Modernism in the 20 th Century

Literary Themes and Styles Doubt, conflict, and strife – Protagonists are often troubled with who they are and their place in the world Fragmentation of the interior and exterior – The stability of the self, ideologies, and the world in question Stream of Consciousness – Fluid and shifting narrative presentation of subjectivities Surrealism – The use of the absurd and contradictory to represent the life of the mind

The Dream (The Bed), Frieda Kahlo, 1940

Life Reconsidered Colonialism – No more “blank spaces” left on the map – Encounters with other civilizations Industrialization – Shift from agrarian to manufacturing – Labor becomes alienated Innovation – Improvements in transportation, communication, and healthcare Urbanism – Population moves from country to city Wars – Increase conflict and better weapons – Capacity to destroy humanity

Egon Schiele, Self-Portrait, 1912

The Modern Self: If the world is now entirely known, what is left to know? Existentialism – The individual—not society or religion— is solely responsible for giving meaning to life and living it “authentically.” – Sartre and Camus Psychoanalysis – The power of the unconscious (ego, superego, and id), the repressed, and primal drives to understand the self as in conflict with itself and the world. – Freud and Lacan

Existentialism Existential Attitude – An individual’s sense of disorientation and confusion in the face of an apparently meaningless or absurd world “ Existence Precedes Essence ” (Sartre) – One’s consciousness (subjectivity) creates meaning in the world through action and reflection. Optimism vs. Absurdism – Candide vs. “The Metamorphosis”

Existential Crisis Who am I? & What is life’s purpose? Realizing that life has no meaning prior to what consciousness (subjectivity) gives it. – Hollowness of social types (stereotypes/categories) Understanding that life only has meaning through action (agency) and reflection (subjectivity)