2130_American Lit Module 2 _Modernist Manifesto
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The document discusses modernist manifestos from several early 20th century authors. It provides excerpts from manifestos by F.T. Marinetti, Mina Loy, Ezra Pound, Willa Cather, William Carlos Williams, and Langston Hughes. The manifestos declare the authors' artistic convictions and independence, calling for breaking traditions and presenting art through suggestion rather than enumeration. Marinetti's manifesto glorifies war and destroying museums, while Loy calls for absolute demolition of traditional lies.
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2130_American Lit Module 2 _Modernist Manifesto
- 2. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company âThe modernist manifesto is a public declaration of artistic convictions, relatively brief, often highly stylized or epigrammatic in the mode of other forms of modernist writing, and almost always an aggressively self- conscious declaration of artistic independenceâ (NAAL 335). Modernist Manifestos
- 3. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company F. T. Marinetti
- 4. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company 8. We stand on the last promontory of the centuries! . . . Why should we look back, when what we want is to break down the mysterious doors of the Impossible? Time and Space died yesterday. We already live in the absolute, because we have created eternal, omnipresent speed. âfrom Manifesto of Futurism F. T. Marinetti
- 5. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company 9. We will glorify warâthe worldâs only hygieneâmilitarism, patriotism, the destructive gesture of freedom-bringers, beautiful ideas worth dying for, and scorn for woman. 10. We will destroy the museums, libraries, academies of every kind, will fight moralism, feminism, every opportunistic or utilitarian cowardice. âfrom Manifesto of Futurism F. T. Marinetti
- 6. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company Mina Loy
- 7. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company Women . . . you are on the eve of a devastating psychological upheavalâall your pet illusions must be unmaskedâthe lies of centuries have got to goâare you prepared for the Wrenchâ? There is no half-measureâNO scratching on the surface of the rubbish heap of tradition, will bring about Reform, the only method is Absolute Demolition. âfrom Feminist Manifesto Mina Loy
- 8. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company Ezra Pound
- 9. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company âą An âImageâ is that which presents an intellectual and emotional complex in an instant of time. âą It is better to present one Image in a lifetime than to produce voluminous works. âą Use no superfluous word, no adjective which does not reveal something. âfrom âA Retrospectâ Ezra Pound
- 10. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company âIn a Station of the Metro The apparition of these faces in the crowd; Petals on a wet, black bough.â Ezra Pound
- 11. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company Willa Cather
- 12. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company There are hopeful signs that some of the younger writers are trying to break away from mere verisimilitude, and, following the development of modern painting, to interpret imaginatively the material and social investiture of their characters; to present their scene by suggestion rather than by enumeration. âfrom âThe Novel DĂ©meublĂ©â Willa Cather
- 13. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company William Carlos Williams
- 14. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company It is spring! but miracle of miracles a miraculous miracle has gradually taken place during these seemingly wasted eons. Through the orderly sequences of unmentionable time EVOLUTION HAS REPEATED ITSELF FROM THE BEGINNING. âfrom Spring and All William Carlos Williams
- 15. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company Langston Hughes
- 16. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company I am ashamed for the black poet who says, âI want to be a poet, not a Negro poet,â as though his own racial world were not as interesting as any other world . . . An artist must be free to choose what he does, certainly, but he must also never be afraid to do what he might choose. âfrom âThe Negro Artist and the Racial Mountainâ Langston Hughes
- 17. Visit the StudySpace at: http://wwnorton.com/studyspace For more learning resources, please visit the StudySpace site for The Norton Anthology of American Literature. This concludes the Lecture PowerPoint presentation for Modernist Manifestos
Editor's Notes
- Even before you start talking with your students about modernism, itâs worth taking some time to define the genre and purpose of the manifesto. âThe word manifesto, derived from Latin and meaning âto make public,â first entered English usage in the seventeenth century to describe printed declarations of belief and advocacy. Early manifestoes tended to be weapons forged by dissenting groups in religious and political struggles, a tradition that continued into the nineteenth centuryâ (NAAL 335).
- Marinetti was a relatively obscure Italian poet before publishing âThe Founding and Manifesto of Futurism,â which âattracted an international circle of artists and writers into Marinettiâs orbit, including painters, architects, poets, sculptors, playwrights, and film directors. Across all the arts, futurism scorned traditional standards of artistic beauty, celebrated modern technologies of speed, and aimed to shock audiencesâ (NAAL 336). Wikimedia Commons
- While many modernist writers depicted the modern world not as a triumph of human civilization, but as an experience of loss, Marinetti wholeheartedly embraced the idea that modern technology has ushered in a secular millennium. In this and other sections of his manifesto, does Marinetti seem to be uncritically embracing the advances of modern technology, or is there evidence that he is more self aware than such bombastic declarations as this would suggest? In other words, is Marinettiâs vision of modern art merely a reflection of modern technology, or does modern art serve as a commentary on the scientific and technological advances of the modern world?
- The two points from the Manifesto of Futurism reproduced on this slide represent some of the more troubling aspects of Marinettiâs worldview: his celebration of war and his denigration of women (he glorifies âscorn for womanâ and promises to âdestroy . . . feminismâ). How does this prowar, antiwoman stance relate to Marinettiâs futurist philosophy? Does it seem to be an afterthought? Or are the glorification of war and the denigration of women integral to Marinettiâs thinking?
- Mina Loy was a self-described feminist poet and writer, and, oddly enough, the sexual partner of the apparently antifeminist F. T. Marinetti. She wrote (but did not publish) her âFeminist Manifestoâ during her association with Marinetti. Does Loyâs manifesto read as a response to Marinettiâs? As a criticism of it? Are the two manifestos written in a similar form, or are there formal differences as well as differences in content? Wikimedia Commons
- One of most immediately noticeable features of Loyâs manifesto is its typography: She increases the font size at strategic moments, underlines text, puts letters in boldface, and employs irregular capitalization. What is the effect of this? Does Loyâs message of âAbsolute Demolitionâ (rather than mere âReformâ) require that she radically alter the appearance of her text? That is, does the message of her text determine the form that it takes? It is also worth considering how Loyâs militaristic language of demolition and destruction recalls Marinettiâs glorification of war, but her profeminist message runs entirely counter to Marinettiâs. How might we account for this conflict?
- Pound was an American expatriate living in Europe. He was hugely influential in the circle of other expatriate writers and artists not only for his own work as a poet but also for the advice that he offered to other writers. âA Retrospectâ is Poundâs manifesto on Imagism, a school of poetry that argued for the centralâif not definingâplace of the image in modern poetry. Wikimedia Commons
- As you read through these bullet points from âA Retrospect,â ask your students if they think Pound is offering a radical new vision of poetry, or if his comments are simply good advice for writers of any kind. What do your students find radical in Poundâs approach as laid out in âA Retrospectâ?
- One of Poundâs most famous Imagist poems is âIn a Station of the Metro.â Does he practice what he preaches in âA Retrospectâ in this poem? After reading this poem, are you inclined to think differently about the advice Pound offers in âA Retrospectâ? After reading an Imagist poem, do you think that âA Retrospectâ is offering something more than just general advice for writers?
- Willa Cather was born in the Midwest but spent most of her career as a novelist in cosmopolitan cities such as London and New York. In âThe Novel DĂ©meublĂ©,â Cather implicitly asks what nineteenth-century novelists can teach twentieth-century writers. In so doing, she rejects realist novels as mere âamusementâ and looks to âAmerican romancesâ such as Hawthorneâs The Scarlet Letter for inspiration. Wikimedia Commons
- The realist literature of an earlier tradition was committed to the âverisimilitudeâ that Cather here rejects. What is Cather offering in the place of verisimilitude? Discuss with your students key phrases such as âto interpret imaginativelyâ and âto present . . . by suggestion rather than by enumeration.â What are some examples of novels that work according to the principles of suggestion and imaginative interpretation?
- So far, all of the manifestos that we have read are serious invectives. It may come as something of a shock to encounter the playfulness in these excerpts from Williamsâs Spring and All. Given the playful, ironic, and humorous tone of Williamsâs manifesto, it may be difficult to tell how deadly serious he is about his vision for modern poetry. Take some time to go through this excerpt with your students to identify both Williamsâs humor and his central message about poetry. Wikimedia Commons
- The language from Spring and All invokes both the creation story in the book of Genesis and the theory of evolution. Why does Williams do this? And how does he make both religion and science serve âthe meaning of âartââ? Does Williams really think that art is as central to human experience as science and religion are, or is he being ironic? Or, in the midst of his irony, is he absolutely committed to the importance of art?
- Many modernist writers supported the idea that artists and writers should be fiercely committed to their personal vision regardless of what the market, critics, or other writers said. In âThe Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain,â Langston Hughes argues that an artistâs racial identity complicates this commitment to personal vision in ways that white writers had not fully appreciated. Wikimedia Commons
- Thereâs a tension in the statement that appears on this slide between individual choice (âAn artist must be free to choose what he doesâ) and a manifesto-like prescription of what African-American poets must do (âI am ashamed for the black poet who says . . .â). Discuss with your students how Hughes navigates this tension. How does he encourage black writers to embrace their heritage without telling that that they must write in a certain way to be considered successful writers? How does Hughes use the example of other successful black artistsâjazz musicians, novelists, poets, artistsâto inspire would-be African-American writers rather than to merely dictate what does and doesnât count as authentic black expression? In what way is this essay not about art at all, but about racism and the self-hatred that it breeds in an oppressed population?