Portrait of Lord Melvyn Bragg, host of In Our Time

Modernist novels

Literary modernism, or modernist literature, originated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, mainly in Europe and North America, and is characterized by a self-conscious break with traditional ways of writing, in both poetry and prose fiction writing. Modernism experimented with literary form and expression, as exemplified by Ezra Pound's maxim to "Make it new." This literary movement was driven by a conscious desire to overturn traditional modes of representation and express the new sensibilities of their time.

5 episodes

Episodes in this category also belong to the following categories:

  1. Death in Venice

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Mann's infamous novella of 1912, exploring the link between creativity and self-destruction.

    15 June 2023

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    Featuring: Karolina Watroba, Erica Wickerson, Sean Williams

     
  2. Heart of Darkness

    Melvyn Bragg discusses Joseph Conrad's Novel, Heart of Darkness, a critique of colonialism at the turn of the century

    15 February 2007

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    Featuring: Susan Jones, Robert Hampson, Laurence Davies

     
  3. James Joyce's Ulysses

    Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss James Joyce's celebrated novel Ulysses.

    14 June 2012

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    Featuring: Steven Connor, Jeri Johnson, Richard Brown

     
  4. Mrs Dalloway

    Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Virginia Woolf's novel Mrs Dalloway, published in 1925.

    3 July 2014

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    Featuring: Hermione Lee, Jane Goldman, Kathryn Simpson

     
  5. The Great Gatsby

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss one of the great American novels of the 20th Century, where inexplicably rich Jay Gatsby aims to win Daisy Buchanan from her millionaire husband.

    14 January 2021

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    Featuring: Sarah Churchwell, Philip McGowan, William Blazek