Modernism 1914 -1939 F. Scott Fitzgerald The Great Gatsby

1. Modernism 1914 -1939F. Scott Fitzgerald The Great Gatsby Notes

2. Organization of this Unit… • Symbolism & Imagism – Poetry • Ezra Pound, T.S. Eliot, William Carlos Williams, Marianne Moore, E.E. Cummings • Modern American Fiction • Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, William Faulkner • Midcentury Voices • John Steinbeck, James Thurber, Robert Frost • The Harlem Renaissance • Countee Cullen, Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston

3. History – An Overview • Historical Timeline • World War I (The Great War): 1914 – 1918 • Began June 1914 when the Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary was assassinated by a Serbian nationalist. • The U.S. enters in 1917 • The armistice (aka “truce” which ended the fighting) was signed on the 11th hour on Nov. 11, 1918 – (where Veteran's Day comes from). • The Treat of Versailles (which officially ends the war) was signed in 1919.

4. History – An Overview • Historical Timeline cont. • Woman’s Suffrage • 1920 – Ratification of the 19th Amendment – U.S. women earn the right to vote. • This new status affects women overall: • Begin wearing shorter skirts • Bobbing hair in modern fashion • Participated in sports

5. History – An Overview • Historical Timeline cont. • The Great Depression – 1929 – 1939 (beginning of WWII) • A result of the New York Stock Market Crash in 1929. • The early 30’s were the hardest… • Nearly 1/4 to 1/3 of American’s were unemployed. • People were found waiting in bread and soup lines, hunting for food in garbage, and sleeping in sewer pipes. • Hoovervilles – “towns” made up by the homeless – named after President Hoover (who was reluctant to take steps to change things). • Caused much despair in America • Gave rise to extremist political parties in Europe, like the Nazi’s.

6. History – An Overview • The American Dream: (damaged by The Great Depression) • America as a New Eden • a land of beauty, bounty, and unlimited promise. (The Great Gatsby -1925) • A belief in progress • optimism that life will keep getting better, and that we are always moving towards an era of greater prosperity, justice and joy. • Triumph of the Individual • The independent, self-reliant person will triumph (championed by Ralph Waldo Emerson). Everything is possible for the person who places trust in his or her own powers and potential.

7. Modernism Sprouts • Shift from New England • American literary life finally started to move away from New England, which had been the native region of many American writers during the 19th century. • “Modern writers” were born in the South, Midwest, or the West.

8. Modernism – Definition • Modernist Movement • Movement in literature, painting, music, and other arts. • Called for bold experimentation and an extensive rejection of traditional themes and styles. Vincent Van Gogh’s famous “Starry Night” painting.

9. Modernism – Philosophical Views • Postwar Modern Movements: • Marxism • Embraces socialism as the desired social structure • takes hold in Russia and finds some support in the U.S. (named after Karl Marx, a socialist that invented Communism – wanted the workers to revolt & felt that rich businesses controlled the government) • Psychoanalysis – founded by Sigmund Freud • Encourages exploration of the human subconscious and the meaning of dreams. • Stream of Consciousness: • Narrative technique that attempts to imitate the moment-by-moment flow of a character’s perceptions and memories. (Used by James Joyce in Ulysses). • These two movements combined to influence previous beliefs and values.

10. Modernism – Social Influences • The Jazz Age • Prohibition results in speak-easy’s, short-skirted flappers, new rhythms of jazz, dangerous yet profitable professions as gangsters, and the emerging role of women. • The New American Hero • Created by Ernest Hemmingway – a man of action, a warrior, and a tough competitor. He has a code of honor, courage and endurance while showing “grace under pressure”. • More importantly though, he showed thorough disillusionment • Experimentation in Poetry • Influence of British poetry was over. • New ways of seeing and thinking. • Symbolism & Imagism take over.

11. Modernism – Social Influences • Rejection of Modernism • Robert Frost – rejected modern trends • Took the most conventional forms, and gave them a twist of his own (was unique and impossible to imitate). • The Harlem Renaissance • 1920’s – a group of black poets focused on the unique contributions of African American culture to America. • Langston Hughes • Based out of Harlem (neighborhood in NYC) • Poetry based its rhythms on jazz, lyrics on the blues, and its diction on street talk of the ghettos. • The American Dream Revised • An effect of Modernism and Modern Literature

12. Modernism – Summary • Major Elements of Modernism • Emphasis on bold experimentation in style and form • Rejection of traditional themes, subjects and forms • Sense of disillusionment and loss of faith in the American dream • Rejection of the perfect hero and acceptance of a hero that is flawed and disillusioned but shows “grace under pressure” • Increasing popularity of socialism • Interest in the inner workings of the mind, sometimes expressed through the stream of consciousness • Social influences including the Jazz Age and the Harlem Renaissance