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Why did many Modernist writers reject chronological order in their narratives?

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Gertrude Stein, 1935 — Modernist literature American writer Gertrude Stein was a self-styled genius who coined the term *Lost Generation* for a younger coterie of her fellow Modernist writers.

Modernist writers often rejected chronological order to better reflect the fragmented, subjective, and non-linear nature of human experience and consciousness. Following the disillusionment caused by World War I, many artists sought new forms of expression that broke away from traditional, omniscient narrative conventions, which they felt imposed an artificial "neatness" on life.123

By utilizing techniques such as stream of consciousness and interior monologue, authors like James Joyce, Virginia Woolf, and William Faulkner aimed to replicate the random, fluid way thoughts actually occur, rather than presenting them in a rational or "literary" sequence.415

Furthermore, writers such as Ford Madox Ford experimented with time shifts and flashbacks to break down the rigidities of the space-time continuum, allowing the reader to perceive a story through an accumulation of fragmentary impressions. This approach shifted the focus from a predetermined, linear plot to a more objective—or conversely, more deeply psychological—representation of reality, requiring the reader to take an active role in interpreting the text.46235