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U58 - Coggle Diagram

- - - - Lord of the Flies
        
        (1954)
        
        Critique of civilization
        
        Inspired by his life
        
        The story is about a group of British boys stranded on an uninhabited island. Without adult supervision, they attempt to govern themselves but quickly descend into savagery. The plot illustrates how societal norms & moral codes break down in the absence of structured authority. This view was inspired by his experiences in WWII & his observations of human behavior as a schoolteacher.
    - - Orwell was a sharp critic of totalitarianism, including both fascism and Stalinism. His experiences in the Spanish Civil War & WWII reinforced his belief in the dangers of unchecked political power.
        
        1984
        
        Dystopian about totaliarianism
        
        Inspired by real-life
        
        Coined new words/concepts
        
        A dystopian novel about a totalitarian society characterized by pervasive government surveillance, propaganda & mind control. It was inspired by totalitarian regimes like Nazi Germany & Stalinist Soviet Union. He drew parallels between these governments’ propaganda, surveillance & political purges.
        
        Orwell is credited with coining new terms & concepts into the English language (Big Brother, doublethink, thought police, Newspeak & Orwellian) which have had a massive cultural impact.
        
        The concept of "Big Brother", the all-seeing leader, has become synonymous with authoritarian government & mass surveillance thanks to the famous slogan “Big Brother is watching you”.
        
        "Newspeak" is a language designed to diminish the range of thought. By eliminating words related to rebellion or freedom, making them unthinkable.
        
        "Thought Police" are a secret police force tasked with detecting and punishing “thoughtcrime”.
        
        (1949)
        
        Animal Farm
        
        Political allegory
        
        Cautionary story about power
        
        Language manipulation
        
        A powerful political allegory of the Russian Revolution of 1917 & the subsequent rise of Stalinism, using farm animals to represent political figures & events (e.g. Napoleon the pig is Stalin, Snowball is Leon Trotsky, Old Major is Karl Marx or Lenin). It serves as a cautinary tale about how power can corrupt the noblest revolutionary ideals.
        
        The famous phrase “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others” embodies the way in which the leadership manipulates language to justify inequality, highlighting the hypocrisy of the ruling pigs.
        
        (1945)
    - - A Clockwork Orange
        
        Linguistic talent
        
        Free will & morality
        
        Title's mysterious meaning
        
        Burgess was a master of languages, speaking multiple tongues fluently, including Malay, Russian & French. His linguistic talents contributed to his creation of “Nadsat,” the unique fictional slang used by Alex and his gang in A Clockwork Orange (based on Russian & English roots), not just to create a sense of detachment from the violence in the story but also as a way to engage the reader actively in deciphering Alex’s world.
        
        Burgess was deeply interested in questions of morality, free will & the role of society in shaping individuals. The novel explores whether stripping a person of their ability to choose between good and evil robs them of their humanity. It is as much a philosophical meditation as it is a dystopian narrative.
        
        The title itself has intrigued many readers. It ties into the novel’s central theme of the mechanization of human behavior through psychological conditioning, suggesting something that appears natural on the outside but is mechanical on the inside.
        
        (1962)
    - - The Fellowship of the Ring
        
        (1954)
        
        Elvish anguages
        
        Inspired by WWI
        
        Real places
        
        the Ring's symbolism
        
        Tolkien was a philologist (a scholar of languages) by profession and a lover of ancient tongues. He didn’t invent the Elvish languages just to fit his story; rather, he created the stories to give context to the languages.
        
        The sense of fellowship, the penetrating darkness & even the heroism of Frodo and Sam was probably inspired by Tolkien's own experiences serving in WWI, where he saw many of his close friends die in the trenches.
        
        Also, many locations in Middle-earth were inspired by real places, particularly in the English countryside of Warwickshire where Tolkien spent his childhood. He's often quoted as lamenting the industrialization of such places.
        
        The One Ring is not just a physical object but a metaphorical one, representing temptation, power & corruption. The heavy influence of power on moral integrity is one of Tolkien’s central themes.
    - - A group of writers, playwrights & novelists who expressed their dissatisfaction with the British establishment, the class system (social immobility) & the disillusionment that followed the war. Their work often portrayed the struggles of ordinary people, especially men, who felt alienated or left behind by post-war British society, intertwined with a broader disillusionment with the institutions that were supposed to provide stability & progress, like the government & education system.
        
        Kingsley Amis
        
        Lucky Jim
        
        Known for its critique of the British class system & academic elitism. It is a satirical portrayal of university life in 1950s Britain, poking fun at the pretentiousness and self-importance of academia, thus challenging the outdated traditions & class-based attitudes.
      - John Osborne's Look Back in Anger
        
        Kingsley Amis's Lucky Jim
        
        Alan Sillitoe
        
        John Braine
  - - - Waiting for Godot
        
        Irish origin, French writings
        
        Struggle with depression
        
        Theatre of the absurd
        
        A play with no plot
        
        Although Beckett was Irish, he wrote many of his works, including Waiting for Godot, in French. He felt that writing in a second language allowed him to express himself more precisely & concisely.
        
        Beckett struggled with severe depression throughout his life. His works often reflect his own existential anxieties, grappling with themes like the absurdity of existence, isolation & the human condition. These experiences informed the dark humor & bleak worldview characteristic of his plays.
        
        Waiting for Godot is often cited as an icon of the "Theatre of the Absurd" movement. This style of drama emphasizes the absurdity & futility of human existence, focusing on the lack of meaning and purpose in life. Characters in such works often experience confusion, purposelessness & repetitive behavior.
        
        One of the most notable features of Waiting for Godot is its lack of a conventional plot. Essentially, nothing happens: the play centers around two characters, Vladimir and Estragon, who wait endlessly for someone named Godot, which can be seen as a metaphor for life’s lack of purpose.
        
        (1953)
      - :beer_mugs:
    - - Look Back in Anger
        
        the "Angry Young Man"
        
        Turning point in British drama
        
        Osborne is credited with defining the “Angry Young Men” movement in British literature & theatre. He was known for his sharp criticisms of the British establishment, the class system & politics. His own anger & resentment towards societal norms resonated with a generation of disillusioned youth. He did not shy away from voicing controversial opinions about politicians, actors, and even the theatre industry itself.
        
        Upon reception, Look Back in Anger shocked & captivated audiences with its raw depiction of domestic life & intense emotionality. It marked the emergence of what came to be called “kitchen sink drama,” focusing on the everyday struggles of ordinary people. Osborne’s emphasis on realism, emotional intensity & social critique marked a departure from traditional British theatre.
        
        (1956)
  - - - Tony Harrison
        
        Harrison’s poetry is rooted in his working-class upbringing in Leeds. He often addresses themes of class conflict & social inequality, focusing on the divisions between working-class & middle-class life in Britain after the war. He aims to give a voice to those often marginalized or ignored in mainstream literature, highlighting the experiences of working-class people.
        
        "V"
        
        The poem is a meditation on class conflict, political unrest, and cultural divisions in Britain. Its use of strong language, explicit imagery, and direct confrontation of social issues led to public outcry and debates about censorship.
        
        (1985)
        
        (1937-today)
      - & Regional voices
    - - Seamus Heaney
        
        the Irish countryside
        
        The Troubles
        
        troubled Irish identity
        
        Heaney’s poetry is deeply connected to the Irish countryside, drawing on his rural upbringing in Northern Ireland. His poems vividly capture the landscapes, customs & traditions of rural Ireland. He frequently reflects on The Troubles—the period of political conflict & violence in Northern Ireland. Rather than taking overtly political stances, he uses metaphor & allusion to explore the complexities of the conflict.
        
        As an Irish Catholic living in Northern Ireland, Heaney often explored the theme of identity and the sense of being caught between different cultural & political worlds. Some of his works reflect on the complexities of identity & the tensions of growing up in a divided society.
        
        (1939-2013)
        :beer_mugs:
    - - Thomas was renowned for his emphasis on the musicality of language. He paid great attention to the rhythm, sound & cadence of his poetry, often creating a mesmerizing effect. Recurring themes in his poetry include life, death, birth & the passage of time.
        
        Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night
        
        His most famous poem, Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night, is a villanelle that addresses death & the struggle against it, urging his dying father to “rage, rage against the dying of the light.” This poem showcases his ability to tackle existential themes with emotional intensity.
    - - The most influential literary group to emerge in post-WWII Britain was “The Movement.” This was not an official or cohesive group but a loose affiliation of poets & writers in the 1950s who shared certain stylistic preferences. They were known for their rejection of romanticism, grandiosity & obscurity in poetry. They focused on direct, everyday language, traditional meter and rhyme, and often addressed themes like the mundane realities of daily life, loss, aging & the passage of time. Key poets in this group included Philip Larkin, Kingsley Amis...
        
        Philip Larkin
        
        Poet of the ordinary
        
        Death & passage of time
        
        Irony & dark humor
        
        He preferred to be known as a poet of the ordinary, exploring the everyday lives of ordinary people & finding profound truths in simple experiences. His poetry focuses on relatable topics like aging, love, work & death, often with a stark and unsentimental view. In fact, one of Larkin’s most recurring themes is the inevitability of death & the passage of time. And Larkin’s use of irony & dark humor is one of his defining features.
        
        (1922-1985)
      - they rejected the complexity & obscurity of modernism in favor of clarity & traditional form
- - - - WWII
        
        Two days after Hitler invaded Poland in September 1939, Britain, alongside France, declared war on Germany. In 1940, Germany launched a "blitzkrieg" (lighting war) that quickly overwhelmed France and the Low Countries. The fall of France left Britain as the sole major power opposing Germany in Western Europe.
        
        In 1940, Germany intended to subdue Britain through air power. The Battle of Britain saw the Royal Air Force (RAF) successfully defend the UK against large-scale attacks by the German "Luftwaffe" (air force). The RAF's victory in this battle prevented a full-scale German invasion and marked a turning point in the war. In return, Germany launched a sustained bombing campaign at night against London & other British cities, known as "the Blitz", killing tens of thousands of civilians and destroying homes & infrastructure.
        
        WWII was a "total war," meaning that every aspect of British society was mobilized for the war effort. Civilians were deeply affected. The British government implemented rationing to cope with food shortages, while women were drafted into factories, hospitals, and other essential services to replace the men who had gone off to fight. Britain could not have won the war alone. In 1941, following the German invasion of the Soviet Union & the US entry into the war, Britain became part of a broader coalition, the Allied powers, fighting the Axis powers.
        
        In 1944, Britain played a major role in planning and executing the Allied invasion of Normandy on D-Day and in the subsequent liberation of Western Europe from Nazi occupation. It was the largest assault in history coordinated by land, sea & air forces.
        
        However, Britain's war effort left the country heavily indebted (mainly to the US) & economically weakened. The need to focus on domestic recovery & European security further limited Britain's ability to maintain & defend its Empire, leading to its eventual loss. Hence, the war marked the beginning of the end of the British Empire, as the financial and political strain accelerated the decolonization process in the decades that followed.
        
        Hitler's invasion
        
        the Battle of Britain
        
        Invasion of Normandy
        
        Post-war consequences
      - 1940s
        
        During WWII, Britain had been governed by a coalition government led by Winston Churchill, which included members from the Conservative, Labour, and Liberal parties. After the war, Churchill’s Conservative Party was defeated by the Labour Party (1945), as there was public support for post-war reconstruction & social reforms. A series of major Labour party reforms laid the foundation for the modern welfare state:
        
        the Education Act of 1944 (provided free secondary education), the creation of the National Health Service (NHS) in 1948, and the expansion of social sequrity benefits (such as unemployment benefits & old age pensions). In addition, Britain received aid from the US through the Marshall Plan (1948–1952), which helped in the recovery of its war-torn economy.
        
        Reconstruction
        
        Social reforms & the welfare state
    - - 1950s
        
        Decolonization
        
        The Suez Crisis
        
        Elizabeth II's ascension
        
        Immigration
        
        Britain began the process of decolonization, starting with India’s independence in 1947 and continuing throughout the 1950s & 1960s with many colonies in Africa, Asia, & the Caribbean sought & achieved independence. The Suez Crisis (1957) was a key moment in British post-war foreign policy. The unsuccessful attempt to retake the Suez Canal after its nationalization by Egypt marked the decline of Britain as a global imperial power, revealing its growing dependence on the support of the US.
        
        Elizabeth II's ascension to the throne in 1953 represented a new era, known todays as the Elizabethan Golden Age. Despite it being a period of turbulence with the loss of global power & decolonization, Elizabeth's reign was a source of national pride, optimism, stability & continuity. Her role as Head of the Commonwealth helped ensure that as former colonies became independent, they remained connected through the Commonwealth of Nations, a voluntary association of independent countries.
        
        To help address the labor shortages as a result of WWII & rebuild the economy, Britain encouraged immigration from its former colonies. The British Nationality Act of 1948 had granted the status of "British subjects" to citizens of Commonwealth countries (the Caribbean, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh...), allowing them to move to Britain freely. In the 1950s, immigration continued & racial tensions increased, leading to the introduction of the Commonwealth Immigrants Act (1962) aiming to restrict immigration. So, although it intended to reduce racial tensions, immigrant communities continued to face discriminaton, racism & social exclusion.
      - 1960s
        
        The 1960s are remembered as a period of cultural revolution, known today as the "Swinging Sixties", where young people, energized by post-war prosperity & education, wanted to challenge the old social order (reject traditional norms) & express themselves in new ways. Particularly in music (the Beatles, Rolling Stones) and fashion.
        
        This period of social & sexual liberation led to significant social reforms that managed to modernize British society and reflected a shift in social attitutes towards morality, personal freedom & individual rights:
        
        Abolition of the death penalty (Murder Act of 1965) ,
        
        Legalization of abortion (Abortion Act, 1967) & homosexuality (Sexual Offences Act, 1967) for men over 21.
        
        the introduction of the Divorce Reform Act (1969).
        
        the Swinging Sixties
        
        Social reforms
    - - 1970s
        
        The economic crises of the 1970s led to social disillusionment, with rising inflation & unemployment leading to a decline in living standards. During this time of unrest & political instability, the monarchy, represented by Elizabeth II, remained one of the few institutions viewed as stable & reliable. The global Oil Crisis of 1973 sharply increased energy prices, which severely affected the British economy, leading to stagflation (high inflation combined with stagnant growth). The decade ended with the "Winter of Discontent", a severe wave of strikes of public sector workers during the winter months of 1978-79 demanding better wages. It reflected the growing influence of trade unions during the 1970s, which represented workers across various sectors.
        
        joined the EEC/EU*
        
        Economic crises:
        Global Oil Crisis &
        Winter of discontent
      - 1980s
        
        The election of Margaret Thatcher in 1979 marked a major political shift to the right. Thatcher pursued neoliberal economic policies, including privatization, deregulation & reducing the power of trade unions. There was a dramatic restructuring of the economy through the privatization of state-owned industries (e.g. British Telecom, British Airways & British Gas) as well as the financial deregulation of the London Stock Exchange market (known as the Big Bang of 1986), which turned the City of London into a global financial hub. As a result, although inflation declined & Britain experienced strong economic growth, Thatcher's reforms brought regional divisions & social inequality: while some people became wealthier in the financial sector, those in the working-class faced rising unemployment, poverty & cuts in public services.
        
        the Thatcher Era: privatization & deregulation > social inequality
  - - - The EEC (European Economic Community) which later evolved into the EU (European Union) was created in 1957 with the signing of the Treaty of Rome by 6 founding members: France, West Germany, Italy, Belgium, Netherlands & Luxembourg. Its primary goal was to create a Common Market to promote economic cooperation & free trade btw member countries by eliminating tariffs. Initially, Britain refused to join it, but later on, while Britain was facing economic stagnation, PM McMillan realised it had been a mistake & initiated negotiations to enter. Finally, in 1973 Britain officially became a member of the EC (alongside Denmark & Ireland).
        
        The British empire was shrinking and Britain's reliance on its Commonwealth ties & its special relationship with the US was no longer enough to sustain its global economic influence. Simultaneously, the British economy was in decline. It was underperforming compared with its European neighbours (particularly France & Germany). So, in 1973 Britain joined the EEC, reflecting a new direction in its global position (the EC was viewed as a way to remain relevant on the global stage). By joining the Common Market, Britain hoped to benefit from economic cooperation & free trade btw member countries to revitalize its economy.
        
        However, over the following decades,its relation with Europe remained complex, with ongoing debates/concerns about immigration, the loss of national sovereignty & European economic interests being dominant. In 1992, the EEC was transformed into the EU, aiming for deeper political & economic integration with the creation of a common currency that Britain chose to opt our of: the euro. This led to significant political division in Britain, as the Eurosceptics believed that they were ceding too much control over European institutions, refusing to fully embrace deeper integration. Euroescepticism grew steadily during the 1990s & 2000s. Ultimately, Britain voted to leave the EU in the Brexit referendum of 2016 with 52% in favor.
        
        Britain is one of the most important countries in the EEC because it is a very powerful nation in many aspects, i.e., from a political, economic and social point of view. But at the same time it is also a very problematic member for the union because of their unwillingness to carry out a complete integration in the EEC and their rejection towards the single currency.
      - 1957, 1973
        
        Initial refusal & later entry
        
        Complex relation
  - - - Ireland since the split
        
        In 1949 the Irish Free State became an independent republic, the Republic of Ireland, and formally left the Commonwealth. Since then, it has moved slowly from an inward-looking, church-dominated, impoverished state to an outward looking, open, prosperous democracy, and it has integrated further into the EU. On the other hand, Northern Ireland has remained a territory within the UK with little representation & almost no political power.
        
        From 1960s, despite some temporary ups & downs, relations between the Republic of Ireland & the UK have become better and better. However, complete reconciliation between them will not be possible until a political solution to the problem of the Northern Ireland is found.
        
        (1949)
      - joined the ECC
        
        One of the most significant moments in Ireland’s economic history was its accession to the EEC (later the EU) in 1973 along with the UK. It provided Ireland access to a larger market & new trade opportunities, and financial support through regional development funds contributed to its modernization. Prior to joining the EEC, Ireland had a relatively weak, agriculture-based economy, heavily dependent on trade with the UK.
        
        (1973)
    - - post-WWII
        
        During WWII, Ireland declared neutrality, causing tension with the UK, which was fighting against Nazi Germany. After WWII, Ireland's economy was weak & primarily agrarian, with agriculture accounting for a significant share of employment and exports. Industrialization was slow, and the country remained one of the poorest in Western Europe. Emigration was high as many Irish people, particularly the young, left for better opportunities in the UK & the US.
        
        During this period, Ireland adopted protectionist policies, aimed at fostering domestic industries. However, these policies did little to stimulate growth, and the economy stagnated. By the 1950s, Ireland was facing rising unemployment & mass emigration.
        
        Agrarian economy
        
        Protectionism & stagnation
      - Opening up
        
        A key turning point came under the leadership of Lemass & economist Whitaker, who spearheaded a series of economic reforms in the 1960s, thus moving away from protectionism towards a more open, export-oriented economy. Ireland sought to attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from the US & Europe, offering low corporate taxes & favorable conditions for multinational companies. This strategy began to slowly transform the economy, fostering industrial growth and reducing reliance on agriculture.
        
        Economic shift: from protectionism to free trade
        (1960s)