The Slovak cultural and literary situation during the period 1945-1955

Abstract

The Slovak cultural and literary situation in the decade after the end of World War II is divided into two periods. The first period, lasting until 1949, is a continuation of the prewar pluralism, but with some limitations. Awareness of the atrocities of war results in existential anxiety that becomes one of the main themes in Slovak literature. The second period introduces a sharp break with the past into Slovak society and culture, since after the Communist coup in 1948 a cultural reform is implemented. The reform introduces the only permissible conceptual-aesthetic orientation - Socialist Realism.