Does War Affect Literature

Does War Affect Literature? Many writers use the environment, political issues, or social issues as inspiration to their work. During romanticism nature imagery was a common occurrence in literature. However does on particular issue effect writers so much that a new literature movement is sprung from it? I pose the question what were considerable differences between Victorian literature and Modernism and how did the Great War play apart in those differences? Was it because of the war that there was the Victorian Era and Modernism or was it bound to be a new literary movement with or without the Great War. I pose to answer these questions to the best of my ability in this paper. The Victorian era took place from 1830 – 1901, which is almost the exact same time frame that Queen Victoria reined thus the name Victorian Era. Writers during this time were at an awe trying to respond to the expansion of the country due to the industrialization going on at the time. Reactions it the changes going on at that time were numerous between writers and the people. Some welcomed the changes, while others challenged the changes because they found them to be threatening to their traditions. While others felt that breaking away from the traditions was more freeing than trying to maintain this conventional life. The Victorian Era was full of liveliness surrounding the social and industrial changes that were going on at the time. Nevertheless with all the change some things are bound to stay the same, Great Britain was still in a great deal of debt. Even though national debt was at an all time high the British banks continued to borrow money. Brantlinger says borrowing money is the best way of sustaining credit in his book, the debt that the country was in played a major role in the literature and art of the time because money is used in everyday life. Whether you were paying with credit or ready money determined whether or not you would eat that night. During the Victorian

Cited: Abrams, Meyer H., and Stephen Greenblatt. The Norton Anthology of English Literature. New York [u.a.: Norton, 2012. Print. Brantlinger, Patrick. Fictions of State: Culture and Credit in Britain, 1694-1994. Ithaca: Cornell UP, 1996. Print. Duffy, Michael. "Firstworldwar.com." First World War.com. N.p., 22 Aug. 2009. Web. 22 Apr. 2013. Fussell, Paul. The Great War and Modern Memory. New York: Oxford UP, 1975. Print. Mill, John Stuart, Jeremy Bentham, John Austin, Mary Warnock, and John Stuart Mill. Utilitarianism ; And, On Liberty : Including Mill 's Essay on Bentham ' and Selections from the Writings of Jeremy Bentham and John Austin. Malden, MA: Blackwell Pub., 2003. Web. 1 Apr. 2013. "Pre-War Britain." The Saturday Review [London] 13 Nov. 1937: 311-14. British Periodicals. Web. 1 Apr. 2012. Rahn, Josh. "Modernism." - Literature Periods & Movements. N.p., 2001. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.