Major writers from Modernist and Postmodern literature

  concise list showing **major writers from Modernist and Postmodern literature**, along with their **contributions, movements, or titles** like "Father of..." where applicable:

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### 🌑 **Modernist Writers (Early 20th Century)**

(*Often marked by disillusionment, fragmentation, and inner consciousness*)

| **Writer** | **Known For / Title** | **Key Themes / Contributions** |

| -------------------- | --------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------- |

| **Henrik Ibsen** | *Father of Modern Drama* / *Social Realism Pioneer* | Exposed social hypocrisy, realism in domestic issues |

| **T.S. Eliot** | *Leading Modernist Poet* | Fragmentation, disillusionment (*The Waste Land*) |

| **James Joyce** | *Pioneer of Stream of Consciousness* | Inner life, complexity (*Ulysses*) |

| **Virginia Woolf** | *Modernist Feminist Icon* | Subjectivity, gender, time (*Mrs. Dalloway*) |

| **Franz Kafka** | *Existential Absurdism* | Alienation, surreal horror (*The Trial*) |

| **William Faulkner** | *Southern Modernist* | Time shifts, family decay (*The Sound and the Fury*) |

| **Ezra Pound** | *Imagism Founder* | Economic, sharp imagery in poetry |

| **Gertrude Stein** | *Modernist Innovator* | Experimental language and form |

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### 🌒 **Postmodern Writers (Post-WWII to Late 20th Century)**

(*Marked by irony, metafiction, intertextuality, playful forms*)

| **Writer** | **Known For / Title** | **Key Themes / Contributions** |

| -------------------------- | ------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------- |

| **Samuel Beckett** | *Absurdist Theatre Icon* | Meaninglessness, minimalism (*Waiting for Godot*) |

| **George Orwell** | *Master of Political Satire* | Dystopia, power critique (*1984*, *Animal Farm*) |

| **Sylvia Plath** | *Confessional Poet* | Mental illness, death, identity (*Ariel*) |

| **Ted Hughes** | *Dark Naturalist* | Brutal nature, primal instincts (*Crow*) |

| **Seamus Heaney** | *Postcolonial Irish Voice* | Rural identity, history (*Death of a Naturalist*) |

| **J.R.R. Tolkien** | *Myth Maker / Fantasy Revival* | Heroism, myth (*The Lord of the Rings*) |

| **Gabriel García Márquez** | *Magical Realism Master* | Latin culture, reality blending (*One Hundred Years...*) |

| **Carol Ann Duffy** | *First Female UK Poet Laureate* | Feminism, identity, satire |

| **Don Paterson** | *New Generation Poet* | Language play, modern themes |

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### 🧩 **Quick Distinction:**

| **Modernism** | **Postmodernism** |

| ----------------------------- | ---------------------------- |

| Serious, structured | Ironic, playful, fragmented |

| Disillusionment with progress | Skepticism of truth and meta |

| Inner self, stream of thought | Intertextuality, pastiche |