EL 110 Reporting 1 To Be Passed

LESSON 4 Issues and Challenges in Contemporary Literature
Issues and Challenges in Contemporary Literature
Contemporary Literature (1940-1990); (1990-present)
Defined as literature written after World War II through the current day. It
started in 1940. Literary period has revealed a serious theme about “World War II”
which is grounded in psychological, social, cultural, political, religious and economic
issues. This shows readers how written work was created from a particular period
in history through the current era.
During this period, readers have seen the development of numerous genres,
such as dystopian fiction, contemporary horror, New Wave fiction, the psychological
thriller, romantic comedy, and more. Additionally, within this time period, readers
can find important novels, short stories, poems, essays, and more.
The violence World War II caused artists to question traditional

understanding of human nature and truth in two movements called Postmodernism
and Metamodernism.
Two movement in Contemporary Literature
1. Postmodernism
Postmodern writers envisioned that there is no connection between

the past and the present and that past events are irrelevant in the
present.The ideas of order, sequence, and unity in works of art are
sometimes abandoned.Writers often leave their stories open-ended, without
any satisfying conclusion. Postmodern stories and novels rely heavily on
irony,parody,pasticheandsatire.
Examples of Postmodernism Literature
© 2023 Caraga State University EL 110 ( Contemporary, Popular, and Emergent Literature)
Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (1922-2007)

➢ American writer known for his
ironically satirical novels that used postmodern techniques, fantasy, and
science fiction to highlight the horrors and ironies of 20th-century civilization.
“PlayerPianoFirst” (1952)
➢ This anti-utopian novel employs the standard science-fiction formula of a
futuristic world run by machines and of one man’s futile rebellion against
that world.
Other Example:
Clarice Lispector (1920-1977)

➢ A novelist and short-story writer,
one of Brazil’s most important
literary figures, who is considered
to be among the greatest women
writers of the 20th century.
“ThefifthStory” (1964)
➢ "The Fifth Story" is a story about how stories are told. The event itself is so
ordinary as to be mundane: a woman has a problem with cockroaches,
another woman tells her how to get rid of them, and the narrator does so.
2. Metamodernism
A recent movement in various spheres of human philosophy, art,

literature, architecture, politics and many other human activities.
Metamodernist works often engage with the idea of "post-truth" and the
breakdown of objective truth.
Examples of Metamodernism Literature
Cyan Abad-Jugo
➢ is a Filipino author, novelist, and
teacher.Her doctoral degree is in
English Studies: Creative Writing and
Anglo-American Literature from UP

Diliman.
Salingkit: A 1986 Diary (2012)

➢ Genre: Non-Fiction
➢ The story of fourteen-year-old Kitty Eugenio. She
goes by the code name Goro. She suffers from
parental loss: her mother has fled to the United
States. Her father went missing during a protest rally
two years ago.
There are many types of contemporary literature, represented by such
diverse authors as Margaret Atwood, Samuel Beckett, Toni Morrison, and
Suzanne Collins.
Most literary works in the contemporary era use regional diction and slang to
create realistic dialogue, provide realistic characters that mirror real people and
emotions, and utilize imagery and symbols while avoiding overly academic
vocabulary. The following are the well-known works of contemporary literature:
➢ Slaughterhouse-Five (1969) by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.

➢ The French Lieutenant’s Woman (1969) by John Fowles
➢ Gravity's Rainbow (1973) by Thomas Pynchon
➢ White Noise (1985) by Don DeLillo
Characteristics of Contemporary Literature
1. The literature is ironic and reflects current political, social and personal
issues;
2. Well-defined, realistic, highly developed characters in realistic, sometimes
harsh environments; Often the stories are character driven;
3. May reflect a personal cynicism, disillusionment and frustration;
4. Facts are questioned as are historical perspectives;
5. Often presents two contradictory arguments;
6. The literature may reflect a growing skepticism in the existence of God.
Writing style
1. Realistic characters, imagery, symbol, and regional diction and slang to

create realistic dialogue, while avoidingtheuseofacademicvocabulary.
2. Follows no particular style of writing, it’s easytoread.
3. No common techniques lending themselves to realism rather than fantasy
such as the use of unreliablenarrators,irony,blackhumor,meta-narration,
collage,andpastiche’.
Contemporary Themes
● Identity
● Race
● Gender
● Sexuality
● Globalization
● Technology
● Social inequality
● Mental health and
● The environment
Importance of Contemporary Literature
Reflecting current social and political issues, offering diverse perspectives,

critiquing cultural norms, exploring human experiences, engaging with technology's
impact, interpreting history, fostering dialogue, promoting personal and societal
growth, and providing joy.
It shows how current literaturereflectssociety, helping readers grasp its

complexity and fostering critical thinking, empathy, and engagement with vital
problems.
Social Issues in Contemporary Literature
Women in Literature
Publishers frequently identify women's literature as a subgenre of writing
produced by women (Rivera, 2020).
Common Issue
Gender Inequality
➢ In Literature, Due to the inferiority of women in male-dominated countries,
the tradition of female writing has received little attention.
Contemporary Literature
➢ Female authors have risen to the fore and given readers of today a wide
range of ethnic and cultural perspectives.
➢ The unique voice of female minorities is a common theme in many coming-
of-age novels that allows each writer to establish a separate identity for their
characters and themselves.
➢ Women in modern literature often include strong, independent females
juxtaposed with oppressed women to provide examples for young female
readers and critique our society’s shortcomings.
Female Authors
1. Ntozake Shange (October 18, 1948 - October 27, 2018)

➢ American playwright, poet, and author who is renowned for her
feminism and racial and sexual angst.
➢ Shange also wrote a number of additional plays that forwent
traditional story and character development in favor of incorporating
poetry, dance, and music (known as "choreopoems' ').
WORKS:
For Colored Girls WHo Have Considered Suicide

➢ Published in 1975
➢ A fusion of poetry, dance, music, and song that
erupts off the stage and resonates with
everyone is used by seven women to share
their tales and find strength in each other's
humor and passion in this celebration of the
power of Black womanhood.
➢ For Colored Girls, a choreopoem, touches on a variety of subjects that are

particularly relevant to young Black girls attempting to figure out where they
fit in the world. Numerous works touch on sexuality and relationships. Others
examine the historical socio-political difficulties that Black women
experienced.
➢ Ntozake Shange draws inspiration from her personal experiences as a Black

woman and poet. She wanted to examine her own journey of self-discovery
and healing as well as bring attention to the special struggles, achievements,
and resiliency of Black women.
2. Maya Angelou (April 4, 1928 – May 28, 2014)

➢ American actor, poet, and memoirist whose several volumes of
autobiography tackle the subjects of sexual, racial, and economic
oppression
➢ She was one of the first African American women to have a
screenplay turned into a feature film as the author of the 1972 drama
Georgia, Georgia.
WORKS:
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969)
➢ In her poem, Maya Angelou contrasts

the conditions of two birds: one is free
and "floats" and "dares to claim the
sky," while the other is imprisoned
within "bars of rage." This clearly
alludes to the fact that white people
were allowed to do whatever they
wished while African Americans were treated as slaves.
➢ The free bird represents white
Americans or all liberated people who have access to the same rights.
The caged bird is a metaphor for/symbolizes downtrodden Black
Americans who are held captive by racist laws.
➢ Her childhood in the racially divided American South during the 1930s
and 1940s is explored in the book. Angelou talks about the difficulties
she encountered, such as prejudice, destitution, sexual abuse, and
the search for her identity as a young Black girl.
3. Zadie Smith (October 27, 1975 – Present)
➢ A British author renowned for how she writes about issues of race, religion,
and cultural identity, as well as for the quirky characters, astute
humor, and quick dialogue in her books.
➢ She started writing poetry and stories when she was young, and she
eventually earned a B.A. in English literature from the University of
Cambridge.
➢ Smith's writing has sparked discussions on the value of cultural diversity, the
necessity of removing barriers between people, and the ability of stories to
unite all people.
WORKS:
White Teeth (2000)

➢ White Teeth is a multicultural book that
faithfully depicts Britain in the second half of
the 20th century. Many former residents of
colonized countries had already migrated to
Britain by this time, frequently in search of
employment. This made it more difficult for
these individuals to relate to Britain, which was
both their previous oppressor and current
home.
➢ With its emphasis on racial and ethnic variety, connected family
histories, and examination of the migrant experience, "White Teeth"
tapped into these more general cultural discussions.
➢ In the second half of the 20th century, three families who lived in London are
the subject of the novel "White Teeth," which chronicles their intertwined
lives. The book opens with the introduction of its two main characters,
Bengali Muslim Samad Iqbal and white Englishman Archie Jones.
4. Toni Morrison (February 18, 1931 – August 5, 2019)

➢ An American author renowned for her analysis of Black experience,
particularly that of Black women, within the Black community.
➢ In 1993, she was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.
➢ Folktales, songs, and storytelling played a significant role in her upbringing.
WORK:
The Bluest Eye (1970)

➢ The Bluest Eye is a fascinating story from
the 20th century that looks at how one's
perception of beauty affects their
sense of worth and ability to love
themselves.
➢ The protagonist, Pecola Breedlove, shows
how social ideals surrounding beauty
dehumanize and corrupt people, especially
those who are marginalized in society.
➢ Morrison wrote The Bluest Eye because she wanted to read it, and it
was about a specific group of readers—"all those peripheral little
girls"—whose tales weren't told in books. She explained to The New
Yorker in 2003, "What was driving me to write was the silence—so
many stories untold and unexamined."
5. Amy Tan (February 19, 1952 – Present)

● American author of books about immigrant life and Chinese-American
women
● In 1987, she was a very successful freelance business writer and had taken
her Chinese immigrant mother back to China.
WORK:
The Joy Luck Club (1989)

➢ Published in 1989
➢ The Joy Luck Club is a collection of sixteen
interconnected stories about the struggles
Chinese immigrant moms face raising their
American-born daughters.
➢ Jing-mei's journey to China to see her half-sisters,
Chwun Yu, and Chwun Hwa, is the central plot
point of the novel.
➢ Jing-mei was born to a different father years later, in America, while the half-
sisters stayed behind in China because their mother, Suyuan, was forced to
abandon them on the side of the road during her desperate departure from
Japan's invasion of Kweilin during World War II. Suyuan wanted to go back
to China to get her other daughters, but she was unable to do so before she
passed away.
➢ Tan's goal in writing "The Joy Luck Club" was to honor and better understand
her mother, with whom she frequently had a tense relationship.
The Importance of Women in Literature
It is important to note that women also belong to this unwavering

population. Women play a vital role in shaping and changing people's not-so-
agreeable perceptions. Being a woman is not easy, for it also requires acting in
society.
Women in literature are important because of their capacity to question
social norms, modify our perception of the world, and give voice to and respect for
women's opinions. Realizing the importance of various viewpoints and tales will
ultimately result in a more inclusive and just literary and societal landscape.
Ethnicity in Literature
Ethnicity in literature refers to the portrayal of cultural, racial, and ethnic

backgrounds in literary works, exploring the experiences, identities, and challenges
of different ethnic groups.
Common Issues
These issues highlight the complexity of depicting ethnicity in literature and the
importance of thoughtful and respectful representation.
1. Stereotyping
➢ Ethnic literature often deals with the challenge of
avoiding or challenging stereotypes and
misrepresentations of specific ethnic groups.
Example:
The Joy Luck Club (1989)
➢ Amy Tan challenges stereotypes of
Chinese-American women by depicting complex,
multi-dimensional characters, including four mother-daughter
pairs, each with unique struggles and cultural identities (Tan, 1989).
2. Authenticity
➢ Writers may grapple with how to authentically

represent the cultural nuances and experiences
of a particular ethnic group, especially if they do
not belong to that group.
Example:
Americanah (2013)
➢ by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
➢ the author's Nigerian heritage adds authenticity
to Ifemelu's journey through race and identity
complexities in Nigeria and the United States.
Adichie's nuanced exploration of cultural adaptation,
race relations, and Nigerian society deepens readers' engagement,
offering profound insights into the African immigrant experience in
America.
3. Reader’s Interpretation
➢ Ethnic literature can be subject to diverse interpretations, leading to
questions about who has the authority to define the meaning of a
work.
Example:
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao (2007)
➢ by Junot Díaz exemplifies the issue of reader
interpretation in ethnic literature.
➢ Díaz incorporates Dominican history, culture, and
identity into the narrative, but the novel's complex
structure permits diverse interpretations.
➢ Readers, based on their backgrounds, may
emphasize historical and cultural aspects or relate
to themes like identity and belonging. This diversity challenges the
authority in defining the novel's meaning, sparking questions about
the author's intent versus readers' perspectives.
4. Cultural Appropriation
➢ Authors must navigate the fine line between respectfully exploring
another culture and appropriating it, which can lead to controversy.
Example:
American Dirt (2020)
➢ by Jeanine Cummins, the author, not of
Mexican descent, faced criticism
for attempting to depict the story of
Mexican migrants seeking asylum in the
United States.
➢ Many readers, particularly from Mexican and
Latinx communities, found her portrayal of
Mexican culture and experiences inaccurate
and appropriative, perpetuating harmful stereotypes.
➢ This controversy sparked a debate on
authorship, cultural representation, and the responsibility of writers
when delving into cultures beyond their own.
5. Visibility
➢ Ethnic literature sometimes struggles
for visibility and recognition in literary
canons and mainstream publishing.
Example:
The Woman Warrior (1976)

➢ Asian American literature, exemplified by Maxine Hong Kingston's
1976 memoir
➢ has historically faced challenges in gaining recognition within
mainstream publishing and literary canons, despite its innovative
narrative style and exploration of Chinese American identity.
6. Global vs. Specific Themes

➢ Balancing the portrayal of universal themes with
specific cultural elements
can be challenging, especially when
trying to reach a broad audience.
Example:
The Namesake (2003)
➢ by Jhumpa Lahiri , Gogol Ganguli's journey as a
second-generation Indian-American
explores both specific experiences within
the Indian immigrant community, like traditions and
assimilation challenges, and universal themes of
identity, self-discovery, and the tension between heritage and
independence.
➢ Lahiri skillfully balances Gogol's unique Indian-American experience
with broadly resonant themes, making the novel accessible and
thought-provoking for diverse readers.
7. Empowerment vs. Tokenism

➢ Some works are celebrated for empowering underrepresented voices,
while others are criticized for tokenizing or exploiting ethnic identities.
Example:
The Leavers (2017)
➢ is praised for giving voice to underrepresented Asian immigrants and
illuminating the struggles of undocumented individuals and the
Chinese-American experience. Yet, critics question potential tokenism
in the narrative, underscoring the need for authentic representation of
marginalized communities, exemplifying the ongoing discourse on
empowerment versus tokenism in contemporary ethnicity literature.
8. Language and Translation

➢ The use of non-English languages and
their translation can impact how ethnic
literature is understood and appreciated.
Example:
Behold the Dreamers (2016)
➢ by Imbolo Mbue, language and
translation are crucial in depicting the
Cameroonian immigrant experience in
the United States.
➢ The novel skillfully integrates English
and Cameroonian Pidgin English, reflecting diverse linguistic
backgrounds and highlighting the characters' challenges in adapting
to American life.
Contemporary literature often addresses issues related to ethnicity in diverse

and dynamic ways. Here are some notable trends and examples in contemporary
ethnic literature:
1.Diverse Voices
➢ Contemporary ethnic literature features a wide array of voices from various
ethnic backgrounds, including African, Asian, Latinx, Indigenous, and Middle
Eastern authors. For instance, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's "Americanah"
explores the immigrant experience from a Nigerian perspective.
2.Intersectionality
➢ Many contemporary works of ethnic literature delve into the intersection of
ethnicity with other aspects of identity, such as gender, sexuality, and class.
3.Cultural Hybridity
➢ Authors often explore the blending of cultures and the experiences of
individuals who navigate multiple cultural identities. For example, Jhumpa
Lahiri's "The Namesake" portrays the struggles of second-generation Indian-
Americans.
4.Language and Identity

➢ Language and its role in shaping identity are recurrent themes.
5.Experimental Narratives
➢ Some authors employ innovative narrative techniques to convey the
complexities of ethnic experiences. Junot Díaz's "The Brief Wondrous Life of
Oscar Wao" blends elements of fantasy with historical and cultural
commentary.
Contemporary ethnic literature continues to evolve, offering fresh

perspectives on identity, culture, and society while contributing to broader
conversations about diversity and representation in literature.
Racism in Literature
Racism is a type of prejudice that assumes that individuals who fall into
specific racial categories have distinguishing qualities and that these differences
make some racial groups inferior to others. Racism can take many different forms
and is aimed at many different cultures. Authors who have personally experienced
it are frequently moved to write about it in an effort to influence society's
perceptions and make a difference.
"Racism involves one group having the power to carry out systematic
discrimination through the institutional policies and practices of the society and by
shaping the cultural beliefs and values that support those racist policies and
practices." — dRworks
Common Issues
1. Discrimination - describes how various ethnic, religious, national, or

other groups are treated differently. Discrimination typically involves the
hostile, harmful treatment of members of marginalized groups since it is the
behavioral embodiment of prejudice.
2. Stereotypes - generalizations about various groups of people were

oversimplified by stereotypes. Stereotypes can be founded on a group's
ethnicity, nationalism, gender, age, sexual orientation, or any other
trait.
3. Tokenism- making simply a token or symbolic effort to carry out a given

action, particularly by hiring a small number of individuals from
underrepresented groups to create the illusion of sexual or racial equality
within a workforce, is known as tokenism (Lexico.com, 2020).
4. Cultural Appropriation - the phrase "cultural appropriation" was initially

used in academic contexts to talk about colonialism and the interactions
between majority and minority communities. Cultural appropriation
eventually left the academic world and into mainstream culture.
5. Material Success and Political Attachment- from the early 1960s, when
blacks experienced the "perverse equality" of practically uniform poverty in
which even the wealthiest blacks rarely could pass on their status to their
offspring, there has been an amazing and likely historically unique
turnaround.
➢ On the other hand, among the poorest Black people, only the length
of the period of poverty matches its depth. As a result, there is
currently a larger gap between the top and bottom fifths of African
Americans in terms of income, education, violent victimization,
occupational position, and electoral involvement than there is
between the top and bottom fifths of White Americans.
6. Ethnic Coalitions and Antagonisms- the situation is very different when,

as is commonly the case, political disagreements and policy decisions are
made in a way that fosters competition between racial or ethnic groupings.

Three in five Asian Americans think that blacks face the most prejudice, as
do half of whites, and the majority of African Americans (82 percent) say
their own race faces the most discrimination in America today.
In terms of how they are treated by law enforcement, how they are
portrayed in the media, how they are treated by the criminal justice system, how
they are promoted into managerial positions, and how easily they can obtain
mortgages and credit loans, black people are constantly more likely to experience
bias toward their own race than against other races. On all of these concerns,
Latinos are split between blacks and their own group, but whites and Asians see
different levels of prejudice against the three non-white groups.
In an effort to deepen our understanding of race and racism, significant

authors, together with the histories of their experiences, published novels and
verses to help shape our collective consciousness of a subject that is clear, and
universal.
Here are some of the significant authors and their notable works representing
the voice of different races:
1. Gabriel Bump
➢ a novelist, was raised in Chicago's South Shore.
➢ graduated from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, with an MFA in
fiction.
Everywhere You Don't Belong (2020) ➢ His

first book was named a Notable Book of 2020 by
the NewYork Times.
➢ Is a coming-of-age narrative about Claude McKay
Love, a young black boy reared in Chicago's South
Shore neighborhood by his eccentric grandmother
and her lifelong companion Paul. Claude is an
introverted young man who struggles to make sense
of his parents' absences, the poverty and violence
he encounters and endures, and Paul and his
grandmother's outbursts. He decides to escape Chicago for another place, to

go to college, to find a new identity, to leave the pressure cooker of his
hometown behind. But as he discovers, he cannot; there is no safe haven for
a young black man in this time and place called America.
2. Clint Smith (1988- present)
➢ is a typewriter at The Atlantic, the author of the

non-fiction book.
How the Word is Passed (2021)
➢ Clint Smith takes the reader on an unforgettable

tour of monuments and landmarks, both truthful and dishonest about
the past, starting in his hometown of New Orleans, that tells a
multigenerational tale of how slavery across America which played a
crucial role in forming our nation's history as a whole and ourselves.
3. Ramón Saldívar (1949-2021)

➢ is an English and Comparative Literature
professor at Stanford University.
➢ Investigates the ways in which literary

experimentation and representations of race
and racial identity are used by contemporary
writers.
The Imaginary and Its Worlds (2013)
➢ A writer who co-edited "The Imaginary and Its
Worlds” (2013) which is about collecting essays that boldly rethink the
imaginary as a key concept for cultural criticism.
➢ The story addresses both the emergence and the reproduction of the
social, the imaginary is ideally suited to chart the consequences of the
transnational turn in American studies. Leading scholars in the field
from the United States and Europe address the literary, social, and
political dimensions of the imaginary, providing a methodological and
theoretical groundwork for American studies scholarship in the

transnational era and opening new arenas for conceptualizing
formations of imaginary belonging and subjectivity.
4. Harper Lee (1926-2016)
➢ a reservations clerk for Eastern Air Lines and

British Overseas Airways in 1949. While in
New York, she wrote several essays and
short stories, but none were published.
➢In1960, with the help of Lippincott editor Tay

Hohoff, To Kill a Mockingbird was published.
To Kill A Mockingbird (1960)

➢ To Kill a Mockingbird is a story about growing up under exceptional
circumstances in the 1930s in the Southern United States.
➢ The narrative spans three years, during which the main protagonists
go through considerable transformations. Scout Finch lives in the
fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama, with her brother Jem and their
father Atticus. Maycomb is a small, close-knit community, and every
family has a social station based on where they reside, who their
parents are, and how long their ancestors have been in Maycomb.
5. James Baldwin (1924-1987)
➢ is a modern-day writer, having written

innumerable profound articles, short stories,
novels, plays, and poetry over his 63-year
career.
➢ used his distinct point of view and poetic

writing to throw light on issues of racism,
homosexuality, and religion in a way that put
him ahead of his time in terms of social criticism.
Notes of a Native Son (1955)

➢ was one of his works where he captured the challenges of being Black
in America during the early days of the Civil Rights Movement in the
1950s.
➢ Throughout his observations, Baldwin bemoaned the inequities in the

African American community while also showing empathy for the
oppressor, establishing himself as an important voice in the struggle.
Challenges to Contemporary Literature
1. Literature is language-based and national; contemporary society is

globalizing and polyglot.
2. Vernacular means of everyday communication – cell phones, social
networks, streaming video – are moving into areas where printed text
cannot follow.
3. Intellectual property systems failing.
4. Means of book promotion, distribution and retail destabilized.
5. Ink-on-paper manufacturing is an outmoded, toxic industry with steeply
rising costs.
6. Core demographic for printed media is aging faster than the general
population. Failure of print and newspapers is disenfranchising young
apprentice writers.
7. Media conglomerates have a poor business model; economically rationalized
"culture industry" is actively hostile to vital aspects of humane culture.
8. Long tail balkanized audiences, disrupts means of canon-building and
fragments literary reputation.
9. Digital public-domain transforms traditional literary heritage into a huge,
cost-free, portable, searchable database, radically transforming the reader's
relationship to belle-lettres.
10.Contemporary literature not confronting issues of general urgency; dominant
best-sellers are in former niche genres such as fantasies, romances and teen
books.
11.Barriers to publication entry have crashed, enabling huge torrent of
subliterary and/or nonliterary textual expression.
12.Algorithms and social media replacing work of editors and publishing houses;
network socially-generated texts replacing individually-authored texts.
13."Convergence culture" obliterating former distinctions between media; books
becoming one minor aspect of huge tweet/ blog/ comics/ games /
soundtrack/ television / cinema / ancillary-merchandise pro-fan franchises.
14.Unstable computer and cellphone interfaces becoming the world's primary
means of cultural access. Compositor systems remake media in their own
hybrid creole image.
15.Scholars stepped within the disciplines becoming cross-linked jack-of-all-
trades virtual intelligentsia.
16.Academic education system is suffering from severe bubble-inflation.
17.Polarizing civil cold war is harmful to intellectual honesty
18.The Gothic fate of poor slain Poetry is the specter at this dwindling feast.
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LESSON 4 Issues and Challenges in Contemporary Literature

Issues and Challenges in Contemporary Literature

Contemporary Literature (1940-1990); (1990-present)

The violence World War II caused artists to question traditional

Two movement in Contemporary Literature

Postmodern writers envisioned that there is no connection between

Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (1922-2007)

Clarice Lispector (1920-1977)

A recent movement in various spheres of human philosophy, art,

Anglo-American Literature from UP

Salingkit: A 1986 Diary (2012)

➢ Slaughterhouse-Five (1969) by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.

Characteristics of Contemporary Literature

1. Realistic characters, imagery, symbol, and regional diction and slang to

Importance of Contemporary Literature

Reflecting current social and political issues, offering diverse perspectives,

It shows how current literaturereflectssociety, helping readers grasp its

Social Issues in Contemporary Literature

1. Ntozake Shange (October 18, 1948 - October 27, 2018)

For Colored Girls WHo Have Considered Suicide

➢ For Colored Girls, a choreopoem, touches on a variety of subjects that are

➢ Ntozake Shange draws inspiration from her personal experiences as a Black

2. Maya Angelou (April 4, 1928 – May 28, 2014)

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969)

➢ In her poem, Maya Angelou contrasts

3. Zadie Smith (October 27, 1975 – Present)

White Teeth (2000)

4. Toni Morrison (February 18, 1931 – August 5, 2019)

The Bluest Eye (1970)

5. Amy Tan (February 19, 1952 – Present)

The Joy Luck Club (1989)

The Importance of Women in Literature

It is important to note that women also belong to this unwavering

Ethnicity in literature refers to the portrayal of cultural, racial, and ethnic

➢ Writers may grapple with how to authentically

The Woman Warrior (1976)

6. Global vs. Specific Themes

7. Empowerment vs. Tokenism

8. Language and Translation

Contemporary literature often addresses issues related to ethnicity in diverse

4.Language and Identity

Contemporary ethnic literature continues to evolve, offering fresh

1. Discrimination - describes how various ethnic, religious, national, or

2. Stereotypes - generalizations about various groups of people were

3. Tokenism- making simply a token or symbolic effort to carry out a given

4. Cultural Appropriation - the phrase "cultural appropriation" was initially

6. Ethnic Coalitions and Antagonisms- the situation is very different when,

made in a way that fosters competition between racial or ethnic groupings.

In an effort to deepen our understanding of race and racism, significant

Everywhere You Don't Belong (2020) ➢ His

grandmother's outbursts. He decides to escape Chicago for another place, to

2. Clint Smith (1988- present)

➢ is a typewriter at The Atlantic, the author of the

How the Word is Passed (2021)

➢ Clint Smith takes the reader on an unforgettable

3. Ramón Saldívar (1949-2021)

➢ Investigates the ways in which literary

theoretical groundwork for American studies scholarship in the