The Twentieth Century.ppt
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The document provides historical context for the 20th century, including the Edwardian Age in Britain at the turn of the century, the social reforms of that time like old age pensions, and the outbreak of World War I. It discusses the social context of the early 1900s as well, including the struggle for women's suffrage and the Irish rebellion against British rule. Finally, it covers the literary context, noting how Freud, Darwin, Marxism, and World War I influenced revolutionary works by Eliot, Joyce, Owen, and others.
The Twentieth Century.ppt
- 2. Historical Context The Edwardian Age The death of Queen Victoria in January 1901 and the succession of her son, Edward, marked the end of the Victorian era. At the beginning of the twentieth century Victorian ideals of progress and reform still prevailed. New liberal governments instituted a series of important social reforms, free school meals for children, the first old age pensions and labour exchange for instance. In 1911 national insurance was introduced: all working people contributed to funds which would protect the sick.
- 3. These were the beginnings of the so-called welfare state, which was to reach its apex under the Labour Government after the Second World War. Important Parliamentary reform also occurred in 1911 with the Parliament Act the House of Lords lost the right to veto financial legislation approved by the House of Commons. The rise of the Labour Party also began: by 1906 there were twenty-nine Labour MPs in Parliament.
- 4. The First World War Tension in Europe increased steadily: Germany and the Austro-Hungarian empire, on the one hand, and Russia and France, on the other, formed military alliances. The murder of an Austrian noble in Serbia led to the declartion of war between these two countries; Russia was forced to defend Serbia and Germany then came to the aid of the Austro-Hungarian empire.
- 5. When Germany marched through Belgium, which was neutral territory, in order to attack France, Britain was dragged into the war. The bitter trench warfare, which characterized the First World War, leaving a total of 750.000 dead and two million seriously injured among the British alone.
- 6. Social Context Women Women’s rights had been a key issue for many years. But it was only after a hard struggle that some women over thirty gained the right to vote in 1918, partly in recognition of women’s invaluable contribution to the domestic war effort.
- 7. Ireland The British feared civil war in Ulster and called on the Irish to volunteer for the British army. However, a group of patriots resented Britain’s rather condescending treatment organized an armed rebellion in Dublin on Easter Monday 1916. It was quickly crushed but became a near-legendary symbol of Irish heroism in the face of oppression, especially when the British cruelly executed the leaders of the movement.
- 8. Republicans won almost everywhere, but preferred to constitute their own Parliament in Dublin and declare Ireland an independent republic. Britain agreed to the independence of Southern Ireland in 1921, although Ulster, or Northern Ireland, remained united with Britain.
- 9. Literary Context The First World War, though the end of an era in many ways, was not the only factor producing decisive change in the intellectual climate of the early years of the century. Freud’s work, beginning with The Interpretation of Dreams in 1901, revolutionized our view of the human mind. Darwin’s theory of the evolution of the species had contributed to the demolition of the Victorian world-view, and this process was accelerated by the interest in marxism and socialism.
- 10. In the twenties, the poetry of Eliot, with its wealth of allusions to other works, its abrupt transitions and numerous juxtapositions of seemingly unrelated parts, and the profusion of richly expressive styles pouring from Joyce’s pen were truly revolutionary.
- 11. Poetry (War Poetry) The horrors of the First World War led to a painful consciousness of the emptiness of the patriotism espoused by writers. A number of extremely promising poets were killed in action (Wilfred Owen, Isaac Rosenberg); but their work has survived to give us a gripping account of the brutality and absurdity of the war.
- 12. The post-war years were dominated by the figures of T.S. Eliot and W.B. Yeats, both of whom had long careers spanning a wide range of styles and forms, although Thomas Hardy, better known as a novelist, also produced a fine body of original work, and D.H. Lawrence also contributed some important thought-provoking lyrics, treating much the same themes as his better-known novels.