Explain how existential literature reflects the quest for meaning at mid-century

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Building on the philosophy of Sartre, mid-century writers explored meaning in an anxious and alienated society. The utopian and dystopian genres provided a dialectic approach: utopian literatureis optimistic and exalted science as a positive force in shaping the future; dystopian literature is pessimistic, fearing that modern technology might produce catastrophes and societies will become dreadful and bleak.
The postwar era also witnessed the birth of a new kind of literary hero: one who, deprived of traditional values and religious beliefs, bears the burden of freedom and the total responsibility for his actions. This antihero takes up the quest for meaning: alienated by nature and circumstance, he makes choices in a world lacking moral absolutes, a world in which no act might be called "good" unless it is chosen in conscious preference to its alternatives. Unlike the heroes of old, the modern antihero is neither noble nor sure of purpose. This hero perfectly reflected the modern person and appeared in all types of literature in every part of the world.