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Modernism

Modernism. 1915-1950. The Great War (WW1). WW1 (1914-1918) had profound effect on world. 65 million military involved 8-10 million died; 115,000 Americans 6-7 million civilians died Changed American voice At one time, American voice was brash and youthful, but mostly unoriginal

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Modernism

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  1. Modernism 1915-1950

  2. The Great War (WW1) • WW1 (1914-1918) had profound effect on world. • 65 million military involved • 8-10 million died; 115,000 Americans • 6-7 million civilians died • Changed American voice • At one time, American voice was brash and youthful, but mostly unoriginal • After WW1, voice became less optimistic, aware of limitations. Led to more distinctive voice, though.

  3. Country seemed to lose innocence • Idealism turned to cynicism • Writers began question authority and tradition of country • War brought social changes • Morally • Short skirts, bobbed, hair, slang expressions • Connection to past deteriorating

  4. The American Dream:People Begin to Wake Up • Depression brought suffering to millions • American writers disillusioned; feeling spiritually empty; began to reject traditional themes and styles • American Dream • 1. Admiration of America as New Eden; land of beauty, bounty, unlimited promise • 2. Optimism; faith in progress. “It’s just around the corner” idea • 3. Importance and ulimate triumph of individual (think Emerson).

  5. A Break from New England • Writers from South, Midwest, West arise • Stream of consciousness technique--moment-by-moment flow (v. chronological order) • Intellectual trends • Marxism: Capitalism is bad; get rid of classes and make everyone equal. • Psychoanalysis: Man is influenced by desire of the unconscious thought; questions level of “free will” man has

  6. The Jazz Age • Prohibition: No more booze. • Led to the bootlegger, the speakeasy, the cocktail, gangsters • And Jazz Music • Ernest Hemingway • Very influential writer; wrote in “plain style” • Created new American hero—courageous, cool, but disillusioned • The Roaring Twenties saw women in new roles • Edna St. Vincent Millay was poet and “wild woman” • 1920 women won right to vote

  7. Poetry in the Modern • Emily Dickinson and Whitman are dead; poetry fizzling. • T.S. Eliot and Ezra Pound helped revive it. Shortly after, crashing wave of poetry emerged. • The Harlem Renaissance • Awesome explosion of art from New York (and surrounding areas) • Rise of African American poetry and literature • Focused on the unique perspective of African American experience • Introduced ‘ghetto speech’ and jazz rhythms and blues into verse

  8. The American Dream Revised • Even though Modernists rejected Emerson’s optimism, some ideas remained. • America has potential • Self-Reliance is important • Modernists still trying to answer questions such as Who are we? Where are we going? What values should guide us there?

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