6V Literature - The Modern Period / The War Poets

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 6

A Survey of English Literature

THE MODERN PERIOD

&

THE WAR POETS

This lesson

Introduction to the Modern Period

Introduction to the War Poets

The Soldier by Rupert Brooke

What are the main themes
of War Poetry?

Historical context - 1

The First World War  aka The Great War (1914-1918)

• Trenches
  
• Large-scale slaughter in Flanders and Northern France
  
• Entire generation of young men wiped out
  
• Britain lost place as one of dominant political + economic powers in the world
  
• Great Depression (1930s)

Historical context - 2

The Second World War (1939-1945)

• Winston Churchill
  
• The Battle of Britain
  
• End of once mighty British Empire
  
• Britain only played secondary role in Cold War, as ally of USA
  

The War Poets - 1

The horrors of modern warfare

An attempt to find words for their emotions

Four "Trench Poets"

The War Poets - 2

Rupert Brooke (1887-1915)

• Already famous young poet 
  
• Joined Royal Navy in 1914
  
• Fell ill and died from infected mosquito bite
  

The Soldier: Characteristic for the mood in very early part of war

The War Poets - 3

Charles Sorley (1895-1915)

Arrived at wesrn front in May 1915

Killed in action during the Battle of Loos (October 1915)

Unsentimental style

Sonnet: When you see millions of mouthless dead

The War Poets - 4.1

Siegried Sassoon (1886-1967)

Established poet at beginning of war

Joined army in August 1914

Wounded twice

Published many poems on war experiences and feelings

The War Poets - 4.2

Characterized by harsh realism; biting sarcasm

Main themes:  

• incompetence of officers
  
• ignorance of people
  
• false picture of war
  
• frustrations of soldiers
  

The War Poets - 5

Wilfred Owen (1893-1918)

• Most talented of "Trench Poets"
  
• Wounded in 1917; wrote most of his poems back in England
  
• Went back to France in 1918; killed November 4
  
• Poems published in 1920 - edited by Siegfried Sassoon
  
• Created tragic vison of world at war, dominated by pain and suffering
  

The Soldier by Rupert Brooke

Read the poem on p. 21

Do assignment 9

Discuss answers at 09:15

Modernism - 1

• Grew out of disillusionment with Victorian attitudes of certainty and conservatism
  
• Reflects impact of modern psychology
  
• Sigmund Freud
  
• Peak between First and Second World Wars
  
• Characterized by constant experimentalism
  

Modernism - 2

Stream-of-consciousness

• James Joyce
  
• Virginia Woolf
  

Free verse

• T. S. Eliot
  

Post-Modernism

• Period after 1945
  
• Difficult to define! Disagreement on its characteristics
  
• Very diverse: various styles of writing and many different areas of interest
  
•  "Anything goes" ?
  
• Many important writers; selection on pp. 46-49 of survey
  

Which War Poet survived the Great War?

1. Rupert Brooke
2. Charles Sorley
3. Siegfried Sassoon
4. Wilfred Owen

Which year marked the end of the once mighty British Empire?

1. 1914
2. 1918
3. 1939
4. 1945

What is another name for the famous War Poets?

1. Trench Poets
2. French Poets
3. Trash Poets
4. Horror Poets

What is the correct time period for Modernism?

1. The beginning of the 20th century
2. Between the two World Wars
3. After the Second World War
4. The beginning of the 21st century

What are the main themes
of War Poetry?

End of lesson

Last introduction to literature!

Next lesson: more war poetry