comic picaresque story about an unsettled university graduate who sought to reject the standards of conventional society.

Kingsley Amis (1922–1995)

Amis, Kingsley, English novelist, whose works undertake a humorous critical survey of the post-World War II British society. Amis's first novel was Lucky Jim (1954), which according to many reflects the Angry Young Men temperament. This particular book influenced a number of British playwrights and novelists, including John Osborne and Alan Sillitoe. Therefore, many critics believe that like Wain Amis was also an early Angry Young Men writer.

John Osborne (1929–1994)

Osborne, John, English playwright and motion picture screenwriter, whose plays enact sharp criticism of post-World War II British life through outbursts of abusive language. It was Osborn’s debut play Look Back in Anger (1957)that made the Angry Young Men Movement authoritatively established. In this sense, John Osborne was the most fortunate literary artist to have an age started on the basis of a single literary work.

John Braine (1922–1986)

Braine, John, English novelist, who attacked outmoded social values left over from the prewar world. His most notable work is Room at the Top (1957), a novel exemplifying the various concerns of the post-World War II generation. The novel tells the story of a young working-class man trapped into a marriage with the daughter of a wealthy businessman.

Bernard Kops (1926–)

Kops, Bernard, English playwright, poet and novelist, who is known for his works of unabashed sentimentality. His first play The Hamlet of Stepney Green (1956) is deemed to be one of the key archetypes of the Angry Young Men Movement.

Alan Sillitoe (1928–2010)
Sillitoe, Alan, English novelist and poet, whose brash and angry accounts of the working-class life showcased the spirit of the Angry Young Men Movement. He is best known for his first novel Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1958). It tells the story of a rude and amoral young factory worker for whom drink and sex on Saturday night provide the only relief from the oppression of the working life.

This literary Movement brought a fresh concept which was totally complied with the then socio-political context. Though lasted only for a short span of time, it exerted a profound impact in the field of British literature. This dominant literary movement ended by the early 1960s.