Modernism lecture Flashcards
1
Q
When was modernism
A
1880-1945
2
Q
Modernism
A
- The art of clear and precise images and common speech, the work as an object of art produced by consummate craft rather than as a statement of emotion
- constructs a new view of the world and of human nature through a self conscious manipulation of form, reality is shifting and uncertain
- experiments with perspective and language joined with traditional concepts of individual psychological depth - art is a coherent aesthetic whole. It is a combination of discontinuous experimental style with belief in wholeness of human personality and of artwork
3
Q
Varieties of modernism
A
- highly self-conscious use of language
- aim to transform view of the world
- cult of the new/experimental
- high on technique
- low on humanism
4
Q
20th century modernism
A
- the ways of knowing how to become more important than what we know
- rebellion of the 20th century against 19th century interest in science
- science is merely one way of knowing that is also limited and biased
5
Q
Henri Bergson
A
- 1859 - 1914
- attacked scientific rationalism as unreal and artificial, instead he sees reality as a fluid living force, elan vital, only known by consciousness
- bergson influenced Marcel Proust and his quest for “lost time” (Remembrance of Things Past)
- bergson influenced James Joyce and his development of “stream of consciousness”
6
Q
Sigmund Freud
A
- 1856 - 1939
- Austrian founder of psychoanalysis
- examines subconscious impulses, hidden motivations, and patterns of repressed desire
7
Q
Ferdinand de Saussure
A
- 1857 - 1913
- Swiss linguist
- suggested the relation between signifier (the word) and the signified (the object) is fluid and not fixed or inherent
8
Q
Carl Jung
A
- 1875 - 1961
- developed the idea of the collective unconscious - a buried level of universal experience, tapped by myth, religion, and art (examples of such include the hero, seer, great Mother, quest, and regeneration of life/death)
9
Q
Einstein’s Theory of Relativity
A
- reality is four dimensional, contingent, therefore undermines any level of certainty about the nature of the universe
10
Q
Profound ethical consequences
A
- meaning of life and experience is questioned when reality is plural and truths that oppose are simultaneously accurate
- crisis of confusion and a lack of transcendent meaning
11
Q
Creates existentialism
A
- Sartre and Camus emphasize questions of freedom, responsibility, and social engagement (lonely tragic hero who acts on behalf of society with no hope or expectation of reward)
- Theatre of the absurd
12
Q
20th century - era of constant war
A
- two world wars
- establishment of communism
- old European monarchies are overthrown or disempowered
- colonial empires dismantled
13
Q
Expressionism
A
Expresses an inner vision, emotion, or spiritual reality
— refuses direct impression/expression of reality as simplistic
— highlights emotion, rhythms, disrupted narrative and syntax, distorted imagery
13
Q
Hero of modernity
A
The common man
14
Q
Futurism
A
Identifies the glory of the machine age, the glory of war
— uses experimental typography, harsh stark vision, manipulation of sound, word placement for effect, rapid shifts and breaks in syntax
