Post war literature can be said to exist from the first years of the German Occupation. The influence of political and social events of the times on the texts is obvious. The German Occupation, the Resistance, the ensuing civil war, social and political conflicts, major economic and social problems, have all left their mark on Greek letters. To a large extent, post war literature is heavily politicised and most post war authors belong to the left. Other approaches are also employed, such as the neo-surrealist and the existential, in order to express some of the new tendencies and needs of the times.
There are no obvious time limits to this period of Greek literature, while any grouping of authors into categories is bound to be arbitrary. Nevertheless, we can roughly group post war poets into two generations. Those who issued their first collection of poetry after 1940 and before 1955 can be considered as belonging to the first one, with those who appeared for the first time between 1955 and 1965 belonging to the second post war generation. Those who write after 1965 can be classified as contemporary literature.
The bulk of post war poetry displays certain common attributes, over and above any individual differentiations. We have to bear in mind that there has been an increase in the amount of poetry being written, and thus it is difficult to distinguish any leading figures. There is a unified poetical voice and a unity of subject matter, this being mainly due to the intense interest in politics of the post war poets. A tragic seriousness runs through the works of the time, together with a feeling of depression and pessimism, although certain poets do exhibit a certain romantic tenderness.
Within first generation post war poetry we can, broadly speaking, distinguish the following tendencies: a) That of the resistance, or social tendency, in which the vision of a more just society, both politically and socially, predominates (Aris Alexandrou, Manolis Anagnostakis, Michalis Katsaros, Takis Sinopoulos, Thanasis Kostavaras, Tasos Leivadites, Titus Patricius, and others),
b) The neo-surrealist tendency, the poets subscribing to which renew and make substantial additions to surrealist poetry of the interbellum period (Eleni Vakalo, Nanos Valaorites, Hector Kaknavatus, Miltos Sahtouris and others),
c) An existential or metaphysical tendency, the poets subscribing to which address existential matters and chart the metaphysical agony of the fear of death (Nicos Karouzos, Olga Votsis, Giorgos Kotsiras).
Prose writers born in the 20s and 30s and made their first appearance in Greek letters between 1945 and 1974 are considered as belonging to the post war period, although a few older authors also belong to this group. These authors have firsthand experience of all the crucial events of the 40s and their very lives have been shaped by these events. All those born after the end of the Civil War (1949) and have no direct experience of the 40s can be classified as contemporary authors.
There are pronounced differences as well as some marked similarities between post war authors and their counterparts of the 30s Generation. Like the poets of the period, prose authors are heavily influenced by the events of the German Occupation and the Civil War, and, likewise, post war prose writing shares an intense involvement with politics with post war poetry. Immediately after the Occupation (1944-1947) many authors attempted to narrate the historical events of the Occupation and the Resistance. The first works of post war prose authors though go no further than being mere submissions of firsthand experience or chronicles.
Prose authors of the second post war generation usually come to prominence during the 60s and follow different paths; their psychological makeup has been far less influenced by the events of the 40s, since they were too young to be active participants then. Their texts usually include autobiographical elements, and they tend to hearken to existential matters, such as isolation, marginalisation and personal issues rather than political ones (Vasilis Vasilikos, Menis Koumantareas, Christophoros Miliones and others).
Most post war prose authors continue the tradition established by the naturalist authors who preceded them of portraying reality with a critical eye, while insisting on the depiction of its uglier and brutal side (Nikos Kasdaglis, Kostas Tachtses, Andreas Frangias, Demetrius Hadjes and others). They manage to succeed in employing realistic narrative conventions while being self-referential, in other words to employ a narrator who conveys autobiographical detail (Giorgos Ioannou, Christopohoros Miliones and others).
Some authors display the influence of the political and social conflicts of the times and express a marked social awareness in their works (Dem. Hadjis, Kostas Kotzias, Andreas Frangias, Stratis Tsirkas, Spyro Plascovites and others), while some elect to avoid the gloom of reality by seeking refuge in the lyrical prose of the closed space. Such authors are usually female, and among them are Margarita Lymberakis, Mimika Kranakis, Tatian Gritsi-Milliex and others.
The tradition of interior monologue, which was established in Salonica during the interbellum, is very much alive in the post war period too, with Nicos Bacolas being a prime exponent. During the same time, a movement in the opposite directionDiagonios (Diagonal) magazine, also of Salonica. These authors include among them Giorgos Ioannou, Nikos Kachtitses, Tolis Cazantzes and others, and tend to combine modernist elements with more traditional ones. In tandem, some post war prose authors seek refuge in fantasy, in order to depict nightmarish worlds, while employing bold means of expression is apparent among the circle of the (Takis Koufopoulos, Giorgos Cheimonas, and others).
Towards the end of the 20th century new approaches are very much in evidence. One of the most interesting new approaches sets the plot in locations where the Greek element was highly influential during the past, such as Asia Minor or Egypt, and attempts to define what is Greek by means of the interaction with the other, both in national and religious terms. The final result is a new type of novel, among its major exponents being Nikos Themelis, Rea Galanakis, Maro Douka and Alexis Panselinos.
Post war drama heralds the appearance of the petty bourgeois theatre, whose most typical character is the petty bourgeois, and which is punctuated by the ideology of the petty bourgeoisie. The scene is set symbolically in the courtyard. The best-known representative of this approach is Iakovos Campanellis, with Dimitris Kehaidis, Paulos Matesis and Costas Mourselas being among its most prominent exponents.
The social and political change brought about by the Colonels' Dictatorship of 1967 also force changes onto Greek drama. The dramatists turn to the theatre of the absurd, which is very popular in Europe at the time; their adopting this particular way of writing helps them to circumvade censorship. Existential immurement, spiritual void, social impasse and escapist solutions are all prevalent in their plays. Vasilis Ziogas, Loula Anagnostakis, Antonis Doriadis, Costas Mourselas and Stratis Carras are among the better-known dramatists of the absurd.
Around the middle of the eighties Greek drama takes a sharp turn, and adopts, in a broad sense, the orientation of contemporary theatre. The dramatists turn to ancient Greek myth and to the classics, and by constructing intertextual works combine the traditional values of dramatic myth with the demands of a contemporary audience. Postmodernism in Greek letters is largely made up of these attempts at synthesis, the main exponents of which are I. Campanellis, A. Staikos, V. Ziogas, etc.
Many of the poets and prose authors of the post war generation wrote literary criticism and essays, but few dedicated themselves exclusively to either. Georgios Themelis was an important critic, who wrote extensively on both older and more recent authors. Zisimos Lorentzatos is noticeable among Greek essayists, having propounded some highly original ideas. The name of Evangelos Papanoutsos is widely identifiable, by virtue of his literary and linguistic essays. Among the main contributors to litereary criticism are the academics G.P. Savvides, Apostolos Sahinis, Costas Steriopoulos, Dimitris Maronitis, Giorgos Veloudis, Mihalis Meraklis, Panagiotis Moullas, Alexandros Argyriou and Eratosthenis Kapsomenos and the authors Manolis Anagnostakis, Dinos Christianopoulos and Alexander Kotzias. Among the literary periodicals one has to notice, alongside the ongoing New Vesta (Nea Hestia), Epohes (Seasons), Epitheorisi Technis (Art Review), Diagonios (Diagonal), Diavazo (I Read), Lexi (Word), and others. These periodicals frequently opened their columns for the presentation of new, avant-guarde ideas.
Α. Writers: thirty (30)
Β. Texts: thirty (30)
1. Poetry /texts in verse: thirteen (13)
2. Prose: fourteen (14)
3. Theater: one (1)
4. Criticism: one (1)
5. Essay: one (1)
C. Text language: Demotic.