Powerlessness In Atomic Age Literature
The tension between powerless people and powerful governments, underpinned by oppression, is encapsulated within atomic age literature through the manifestation of trepidation and helplessness within the depicted societies. In this regard, the anxiety and weakness of individuals is explored within George Clooney’s film Good Night and Good Luck (2005), and Joseph Heller’s satirical novel Catch-22 (1961), as their postmodern presentations of constrained societies illuminates the truly uneasy relationship between people and their governments within the atomic era.
The inherently repressive connection between governments and individuals during the atomic age is illuminated through the microcosmic settings of atomic era literature, which represent oppressive political institutions, and the encapsulation of apprehension and powerlessness experienced by individuals within such settings. Such provocative illustration
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Provided this, the tension between the powerful political institutions and the powerless people is subsequently illuminated through the ominous atmosphere established by this anachronistic black and white editing, a representation of the eeriness resultant of the constant apprehension of persecution and being labelled a communist sympathiser amidst the ideological clashing of the cold-war. This display of the profound anxiety is reinforced by Kate Harper as she asserts “everyone ...risked being labelled a communist…as a result, having their civil liberties impinged upon”, agreeing with Clooney’s depiction of the government’s confinement of people’s lives. As such, the accentuation of the government’s oppression is reflected through the focus on anti-nepotism through the Wershba’s sub-plot, exemplified by the cramped two-shot of Joe and Shirley’s private conversation, whereby the
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