Modernism-the age of the
“modern”
Authors & Artists
Ezra Pound- “Father of Modern Poetry”
was well-known for his critique of
American society
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Began tradition of
“experimental poetry”
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driving force behind imagism
Outraged by loss of life in WWI
Supported Mussolini in WWII
Strove to “make it new”
Institutionalized for 12 years.
T.S. Eliot-awarded the Nobel Prize in
Literature in 1948; friends with Pound
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Most difficult poet of
his era.
Complexity of life
captured in poems.
Influenced by
symbolism.
Critiqued spiritual
emptiness of modern
era.
William Carlos Williams
Friends
with Pound.
Poetry should be
stripped to bare
essentials.
Objectivism – depict
things in unbiased
ways
Common place
objects/things
Carl Sandburg
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Unconventional education.
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Worked in factories
Free verse, everyday speech
Portrayed working class.
William Faulkner
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Mediocre student; did
poorly in English.
Wrote about the American
South.
Boldly used stream of
consciousness.
Awarded Nobel Prize for
Literature 1949.
Ernest Hemingway
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Modern hero:
disillusionment with
conventions of optimistic,
patriotic society; belief
that essence of life is
violence
His life mirrored in
stories.
Committed suicide in
1961.
e. e. cummings
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Unconventional use of
grammar.
Broke every rule of
proper writing.
Studied in France;
developed a great
interest in modern art
(impressionism, cubism)
and began painting.
Robert Frost
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Became famous in
France, where he studied
with Pound.
Wrote his poems in
traditional rhymes and
metrical forms.
Like his romantic
predecessors, Frost often
wrote about individualism
and working out one’s
relationships with God
and existence.
“The death of Robert
Frost leaves a
vacancy in the
American spirit…”
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-John F.
Kennedy
F. Scott Fitzgerald-considered a Modernist
writer
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How does The Great
Gatsby fit into
Modernism?
Fitzgerald was good
friends with
Hemingway.
Themes in Early Modern Art
1. Uncertainty/insecurity.
2. Disillusionment.
3. The subconscious.
4. Overt sexuality.
5. Violence & savagery.
Claude Monet~Impressionism
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Includes visible brush
strokes, open composition,
emphasis on light in its
changing qualities, ordinary
subject matter, the inclusion
of movement as a crucial
element of human
perception and experience,
and unusual visual angles.
Not blended; color more
important than perfect lines.
Poppies
Edvard Munch -Expressionism
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Tendency of an artist to
distort reality for an
emotional effect—
“being alive.”
Using bright colors to
express a particular
emotion.
The Scream
Henri Matisse~Fauvism
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Fauvism emphasized
intense color, bold
lines, and vigorous
brush strokes.
Color for color’s sake.
Translated feelings
in an almost clumsy
way.
The Moroccans
Pablo Picasso~Cubism
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Objects are broken up,
analyzed, and reassembled in an
abstracted form
Subject is depicted
from a multitude of
viewpoints.
Art didn’t have to
resemble nature.
Three Musicians
Pablo Picasso~
Guernica
What do you think of cubism?
Salvador Dali~Surrealism
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Stresses the subconscious
or non-rational significance
of imagery.
Confusing and startling
images, like those in
dreams.
Often features unexpected
juxtapositions (things
placed close together for
contrasting effect).
What are some possible
meanings of this painting?
The Persistence of
Memory
Salvador Dali
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What does this mean?
Renee Magritte~Surrealism
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The title says, “This is
not a pipe”
The Son of Man
Modern Poets Assignments
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Ezra Pound Pg. 576-577
William Carlos Williams pg. 593-595
ee Cummings pg. 603
Read a poem from each of these authors and
complete the following for each:
-List modern elements.
-Brief summary and analysis of each one.
-Create a five line found poem for each.
And now…
For our first modern poem!
“The Road Not Taken” - Robert Frost
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and II took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.