As photography scholar Deborah Willis observed in 2008, the portrait exemplifies this whole notion of [Hansberrys] positive experience of living in an environment of self-pride. Throughout his career, Auden was both influential and controversial. The book is also credited with introducing the term meme. In Everyman (2006), Roth's 27th novel, he stuck to one of his familiar later themes: what it's like growing old Jewish in America. Everything else in the room, from a framed painting to a window and an out-of-place tree with a birds nest in its branches, is blurred and bathed in overexposed light. He was one of the first to write jazz poetry. Ngozi Adichie is a new, powerful and incredibly talented voice; her novel Americanah is the expression of a different African tale, of a continent and its people that have many more magnetic. Modernist writers broke free of old forms and techniques. She currently resides in the Chicago area. Eliot amongst many others. If you are looking for the best 20th century authors, who are some of the biggest names you need to consider? The term Kafkaesque is now widely used in the English language to explain those situations experienced by his characters. (photo credit: Courtesy) Advertisement. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/important-contemporary-authors-852801. Twentieth-Century and Contemporary American Literature in Context profiles authors and their works and provides overviews of literary movements and genres through which readers will understand the historical, cultural, and political contexts that have shaped American writing. However, he wasnt much popular during his lifetime. The process of the Hebrew language revival began on October 13th 1881, as Eliezer Ben-Yehuda and his friends agreed to exclusively speak . Franz Kafka is one of the great modern writers that thrived between in the early part of the 1900's. Poetry further broke down conventions as part of modern-era literature. Their books have cast an impact not just on the readers but on the culture, religion and politics of the region as well. She also had one of the longest literary careers, as her first work was published in 1950 and her final book in 2013. Widely considered one of the 20th century's most important and influential writers, James Joyce contributed immensely to the modernist avant-garde movement. He is well-known as the co-creator of many famous superheroes, including Iron Man, Spider-Man, and the Hulk. Sylvia Plath achieved popularity and critical acclaim despite suffering from clinical depression for the most part of her adult life. HP Lovecraft was a writer of weird and horror fiction and is known for his creation of Cthulhu Mythos, which has inspired a large body of games and music. In book: Idealism in Modern Philosophy (pp.174-C10P51) Authors: Paul Guyer From Updike's post-World War II suburbia to Smith's postcolonial tale of London immigrants, the sweep of these writers' works chronicles the vast changes that have occurredover the turn of the 21st century. Collectively, the museum notes in a statement, the women represented have won every major writing prize of the 20th century. But in 1937, her parents opted to move the family to the all-white neighborhood of Woodlawn, defying Chicagos racially charged housing covenants and, in doing so, attracted the ire of violent white mobs. 2023/2024 9. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. British writer Ian McEwan started winning literary awards with his first book, a collection of short stories, "First Love, Last Rites" (1976) and never stopped. This is a partial list of 20th-century writers. This is a story that many people can relate to even to this day, as everyone encounters challenges during childhood. SSD. He is known mainly for his novels and short stories set in the fictional Yoknapatawpha Country, Mississippi. Ayn Rand was a Russian-American philosopher and writer. An influential poet, Frost was honored with four Pulitzer Prizes for Poetry, the only poet to receive four such awards. English writer and philosopher Aldous Huxley wrote countless books, including novels, short stories, non-fiction, and poems. Writers mixed images from the past with modern languages and themes, creating a collage of styles. He was one of the first to write jazz poetry. Advertising Notice He also wrote plays and short stories. 2023 Smithsonian Magazine Dadaism and Surrealism were among the most influential early-twentieth-century . George R. R. Martin wrote the epic fantasy series of novels, (Writer Best Known for His Hard Science Fiction Novels and Professor of Biochemistry), (Film Director Best Known For Movies 'Pan's Labyrinth' & 'The Shape of Water'), (Author Best Known for His Novel 'Go Tell It on the Mountain'), (Novelist and Short-Story Writer, Widely Regarded as One of the Major Figures of 20th-Century Literature), (Playwright Best Known for His Plays All My Sons, Death of a Salesman and The Crucible), (Writer Known For His Satirical and Darkly Humorous Novels), (American Poet Who was Known for His Realistic Depictions of Rural Life), (British Author Who Has Been Called the 'Father of Science Fiction'), (American Author Best Known for Her Novel To Kill a Mockingbird), (American Author Best Known for His Novel The Hunt for Red October), Tom Clancy is best remembered for his espionage- and war-themed novels, many of which, such as, (Known for His Novella Breakfast at Tiffany's and Non-Fiction Novel In Cold Blood), Truman Capote is best known for his novella, (Poet, Novelist, Literary Critic & Environmental Activist), (Indian Political Activist, Poet and 1st Governor of United Provinces), (Best Known as a Leader of the Modernist Movement in Poetry), American-born British poet T. S. Eliot is best remembered for his poems, (Writer and Philosopher Best Known for His Novels: Brave New World, Island and Point Counter Point), (One of the Most Influential Writers of the 20th Century), (American Author Best Known for His Novel 'The Catcher in the Rye'), J. D. Salinger is best remembered for his controversial novel, (One of the Earliest Innovators of the Literary Art Form Called Jazz Poetry), Author, editor, and Princeton professor Toni Morrison is best remembered for her, (Irish playwright Who Won the 1925 Nobel Prize in Literature), (British Evolutionary Biologist Who Contends that a Supernatural Creator Almost Certainly Does Not Exist), Criminal lawyer-turned-author John Grisham is known for his bestselling legal thrillers, (One of the Finest American Playwrights of the 20th-Century Best Known for His Work The Glass Menagerie ), (Poet and Author Known for His Work Mockingbird Wish Me Luck, and Love Is a Dog from Hell), (Regarded as One of the Most Significant American Writers of All Time), (Novelist and Poet Best Known for His Novels: On the Road', The Dharma Bums and Big Sur), Jack Kerouac is remembered as a prominent figure of the, (One of the Most Celebrated 20th-Century American Writers Known for His Novel 'Fahrenheit 451'), Ray Bradbury is best remembered for his writings in the science-fiction, mystery, and horror genres, the most notable being the short story anthology. He also wrote short stories and novels meant for adults. An ardent supporter of the American Communist Party, the author also advocated for aggressive anti-racist action at a time when segregation was the norm. Shes got . He wrote many books, including the international bestseller, (Chilean-American Author Known for Her Novels: The House of the Spirits and City of the Beasts), Chilean author Isabel Allende is known for her bestselling Spanish-language novels The House of the Spirits and, (Best Known for His Poem Howl, Which is One of the Most Significant Products of the 'Beat Movement'). We have sculptures, paintings, drawings, a caricature and photographs. Smith, then a 23-year-old prodigy, wowed the literary world with her first novel, which introduced a writer of inimitable wit and scope. She wears large hoop earrings, and her hair, carefully parted in the middle, is arranged in a braided updo. Compared with the easy familiarity of Hansberrys and Cisneros portraits, the exhibitions 1989 photograph of Maxine Hong Kingston is almost unsettling. Via critical analysis of writers and filmmakers whose projects have changed our ways of viewing the modern world-including Hannah Arendt, Franz Kafka, Walter Benjamin, the directors of Germany in Autumn, and Heiner Mueller-these essays . From New York Times bestselling author Curtis Sittenfeld's dazzling first collection, You Think It, I'll Say It, to National Book Award winner Denis Johnson's final collection, The Largesse of the Sea Maiden, there's something for every book lover from Random House. Russian author Vladimir Nabokov, also known by his pen name, (American Writer Known Primarily for Her Works of Horror and Mystery), Shirley Jackson redefined the genres of horror and mystery through her works, which include over 200 short stories and six novels. Her works encompass themes, such as religion and myth, climate change, and gender and identity. Among the most striking portraits included in her Her Story is a 1998 picture of Toni Morrison that appeared on the cover of Time magazine. 13. After experiencing a profound moral crisis in the 1870s, Tolstoy went through a phase of spiritual awakening, which had a great impact on his subsequent works that incorporated ideas on nonviolent resistance. His stories focused on his interpretation of humanity's place in the universe. She ended up sharing a jail cell with fellow featured writer Alice Walkeran experience detailed in the formers 2012 verse memoir, I Love a Broad Margin to My Life. A man with a strong mind of his own, Orwell never backed down from stating his views on the socio-political climate he lived in, which he expressed profusely through his influential essays and novels. Working in a variety of jobs, he wrote in his spare time. Mr. Peretti is a "Christian fiction" author who has accumulated over 15 million copies sold worldwide. An important figure in the Indian Independence Movement, shewas a proponent of anti-imperialistic ideas, women's rights, and civil rights. I love the way shes sitting on the steps, as though she's talking to a neighbor, Shaw adds. Eliot The disillusionment that grew out of the war contributed to the emergence of modernism, a genre which broke with traditional. Much like Hansberry, Sandra Cisneros draws inspiration from her childhood in Chicago. He ended his own life in July 1961. 1. Ian Fleming was a British writer, naval intelligence officer, and journalist. He was a columnist for The Chicago Defender and wrote the iconic poem The Negro Speaks of Rivers. You can even read The Great Gatsby for yourself if you visit Amazon. Plath is credited with popularizing confessional poetry and won a posthumous Pulitzer Prize in Poetry. Mark Twain, the father of American literature, was one of the worlds greatest 19-th century humorists and authors. The book received a lot of negative attention at first but has quickly become one of the most celebrated novels of all time. "City of Beasts" (2002) has been another large commercial success. Two movie adaptations were filmed, the first starring Robert Redford and the second Leonardo DiCaprio. In 2018, he was named in Time's 100 most influential people in the world list. . Considered one of the greatest authors, JRR Tolkien is popularly called the father of the modern fantasy literature. 27 Black American . He was also known for his debates with William F. Buckley Jr., which inspired the 2015 documentary film Best of Enemies. A friend of Truman Capote, Lee has been portrayed by popular actresses in Capote's biographical films. On assignment for Vogue, he cataloged such details as ceiling-high bookshelves, a clunky typewriter and a vase filled with forsythia clippings, offering a sense of the space where the playwright had penned her searing exploration of racial segregation. Albert Camus was a French philosopher and the second-youngest recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature. His works influenced other poets like Robert Francis, James Wright, Edward Thomas, Richard Wilbur, and Seamus Heaney. Shel Silverstein was an American writer, playwright, songwriter, and cartoonist. He is best known for his high fantasy classic works The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, which is set in a conceived world called the Middle-Earth. Joyce's work has influenced several scholars and writers, such as Jorge Luis Borges, Salman Rushdie, Sen Rordin, Flann O'Brien, John Updike, and Cormac McCarthy. 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