Contents introduction chapter the battle of good and evil in literature of the XIX century

2.2 US literature in the early 20th century
The beginning of the twentieth century was marked by significant artistic achievements of American literature, which received wide recognition throughout the world. In many ways, this was facilitated by the influx of immigrants from Europe and strong economic development. At the beginning of the century, the conflict between popular literature, philistine fiction and pseudo-romantic prose in the style of "refined tradition", on the one hand, and literature that seeks to convey life in its dynamics and contradictions, on the other, became more tangible . Important for the development of literature during this period was the growth of social movements: first - anti-war, then - anti-monopoly. Already in the first decades of the twentieth century, three new trends in American literature were distinguished: critical realism, experimental and socialist literature.
An important stage in the literary life of America was Dreiser's novel "Genius". This work shows the conflict between true creativity and external circumstances that prevent it from being realized. Dreiser believed that in American society the romance of profit prevails, the minds are confident that the existing system is the best. In his opinion, Hollywood has captured not only cinematography, but also literature: the heroes in American literature have stopped working, poverty has become a myth, and difficulties are resolved with the help of various intrigues.
The growing realist literature was represented by such authors as Mark Twain, E. Sinclair, J. London and others. Many of them supported the movement of the so-called. "scrappers of dirt". This group of writers became the founders of the American sociological novel, combining journalistic research with artistic reflection in their work.
In April 1917, the United States announced its entry into World War I. America never fought on its own territory, but its literature was also shaken by the theme of the “lost generation”. The problems associated with the war were included not only in the books of those writers who fought on the fronts of Europe, such as, for example, E. Hemingway. The war, intertwined with other semantic lines in different works, touches upon problems specific to America - big money and the collapse of the American dream - helps to see clearly and see the true value of things, the lies and selfish artificiality of official slogans. The economic crisis of the 20-30s. pulled all the contradictions into a single knot, exacerbating social conflicts: in the South and West, farms were ruined en masse, in the North and Northeast, fierce clashes unfolded in mines and factories. T. Dreiser writes about the disasters of the miners of Garlan, Steinbeck told the whole world about the tragedy of the farmers of California and the Far West. Its most truthful and profound reflection of the turbulent 30s. are found in the works of E. Hemingway, W. Faulkner, J. Steinbeck, A. Miller, S., Fitzgerald.⁵
The beginning of the century was also marked by new trends in the development of ethnic cultures. Interest in the work of Indian writers is growing, the number of publications of works by black Americans is increasing, among which are William Dubois, P.L. Dunbar, C.W. Chesnut. They capture a wide American audience. The influx of immigrants to the United States gave rise to a kind of literature, both in English and in the languages of immigrants who came to America from different countries. This phenomenon gave impetus to a new stage in the development of not only US literature, but culture in general.
A characteristic feature of American realists was that, while borrowing some of the formal features of the modernist novel, they retain the aesthetic principles of critical realism: the ability to create types of great social significance, to show the circumstances of provincial and metropolitan life deeply typical of American reality; the ability to depict life as a contradictory process, as a constant struggle and action, in contrast to the decadent novel, which replaces the depiction of social contradictions with a retreat into the hero's inner world.
The masters of American prose of the early 20th century consciously created simple plots, depriving them of the elements of entertainment inherent in novels of the 19th century. In their opinion, such an approach to creativity is better able to emphasize the tragedy of the position of the protagonist. Traditional autobiographicalism continued to feed the realistic elements of American literature, such as factography and documentaryism. The authors believe that in the 20th century the aesthetics of reading should become more intense, so they do not strive, like their predecessors, to tell in the exposition all the main things about their characters; an additional effort is required from the reader to assimilate and comprehend the components of the complex composition of Oman.
The beginning of the 20th century in the United States not only opened great names to the world community, but also became a difficult transition period for the country from the state of “arrogant youth” to a more mature understanding of things. The "Great Depression" of the 1930s was officially overcome in 1933, but its presence in literature goes far beyond the indicated limits. The experience of these difficult years has forever remained in Americans as immunity against complacency, carelessness and spiritual indifference. It formed the basis for the further development of the national formula for success, and contributed to the strengthening of the moral foundation of American business, which was reflected in the literature.