Modernism

Modernism1914-1945

Historical BackgroundWorld War I

• World conflict lasting from 1914 to 1919

• The second bloodiest conflict in recorded history.

• 8 million died worldwide

Historical BackgroundWorld War I: Economic Effects

• Boom in Technology and Industry

• Competitive work force

• Jobs for women (women’s rights; 19th amendment)

• Economic Security

The Roaring 20’s• 1st radio station on air• Boom in automobile

production• Radical change in

women’s fashions (flappers)

• General carefree feeling of security due to America’s growing economy

• Flourishing film industry

The Great Depression

• Began in October 1929 with the stock market crash.

• Longest and worst period of high unemployment and low business activity in modern time.

• Millions of Americans jobless, homeless, and penniless. Many people came to depend on the government or charity to provide them with food.

Modernist Literature

• Themes– Inferred versus directly stated– Reflected lack of optimism, feelings of uncertainty

and disillusionment.• Characteristics– Wide variety of new approaches– Fragmentation/stream-of-consciousness: omission of

exposition, transitions, resolutions, and understandings used in traditional literature.

– Juxtaposition of ideas, images, words, etc.

Modernist Poetry

• Abandonment of traditional forms• Use of free verse and improvisation• Clear, concrete images (known as “Imagism”)• Use of every day language• Unique typography and punctuation (e.e.

cummings, for example)

“The Red Wheelbarrow”

so much dependsupon

a red wheelbarrow

glazed with rainwater

beside the whitechickens

-- William Carlos Williams

“This is Just to Say”

I have eatenthe plumsthat were inthe iceboxand which you were probablysaving for breakfast

Forgive methey were deliciousso sweet and so cold

-- William Carlos Williams

Modernist Authors

• Robert Frost• e.e. cummings• Carl Sandburg• F. Scott Fitzgerald• John Steinbeck• Ernest Hemingway• Katherine Anne Porter• Eudora Welty

The Harlem Renaissance-1920s – 1930s

• Following WWI, many African American soldiers were disillusioned to find that their loyalty to their country was one-sided.

• Many moved to northern urban areas in search of jobs and equality.

• Harlem became the center of a spiritual coming-of-age.

Philosophical Divide

Marcus Garvey• Leader of the “Back to

Africa” MovementBelieved African Americans

should not assimilate to American cultural norms; rather, they should focus on going back to the motherland

W.E.B Dubois• Sociologist; Co-founder of

the NAACP; historian, writerBelieved in desegregation and

equal rights for African Americans in the United States

Jazz Age

• Duke Ellington• Louis Armstrong• Ella Fitzgerald• Josephine Baker• Billie Holiday

Harlem Art

Jacob Lawrence Aaron DouglasPrimitivism

Harlem Renaissance Literature

• Celebrated racial identity and pride, group expression, and self-determination.

• Documented experiences of African Americans.

• Raised America’s consciousness of racism• Opened the door for future writers such as

Toni Morrison, Alice Walker, Maya Angelou, and Walter Mosely.

Writers of the Harlem Renaissance

• Zora Neale Hurston• Langston Hughes• Claude McKay• Jean Toomer• Countee Cullen• Arna Bontemps