MODERNISM

M O D E R N I T Y As a historical period, this era in Europe (eventually the United States as well) is marked by a rejection of tradition (political, philosophical, aesthetic, religious, social) Classical Modernity is considered to run from 1789 to These years mark the dates of the French Revolution and World War II. Early Modernity as early as late 1500s, Late Modernity from Characteristics of modernity include trying to face the problems of society with new and current perspectives rather than turning to old concepts and ideas Rise of secularization Industrialization and the division of labor Rise of the (industrial) city

Modernism in art, literature, philosophy, and thought Late 1800s to until beginning of WWII (1939) The loss of certainty, and the realization that certainty can never be established, once and for all; the beginning of the questioning of science and philosophy as paths to TRUTH and CERTAINTY; only relative provisional truths. Where has the “reason” of the Enlightenment led us? Still poverty, still violence, and worse of all a World War. Influenced by emerging fields of psychology and sociology Questioning of the idea that all move forward is progress; modernists see a decline of civilization Disillusionment Emphasis on the individual Alienation: caused by secularization, by city life, by society’s ills in general, by middle class life, by the rise of the machine, by war and violence

Modernist techniques in literature: 1. the anti-hero: Ulysses, Gregor, Prufock (characters in general are posited as ambiguous, diverse, contradictory, sometimes pathetic); lacks conventional heroic qualities 2. Stream of consciousness, surreal settings & events 3. Moving away from traditional linear plots; multiple plots 4. first-person narrative or multiple narrators; unreliable narrators or questionable narrators 5. direct protests against society; themes of alienation and discontent

Paralyzed by indecision Drifts through life letting others or life decide for him Is marked by angst Suffers alienation (sometimes self-inflicted) Takes little to no action; therefore in a way he is neither good nor bad More on the anti-hero of modernity:

Franz Kafka Born on July 3, 1883 in Prague to a middle- class family Died June 3, 1924 Writing in the early 1900s – Modernist period Writing in German His tense relationship with his father is often a focus in the works of biographers and scholars interested in Kafka, since he was very vocal about that tension in his personal letters. Kafka in 1906

Similarities Between Franz Kafka and Gregor Samsa Kafka trained as a lawyer and eventually obtained employment with an insurance company Would repeatedly complain about the little time he had to devote to his passion (writing) due to the demands of his Brotberuf ("day job", literally "bread job) Father was huge, selfish, overbearing businessman Mother was described as quite and shy Kafka lived with family until he was 31 in an apartment much like the one in the story Had three younger sisters

What does the text have to say about the… Family? Alienation? The individual? What is ethical, moral behavior? What it means to be human?