Literature of the 1980s: After the Watershed

Joseph Brooker relates developments in fiction, poetry and drama to social change - from the new generation of London novelists such as Martin Amis and Ian McEwan to the impact of feminism in the writing of Angela Carter and Jeanette Winterson. Brooker also explores the literary strategies used by writers of working-class origin in the age of Thatcherism such as James Kelman and Tony Harrison, as well as the voices used by Black British writers including Fred D'Aguiar and Hanif Kureishi. The rise of postmodernism is explored in relation to developments in literary theory and the popularity of self-conscious modes of writing. Literature of the 1980s provides a vibrant account of the diverse literature from a decade which left Britain a very different place.

Key Features

*The first academic book-length discussion of British literature of the 1980s

*Extensive historical background for understanding literary texts and other cultural forms such as television, film and music

*Consideration of how images of the 1980s have appeared in later culture

*Close attention to influential writers including Martin Amis, Angela Carter, Jeanette Winterson, Salman Rushdie, Pat Barker, James Kelman and Hanif Kureishi