The influence of the western culture on the history of the world is an undeniable fact. The concept can be used to describe modernist movement in the arts, the different cultural tendencies and cultural movements associated with it. The factors that are considered to have favored modernism include rapid growth of cities and development of industrial societies, and honor of the First World War (Stangos 23 – 45). While the ore modernist period is characterized by a sense of order and stability, with deep understanding of the nature of faith, personal and cultural identity, and social values, the modernistic period presents a chaotic instability characterized by lack of recognition for collective social values and faithlessness. Modernism can also be defined as the rejection of traditional 19th century norms, where architects, artists, thinkers and poets either abandoned or altered earlier conventions in attempting to re-envision society influx (Thomas & Valerie 23 – 34).
According to Astradur Eysteinsson, the term modernism has become an important in the literature and critical theory in the 20th century (1 – 3). He asserts that this concept does not emerge the literature it contains, however it is a result of critical practices relating to non-traditional literature (25 – 44).
However, the ideology of realism is explicitly rejected by arts, which makes use of the past. These arts apply incorporation, reprise, incorporation, revision, recapitulation and parody in new forms. Modernity, through these arts also denies lingering certainty of the idea of a compassionate all powerful being and enlightenment thinking. Generally, modernism covers the activities of certain people who recognized traditional art forms, literature, architecture, religious faith, literature, daily life and social organizations were becoming out of date. They consider the aforementioned as no longer consistent with the emerging political, social and economic order of the world’s industrialization.
Ezra Pound, a critic, impresario, poet and propagandist, who lived from 1885 to 1972, is considered one of the shaping forces of modernism. This is due to his poetic writings. He captured the essence of modernism in his famous poem, ‘make it new!’ several modern writers believed that every story that could be told in the present had been told in the past in a way or another. In this case, in creating a new thing, using new forms of writing would be considered appropriate. Due to this, the period produced numerous new wave styles. The other writers who are best known for the new experimental writings include Virginia wolf and James Joyce. Others include T. S. Eliot, and the aforementioned Ezra Pound, who were both poets.
Theodore Adorno, a philosopher of the 1940s, had a negative take on modern arts in different levels. In his view, while referring to the Aesthetic Theory, he asserts that modern art critiques the antagonistic and administered society it is present in as it also makes uncompromising reprint. He also believes that the works of arts are negative to the predecessors. In his view, he suggests that modern arts negates its own affirmative tradition and exposes the illusion of totality and harmony of the latter. Finally, also with reference to the Aesthetic Theory, he indicates that post war modernism, which lacks tension, breaks the taboo of high modernism’s negation. His major concern, as evidenced above, is the negativity of high modernism. He believes modern art de-aesthetizes itself by neither presenting formal unity nor harmony, instead, it presents fragmentation and dissonance.
However, several artists and philosophers have downplayed Adorno’s idea as vague in describing art as a dialectical process that transcends antagonism but not abolishes them (Rainey 1103 - 1122). According to these philosophers, he intentionally ignore the audience in his description, however, in their reasoning, the audience is an indispensible dimension in the play of art (Rainey 1123 - 1187).
Another artistic work that justifies the modernism movement is T.S. Eliot’s ‘The Waste Land’ according to Ezra Pound’s writings shortly after Eliot’s poem’s publication in 1992, the wasteland is a justification of the movement of the modern experiment (Surette 300 - 330). The poem describes dissolution moods resulting from the effects of the First World War and from his personal travails. Due to this war, he could not return to the United States to complete his education. At the age of 33, he had undergone several encounters, which led to the writing of the wasteland. The poem both encompasses his personal experience and the general crisis of the western culture. One of the most evident themes from this poem is the of a post war world, in which he view that the sexuality of humans Have been prevented from its normal course, even the natural world has eventually become infertile.
In conclusion, despite the contradicting reactions from different artists and philosophers, it is evident that the key concepts of modernism are rationalism, classicism, rationalism, humanism and secularism. All the artists and philosophers of the 20th century have contradicting views in relation to these concepts of modernism, however, it is certain that modernism defies the 19th century norms and values while upholding the 20th century’s.
Works Cited:
Thomas Stearns Eliot & Valerie Elliot. The Waste Land: A Facsimile and Transcript of the Original Drafts, Including the Annotations of Ezra Pound. San Diego, California: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Trade & Reference Publishers, 1974. Print.
Lawrence Rainey. Modernism: An Anthology. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, 2005. Print
Leon Surette. The Birth of Modernism: Ezra Pound, T.S. Eliot, W.B. Yeats, and the Occult. Canada: McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP, 1993. Print.
Nikos Stangos. Concepts of Modern Art: From Fauvism to Postmodernism. London: Thames & Hudson, Limited, 2009. Print.
Astradur Eysteinsson. Modernism, Volumes 1-2: Volume 21 of Comparative History of Literatures in European Languages, ISSN 0238-0668. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing, 2007. Print.
