Modern English philosophical novel (I. Murdoch, W. Golding)

The political and social developments in the second half of the 20th century led the literary men of England to serious meditations on the future of mankind, the aim of man's life, man's place in society. These problems are the essence of the philosophical novel which came into ex­istence in the early 50s. The most prominent represent­atives of the genre are William Golding, Iris Murdoch, Colin Wilson and, to a certain extent, John Fowles. The novels are marked by pes­simism and fear. Most of their heroes are lonely despairing individuals, powerless in a hostile and chaotic world. The relations between people are usually characterized by indifference and alienation. Symbolism and allegory are the chief literary devices in the philosophical novel. A great deal of contemporary English fiction and drama is dedi­cated to the subject of man's search for identity, and the stress is not so much on political or social issues as on moral problems, which adds another dimension to the portrayal of modern English society.. The problem of identity closely linked with one of the most influen­tial philosophical trends of twentieth century thought, often evokes an existential attitude. It implies a certain scepticism about ever knowing the essential nature of any of man's various experiences, particularly when that experience is received only through individual consciousness. At the same time, man must live and make his choice, must come to some terms with his own existence and the true meaning of everything around him. Existentialist philosophy places limitations oil man's knowledge and power and even on his search for identity unci on the necessity for serious action or engagement. The influence of existentialist ideas left a profound impression on the work of Iris Murdoch. (1909-1919) She was an Irish-born British author and philosopher, best known for her novels about political and social questions of good and evil, sexual relationships, morality, and the power of the unconscious. She has created a series of intricate novels that essentially deal with the nature of man and his delusions. Her characters search for an understanding of the meaning of life; they try to reduce experience to the manageable and comprehensible, but none of the identities or definitions provide any satisfactory solution. Though Iris Murdoch always attempts to shape her characters per­ception of the world's chaotic nature into significant form, her rich mid highly artistic prose mocks man's efforts to formulate precise codes and laws about life.. She went on to produce 25 more novels and other works of philosophy and drama until 1995, and one of her best-known is ‘ The black prince’. With Iris Murdoch the trend in creative writing moved to philo­sophical fiction. William Golding's novels and especially his most fissured success Lord of the Flies are notable for their symbolic treat­ment of human nature. “Lord of the Flies” is a philosophical novel by W. Golding (Philosophical novel refers to works of fiction in which a significant proportion of the work is devoted to a discussion of philosophical questions such as role of society, the purpose of life, ethics or morals; the plot & the characters are secondary for the idea, they are based on existentialism-человек не в состоянии отвечать за свои поступки) Golding’s works are complicated, they are full of implication(скрыт. Cмысл). The novel “Lord of the Flies” was a result of the author’s reflections upon fascism and its roots. It’s an anti-utopian novel and was written as a parody of “The coral island’ by Ballantyne, where three teenagers lead a happy and harmonious life on a Pacific island. “Lord of the Flies” describes the fate of a group of schoolboys stranded on a tropical island after a plane crash, vividly illustrating their reduction to a state of savagery and their division into hunters and fire keepers. The book traces the faults in society to the faults(пороки) in the individual person. Golding says that each person has an evil inner nature poorely covered by a society. And if the society is taken away, then the inner nature comes out and chaos and lawlessness erupt. Golding uses a lot of symbolism in the book: conch(раковина)-authority and order, pigggy’s glasses- knowledge and insight, war paints-rejection of society. And the main: head of the killed pig(lord of the flies-the ugly looking head, covered with flies) became a symbol evil and savage power. The novel is a warning to people not to let fascism, the worst form of evil.

24 Modern English drama The theatre of Absurd –a term used for a distinct style drama written largely by European playwrights in the 1940s-1960s The main features of the Theatre of Absurd are: absence of a real story or plot, no action since all actions are insignificant, scenes often repeat, and often the language repeats. На практике театр абсурда отрицает реалистичные персонажи, ситуации и все другие соответствующие театральные приёмы. Время и место неопределённы и изменчивы, даже самые простые причинные связи разрушаются. Бессмысленные интриги, повторяющиеся диалоги и бесцельная болтовня, драматическая непоследовательность действий. Some of the most exciting work of this period came in the theater, notably the plays of John Osborne, Harold Pinter, Tom Stoppard, Arnold Wesker, Samuel Beckett. Thomas's lyricism and rich imagery reaffirmed the romantic spirit, and he was eventually appreciated for his technical mastery as well. Beckett, who wrote many of his works in French and translated them into English, is considered the greatest exponent of the theater of the absurd. His uncompromisingly bleak, difficult plays (and novels) depict the lonely, alienated human condition with compassion and humor. John Osborne (1929–94), English dramatist. He began his theatrical career as an actor and playwright in provincial English repertory theaters. Osborne's plays usually focus on an individual character and the sheer force of his language rather than on action. His first commercial success was Look Back in Anger (1956), concerning a restless and vociferous young man of the working class who is at war with himself and society; it became the seminal work for the so-called angry young men. (‘ANGRY YOUNG MEN’, term applied to a group of English writers of the 1950s whose heroes share certain rebellious and critical attitudes toward society) Harold Pinter (1930–,)English dramatist. One of the most important English playwrights of the last half of the 20th cent. and the most influential of his generation, Pinter writes what have been called “comedies of menace.” Using apparently commonplace characters and settings, he invests his plays with an atmosphere of fear, horror, and mystery. ‘The Lover’ is a 1962 one-act play by Harold Pinter about a middle class couple who live a secluded kind of life. They might be comfortably off financially, but their sex life seems to be less satisfactory. Pinter leads the audience to believe that there are three characters in the play: the wife, the husband and the lover. But the lover who comes to call in the afternoons is revealed to be the husband adopting a role. He plays the lover for her: she plays the whore for him. The play contrasts bourgeois domesticity with sexual yearning. As the play goes on the man (first as the lover and then as the husband) expresses a wish to stop the pretend adultery, to the dismay of the woman. Finally, the husband suddenly switches back to the role of the lover. As with the drama of Anton Chekhov, some of Pinter's plays support " serious" and " comic" interpretations; The Lover has been staged successfully both as an ironic comedy on the one hand and as a nervy drama on the other. As is often the case with Pinter, the play probably contains both. Главной темой произведения является тема того, как стать счастливым. В своем произведении Пинтер показазывает решение проблемы, которая возникла между мужчиной и женщиной, во взаимоотношениях которых наступил кризис.Пинтер показывает путь решения этой проблемы! Причем это не банальный выход из сложившейся ситуации, а совсем оригинальный, интересный и красивый подход. В пьесе можно выделить несколько главных идей. Более обширная-это то, что любовь спасет мир. Более узкая, и на мой взгляд, более видимая: любовь выживает только в бесконечной игре, что ярко продемонстрировал автор в своей пьесе. Бытовая жизнь скучна и через некоторое время надоедает, поэтому надо вносить яркие краски в эту, ставшей серой, жизнь. Ознакомившись с пьесой Г. Пинтера “Любовник” тяжело понять, сколько главных героев в произведении. В конце-концов, понимаем, что в пьесе два главных героя и четыре персонажа. Действие пьесы разворачивается в благополучном по внешним признакам доме. Два персонажа муж и жена, которые прожили в браке 10 лет и вдруг поняли, что стали чужими, чуть ли не врагами друг другу. Придумав один раз так называемую игру в любовников, они уже не могут от неё отказаться, так как понимают, насколько мелочны проблемы, вызывающие раздоры по сравнению со счастьем, данным свыше любить и быть понятыми друг другом.. Супруги Ричард и Сара превращаются в любовников Макса и Долорес и вновь обретают свободу и радость в любви.