The Contemporary period marks when the world was said to be in disarray after world war II. It encompasses the ideas that break away from political and social norms, while at the same time giving a voice to many minorities such as women. It made the point of embracing and including many diverse cultures, exposing unknown truths, and the vast advancement in the medical field. The key concepts includes the war changing the world, the cold war and its social conflicts, and the global world as a whole.

In 1939, Germany’s invasion of Poland became a worldwide issue. The German army continued to send millions to their death in concentration camps, and in 1941 the United States was dragged into World War II when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. Much of the literature created during this time revolved around the horrors they encountered during wartime. Specifically, Elie Wiesel’s memoir, Night. In this writing, he explains his experiences with his father in Nazi German concentration camps at Auschwitz and Buchenwald in 1944 and 1945. He writes about the “Death of God,” and his growing disgust with humanity. He writes about how he becomes a resentful teenager, and began to see his father as a burden. It exposed the truth on how concentration camps altered people’s view on society, and writing about it gave an outlet.

After World War II, the Soviet Union and the United States came out as political superpowers. The next four years would consist of the two in an arms race to be better than the other, which nearly resulted in a widespread war. This was when writers began to challenge political and social conventions. It influenced writer  Arthur Miller to write The Crucible, a partially fictionalized playwright that consisted of the Salem Witch trials, but in reality was a way for him to talk about how Americans persecuted those being called out as a communist.

Technological advances began to arise in the twentieth century, and created trade and unity between nations that had little to no communication. Global markets emerged and businesses with both goods and services began to resurface around the globe. Writing of the time include cultural diversity and the blending with fiction and non-fiction.