Lost Generation Research Paper

The “lost” generation refers to the era that came right after the end of WWI. During this time America was experiencing an economic boom and was in the midst of industrial power rising to prominence. However, this era also contained many socioeconomic problems that gave rise to many reform movements. Lost generation writers attempted to unmask American society often trying to reveal the underlying problems that were not easily visible. The four main lost generation writers were F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gertrude Stein, Ernest Hemingway, and T.S. Elliot. Each of these writers had different writing styles and different ways of developing plot. The one thing that connected these writers was the use of similar themes in all of their books. Themes such as decadence, gender roles, disillusionment, idealised past, etc. were heavily emphasized in their novels. For example, Fitzgerald’s The Great

Examples of the emphasis on gender roles can be found in T.S. Elliot’s poem The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises where the stereotypical roles of men and women are seen slightly shifting and changing. In these works of literature the women often takes the role defined for men as men are wounded from the traumatic experience of war. Writers of the Lost Generation have contributed significantly to the development of American Literature These writers wrote during a time when morals and values were shifting and a new perspective of the world was taking place. This acted as a catalyst in producing some of the most memorable pieces of work in the history of American literature. Even though these novels and poems have been written about a century ago, their universal messages about the American dream and the dangers of anything in excess are still relevant today. This attribute is one of the main reasons that lost generation writers have made their mark in