The political and social dilemma...

Charles Dickens, arguably considered one of Britain’s greatest writers, undeniably used his writing as a vehicle to comment on the social and political tragedies he saw unfolding around him during the 19^th century, Oliver and A Christmas Carol  being a prime example of this. In literature there are always going to be writers who devote their talent to promote a political and social message, however I disagree that it is every writer’s responsibility to do so.

Donald M. Hassler in Political Science Fiction (1997) argues ‘Sometimes the political content is only a minor theme in a larger design’.

Arguably Dickinson is a prime example of this, I don’t believe she wrote with a political or social agenda in mind but in many ways some social and political influence, is inescapable. She may not have consciously intended to comment on the American Civil War through her poetry, however due to the fact she was alive during this time, critics are inclined to interpret her work from this angle.

Arthur Yap, a poet from Singapore, claims, ‘I’m not a person who wants to write poems with a political basis or a social basis, commenting on society as such. As a writer my commitment is to writing.’ (Yap, Arthur 1989)

In many ways I can sympathise entirely with Yap’s statement, as when writing myself, I rarely write with social or political issues in mind, however I don’t think this effects the strength of my writing. Inevitably if someone is a talented writer, as long as they create a good story, I don’t think it’s important what they write about.

In contrast, here is an example of a modern day musician, Plan B, using his art to convey a political and social message: