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1.background：second half of the 19th century to early of the 20th decades
(1)natural and social sciences enormously advanced
(2)capitalism came into its monopoly stage
(3)the gap between the rich and the poor was further deepened
(4)World War 1 2 broke
2.what ideas influence this period： all kinds of philosophical ideas
(1)Karl Marx： scientific socialism
(2)Darwin‘s theory of evolution， “survival of the fittest”
(3)Freud‘s analytical psychology
(4)The irrationalist philosophers give immense influence
3.ideas：(1)Modernism originated from skepticism and disillusion of capitalism
(2)The French symbolism announced modernism
(3)takes the irrational philosophy and the theory of psycho-analysis as its theoretical base.The major themes are the distorted，alienated and ill relationships
4.difference between Modernism and Realism
Modernism is a reaction against realism in many aspects
(1)Modernism rejects rationalism， which is the theoretical base of Realism
(2)Modernism refects the source of Realism， i.e. the external， objective， material world
(3)Modernism rejects almost all the traditional elements in literature
5.D.H.Lawence‘s works’ features：
(1)he interests in exploring the psychological development， he thinks life impulse is man‘s instinct. any conscious oppression will cause distortion of the individual’s personality
(2)make a psychological exploration of human relationships， especially those between men and women
(3)he emphasizes that it‘s capitalist industrialization that turn man into inhuman machines. And the desires for power and money cause the alienation of human relationships
6.John Osborne： “Look back in Anger” “Angry Young Man”， the working-class drama and the Theater of Absurb
George Bernard Shawn
1.idea：against “art for art‘s sake”， art should serve social purposes by reflecting human life， revealing social contradictions and educating common people
2.works features： prolem plays， only one passion： indignation
(1)showing one‘s character by the expense of another’s
(2)inversion3.works：Mrs Warren‘s Profession(a play about the economic oppression of woman); St. Joan(historical play); The Apple Cart(political play); The Doctor’s Dilemma(political play)
