Modernism and Poetry

1. Modernism and Poetry 1890 - 1939

2. Features of Modernism • Experimentation • belief that previous writing was stereotyped • deviation from the norm or from usual reader expectations • ruthless rejection of the past

3. 2. Anti-realism • The artist's inner feelings, mental state, and vantage points are chosen to question the conventional view and use of myth and unconscious forces rather than motivations of conventional plot.

4. 3. Individualism • promotion of the artist's viewpoint • estrangement from religion, nature, science, economy or social mechanisms • artists and not society should judge the arts

5. 4. Intellectualism • writing is more cerebral than emotional • work is tentative, analytical and fragmentary • more posing questions more than answering them 
 • viewpoints and characters are detached and depersonalized

6. Summary The key elements of Modernist poems are experimentation, anti-realism, individualism, and a stress on the cerebral rather than emotive aspects. Previous writing was thought to be stereotyped, requiring ceaseless experimentation and rejection of old forms.

7. “Robert Frost was a leading figure in the Modernist movement. However, unlike his contemporaries such as Eliot or Pound, Frost favored more traditional metrics and forms of poetry. He also composed his poetry by using the language and experiences of his everyday life. The beauty of Frost’s poetry lies in its layers of ambiguities and deeper meanings hidden behind these everyday themes.” Poet Seers