Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work. These ideas’ as expressed in Look Back in Anger are examined below.

The Angry Young Man

Osborne’s play was the first to explore the theme of ‘Angry Young Man’. This term describes a generation of post-World War II artists and working class men, who generally ascribed to leftist, sometimes anarchist, politics and social views. According to cultural critics, these young men were not a part of any organized movement but were, instead, individuals angry at a post-Victorian Britain that refused to acknowledge their social and class alienation.

Jimmy Porter is often considered to be literature›s seminal example of the angry young man. Jimmy is angry at the social and political structures that he believes has kept him from achieving his dreams and aspirations. He directs this anger towards his friends and, most notably, his wife Alison.