Its not all peaches and

sunshine

MODERNISM: 1890ish 1965is

The Great War: Catalyst for

Change
After World War I, returning soldiers
attempted to make meaning of the
vast carnage they had observed
during the war.
Some statistics

Casualty Statistics: Allies

Country
Russia
France
England
United
States
Other Allies
Total
In Millions

Killed
1.7
1.3
0.9
0.1

Wounded
4.9
4.2
2
0.2

1
5 million

1.7
13 million

Casualty Statistics: Central

Powers
Country
Germany
Austria
Other C.P.
Total

In Millions

Killed
1.7
1.2
0.4
3.3 million

Wounded
4.2
3.6
0.5
8.3 million

Grand Totals
Total Killed

Total Wounded

8.5 million

21 million

I was always embarrassed by the words

sacred, glorious, and sacrificeI had seen
nothing sacred, and the things that were
glorious had no glory and the sacrifices were
like the stockyards in Chicago if nothing was
done with the meat except to bury it.
Frederick Henry, A Farewell to Arms by Ernest
Hemingway

The Birth of Modernism

Traditional morality and spirituality was
unable to account for such annihilation,
thus Modernism.
Modernism exhibits a loss of innocence,
cynicism, lack of belief in a
compassionate Creator, and a
redefinition of art forms.
The philosophy of existentialism is born to
create a new way to cope with the wars
destruction and trauma.

Existentialism
A philosophical movement embracing
the view that the suffering individual
must attempt to create meaning in an
unknowable, chaotic, harsh, and
seemingly empty universe.
The absurd: A philosophy connected to
existentialism; the conflict between the
human tendency to seek meaning in life
and the human inability to actually find it.

Existential Nihilism
Life has no basic meaning or value.
According to the theory, each
individual is an isolated being "thrown"
into the universe, barred from knowing
"why," yet compelled to invent
meaning.
In existentialism, one can potentially
create his or her own subjective
"meaning" or "purpose."

Big Ideas of Modern

Literature

The American Dream is attainable

America as Eden
Confidence in the triumph of the individual,
self-reliance
Optimism: Life keeps getting better

Disillusionment is real
The American Dream is not a right (or
guarantee)
Loss of faith in the American Dream
Financial, moral, ethical issues

Other Influences
In addition to American historical events
(WWI, stock market crash, etc.), there
are other ideas that influenced the
Modernist movement
Psychoanalysis (Freud and stream of
consciousness)
Marxism (a way of analyzing society that
focuses on class relations and societal
conflict)
Musical experimentation (Jazz)

Tenet A

A loss of heroes.
No role models
No one for others to look up to at least
no one without flaws and their own
readily apparent human nature in tact

Tenet B

A fragmentation of
society.
Disillusionment with others
A break down in interpersonal
relationships
A sense of community and
neighborliness and brotherhood is
lacking

Tenet C
An emphasis on psychology and
motivation and the inner
workings of the mind.
An examination of the way the population
was thinking
Stripping away the superficiality and
reducing matters to their basic elements
In particular, Modernist writers would
question nature and tradition and want to
get at the heart/root/core of an issue or
idea.

Tenet D

A loss of faith in the

American Dream.
Perhaps America was not/is not as great
as some people make it out to be.
American Dream does not guarantee
peace.

Tenet E

An experimentation with
new forms of
communication.
Poems and short stories and art all took
on a new style.

Tenet F

A lack of spirituality and a

lack of faith: in each
other, in our surroundings,
in our beliefs.
Questioning God; asking the Why?
question to ourselves.
A loss/misplacement of the hope that once
flooded our nation.

Nothing Gold Can Stay

Robert Frost
(1923)