The Angry Years : The Rise and Fall of the Angry Young Men

Colin Wilson's 1956 work The Outsider contributed largely to the popularization of existentialism in Britain and helped earn him the Angry Young Man label. Here he takes us on a journey back to this era, revealing fascinating and sometimes disturbing stories from the greats, including John Osborne, Kingsley Amis, Kenneth Tynan, and John Braine—to name but a few. Historically, the Angry Young Man movement gave birth to the satire movement of the 1960s— Beyond the Fringe , That Was the Week that Was , and Private Eye . Their irreverence aroused enthusiasm, and a new anti-establishment mood developed from Look Back in Anger and The Outsider . The story of that period makes a marvelously lively tale which, most importantly, was recorded by someone who was actually there. This Is The Definitive Account Of The Literary Phenomenon That Was The Angry Young Men, From One Of The First Writers To Be Hailed As Such - Colin Wilson, Whose Groundbreaking Work The Outsider, Along With John Osborne's Look Back In Anger, Marked Its Start. This Is Not A Critic's Book, But A Writer's Story Of What It Was To Be At The Heart Of This Extraordinary Milieu. It Is A Broad And Deep Exploration Of The Lives And Work Of Those Involved; Of The Bleak 1950s London That They Burst Upon, How They Changed It And Were Changed By It; And How All Too Often Meteoric Rise Was Followed By Decline, Decay And Disappointment. It Features A Cast Of Talents Great And Small, Raging Egos, Bohemians, Cynics, Romantics, Lovers And Drinkers; Including (among Many Others) Kenneth Tynan, John Osborne, Kingsley Amis, J. P. Donleavy, Iris Murdoch, Samuel Beckett, Doris Lessing, John Braine, Alan Sillitoe And Arnold Wesker.--book Jacket. 1. Getting Launched -- 2. He That Plays The King -- 3. The First Wave -- 4. Court Intrigues -- 5. The Paris Input -- 6. 'as For Living' -- 7. Joe For King -- 8. Declaration -- 9. Downhill -- 10. Iris Murdoch And The Gospel Of Promiscuity -- 11. 'now That My Ladder's Gone' -- 12. Watch It Come Down. Colin Wilson. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. What were the achievements of the'angry'writers who emerged in the fifties?Historically, they gave birth to the satire movement of the 1960s-Beyond theFringe, That Was the Week that Was and Private Eye. Their satire andirreverence aroused enthusiasm in man, and a new ‘anti-Establishment'mooddeveloped from Look Back in Anger and The Outsider. All literary movementsacquire enemies, but the Angry Young Men of the 1950s accumulated more thanmost. Why? Wilson takes us on a journey back to this era, and revealsfascinating and sometimes disturbing stories from the Greats, including JohnOsborne, Kingsley Amis, Kenneth Tynan and John Braine-to name but a few.At all events, the story of that period makes a marvellously lively tale which,most importantly, was recorded by someone who was actually there. What were the achievements of the 'angry' writers who emerged in the fifties? All literary movements acquire enemies, but the Angry Young Men of the 1950s accumulated more than most. This title takes the reader on a journey back to this era, and reveals stories from the Greats, including John Osborne, Kingsley Amis, Kenneth Tynan and John Braine.