Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Blog #11 The Age of Anxiety Due 3/16
How is the “age of anxiety” reflected in philosophy, literature and art in the period 1914-1950? (Examples of figures to consider, Freud, Nietzsche, Bergson, Sorel, Valery, Spengler, T.S. Eliot, Erch Maria Remarque, Sartre, Camus, Geroge Orwell, Planck, Einstein, Rutherford, Heisenberg, Picasso, Kandinsky, Gropius, Salvador Dali, Igor Stravinsky, Arnold Schonberg, etc..) Be sure to give specific examples of countries and governments. (Remember to respond to the question in 6-8 sentences (yes it can be longer) and to respond to two of your classmates answers in 4-6 sentences. Do not just agree or disagree without defending or justifying your argument.) Think above and beyond the common answers that you may see. Be sure to challenge your classmates with controversial tactics, actions or selections. Good Luck!!!! Go Mustangs!!!
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Erich Maria Remarque in All Quiet on the Western Front, 1929 wrote "I am young, I am twenty years old; yet I know nothing of life but despair, death, fear, and fatuous superficiality cast over an abyss of sorrow. I see how peoples are set against one another, and in silence, unknowingly, foolishly, obediently, innocently slay one another..."
The start of the Great War 1914-1918, was a popular war and were "blessed" by those thinkers and artists who were against violence. Many people, little did they know, it wouldn't be what they thought it would be, quick and glorious. To all those men that fought for their nation, it became clear to them that the war was stupid.
"it has become almost a truism to call our time an age of anxiety."
Tillich believed that anxiety affected the achievements of literature, art, and philosophy.
Tillich identified a form of anxiety anxiety of meaninglesness, which is the modern world's loss of a spiritual center. suffering results in not having any faith. "...the knowledge that man was alone caused anxiety.."
Note: The "age of anxiety" was what many historians called the new world created out of the aftermath of WWI. Many felt it was a staggerign blow to Western civilization. There was a mind set that the world they once knew had been turned upside down. People saw themselves living in an age of continual crisis.
well as if I have not said this before in a blog, the age of anxiety was a time of...change. this time, the changes weren't necessarily positive, they were the result of the first world war. So, that obviously took effect in the minds of the newer artists who would set the tone for the earlier half of the 20th century. In that I mean individuals such as freud, einstein, nietzsche, all of which were emerging as the poster children of modern intellectual society. however, in retrospect, their ideas were expressly derivative of the times in which they lived. nietzsche for example (a german philosopher) is the author of the term "that which does not kill us only makes us stronger," a statement which perfectly embodies his nation's political and economic situation. it also served as an aphorism that might ultimately serve its purpose of relieving the anxiety of a nation which was now on the rest of europe's bad side.
in response to whom i believe is selene, i don't really see how you answered the prompt. i may be wrong but i think you misinterpreted the question. i may be wrong.
@_@
most people thought the war would be short and victorious (a result of the positive thinking developed over two centuries) the outcome of the war proved otherwise-changing people's attitude on WWI
"It is just as much a matter of chance that I am still alive as that I might have been hit. In a bomb-proof dug-out I may be smashed to atoms and in the open may survive ten hour's bombardment unscratched. No soldier outlives a thousand chances. But every soldier believes in Chance and trusts his luck." In Erch Maria Remarque's All Quiet on the Western Front, Erch holds a bitter (and fearful) deposition towards the war. His book was the most popular WWI book. Meaning, people supporting or fighting for their country were exposed to the foolishness of WWI and therefore radically changed their outlook on the matter.
In the artistic world, artists like Picasso emerged. He contributed to the development of cubism; art consisting of sharply angled zigzagged lines and overlapping planes. His work often tried to depict all point of views at once- representing the agitation, the chaos of this period.
ill finish when more people post
The "Age of Anxiety" was a setback for Europe, but it also allowed the emergence of opportunity and discovery. It would inspire people to create in order to rebuild. An idea that arose during this time was Cubism. The abstract art of cubism was confusing and chaotic. It did not seem to have a purpose, but conveyed a certain message. Picasso painted a lot of cubism art, and was not the only one to follow thias format. This could be how the world felt after the first World War and the second. During the first, people did not believe that the continent would recover and were uncertain about their own futures after the introduction of the Atomic Bomb during WWII.
I agree with Anu when she said that the people thought that the war would be short. For some reason, after a generation or two, people adopt a romantic view of war. WWI was not the first war that people thought was going to be short. Less than a century ago, during the Civil War, people went to go watch the first battle between the North and the South. Those watching set up picnics and those fighting believed that they would recieve a "cool" scar to show off to the ladies. In the end, it was not what they had expected.
I also agree with Jordan in that the people of that day had their ideas derived form the times. Einstein questioned many things. So did the other people living at the time. Usually when there are unanswered questions, people will not wait for others to solve it for them.
The age of anxiety resulted from the warfare and disruption of WWI that caused a collaspe in the old order that defined european politics. In terms of art, philosophy and literature they had moved away from the ideals and the perfectibility of mankind through reason. There was a crisis of confidence and conscience from the philosophy, arts, and literature of the Age of Anxiety.
Philosophy:
Freidrich Nieztsche argued that the decline of civilization was because of slave morality. Other individuals established Existentialism a philosophical school that emphasized individual responsibility and capability for giving meaning in the universe.
Literatue:
after the war intellectual trends, like fruedianism, impacted writers to emphasize the irrational aspects of the human condition. The Stream of consciousness was the portrayal of an individuals emotions and random thoughts. James joyce had perfected this method of writing. he reflected the prevailing of human lives as chaotic alienated and irrational.
Art:
after the was the style of art known as Expressionism emerged. it was abstract and rarely represented anything. it replaced the preious method of impresisonism. Expressionism focused on bold colors and images to see the images of emotions and imagination. CUbism, Dadism, and Surrealism were some of the styles that took of the artists canvas's.
I'll respond in a little when there are more responses
The age of anxiety resulted from the warfare of WWI. Art, literature, and philosophy played a major role in the nineteenth century. Planck’s Quantum Theory and Einstein’s Theory of Relativity were examples of new physics that developed in the age.
Philosophy:
Friedrich Nietzsche wrote novels such as The Births of Tragedy and Beyond Good and Evil. He stressed the idea of the heroic leader who was free of rules and restrictions, and possessed a passion to dominate. He also believed that “slave morality” promoted ideas like pity.
Literature:
Erch Maria Remarque wrote All Quiet on the Western Front described the cruelty of the war from the perspective of a soldier. Novelists such as William Thackeray wrote Vanity Fair presented a portrayal of the upper-middle-class society at the beginning of the nineteenth century.
Art:
Fauvism and Cubism were developed by Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso. Matisse founded Fauvism which was characterized by the use of bold and harsh colors. Picasso developed Cubism which applied a geometric approach to the human figure.
Responses:
Anu: I agree with you completely and the examples that you gave for Remarque and Pablo Picasso. Also, in Cubism, artists painted about the chaos of the war.
Abby: I agree with you completely when you mentioned in literature that writers emphasized the conditions of human life.
My Response:
As Mr. Neal said, the “age of anxiety” was a new world as a result of World War I. A positive result of World War I was that the science and technology advanced throughout Europe. However, since the Europeans lost their faith in the “inevitability of human progress that was an influential legacy of the Enlightenment”, people were facing a lot of humanistic uncertainties and threats. These experiences were known as the “age of anxiety”.
Philosophy
Existentialism was one of the most influential philosophical movements after WWI. As I have said, after the war, people were facing a lot of humanistic uncertainties, and existentialism was there to help those individuals who were looking for their identities and salvation in such a meaningless universe.
Jean-Paul Sartre, who was considered to be the “spokesman for existentialism”, was an atheist. He believed that the human existence was nonsensical and therefore, human beings should make their own choices. By making their own choices, people will find meaning and purpose to their lives. Albert Camus was another existentialist that believed the existence of human was absurd. However, he believed that the spirit in human can overcome the absurdity.
Literature
Literature after World War I focused more on the controversial issues, dreams, and fantasies.
T.S. Eliot was Britain’s best-known poets, playwrights, and critics. He exhibited the barrenness of the modern life in “The Waste Land” that was published in 1922. Orwell condemned the totalitarianism in his novels “Animals Farm” that were published in 1946, 1948, and 1949. Marcel Proust, James Joyce, and Virginia Woolf explored human irrationality.
Art
Surrealism emerged during the 1920s. Surrealism was influenced by the Freudian psychology, and they sought to portray subconscious fantasies. Examples of surrealist were Max Ernst and Salvador Dali. Expressionism was another form of art that emerged. Expressionism emphasized the emotion of the artists that wanted to express and tended to come up with strange designs that incorporate with violence and amorality to confuse and scare people. Georges Rouault was an expressionist.
My Comments:
_/evan\_: I agree with evan when he said that the “age of anxiety” allowed the emergence of opportunity and discovery. Because the Europeans experienced lost of faith and a lot of humanistic uncertainties after WWI, people were inspired by a lot of things. I also agree with him that Cubism was very confusing and chaotic but they tend to convey messages. Surrealism was like that too, surrealists expressed inner thoughts and dreams.
megha shah: I pretty much agree with what Megha had said about Nietzsche. Nietzsche’s Beyond Good and Evil was written to discover the “social and psychological sources of the judgment of good and evil”. He condemned Christianity, democracy, nationalism, rationality, science, and progress. He also believed that human beings can create their own new moral that will glorify pride, assertiveness and strength. His believes were distinctive among other philosophers during his time.
The "age of anxiety" was simply like it says a time period of anxiety. This was post war time and life was crazy and chaotic. At this time many different types of governments were forming. For example the facist party forming in Italy and the creation of Lenin's NEP. These many changes started taking their toll on the people, and the artists who lived in this time period really let this chaos show in there works.
Art:
Artists like Picasso adapted different styles of painting during this timer period. One of these sytles was cubism. An example is his paice called "Bread and Fruit Dish on a Table". The peice is very messy and has no real perspective, which is a true reflection of this time period.
Literature:
The poems of T.S. Eliot are a great example of how literature was affected during the age of anxiety. Certain poems like "Hysteria" and " Morning at the Window" have a dark feeling about them. The language used in both of the poems is very depressed and twisted. It shows how much Eliot wasaffected by the the events taking place in the world.
Responses
Anu:
I agree with the statements that Anu made about Picasso's cubist style. After viewing some of his peices the chaotic feeling is hard to deny. The art feels as if it painted by someone struggling with the harsh evetns of this time.
Dasiy:
I also agree with Dasiy's comments on the works of T.S. Eliot. Like she mentioned Eliot talks about life for the people. In his poems he makes life seem so tragic and disturbing.
abby: the writings of the period portrayed the pandemonium of the time in such a way that perspectives of the war had changed
i agree with jordan on the point that the age of anxiety was a time of change. and i think nietzsche was a good example of how ideas were drawn from events taking place at the time
=]
Ernest Rutherford had explained the cause of radiation and also researched about the
amount of energy in the atom. Also, Max Planck, Albert Einstein, and Werner Heisenberg
had their theories on Quantam Engergy, relativity, and uncertainity, respectively.
Philosophy-Friedrich Nietzsche had once said that "War and courage have accomplished
more great things than love of neighbor." "overman" also by Nietzsche talks about
heroism and greatness.The original term for this work, Ubermensch,was often interpreted
as "superman."
Literature-Erich Maria Remarque's All Quiet on the Western Front is a book that
deals with a generation that is participating in the war and also talks about
the various emotions that this generatoin experiences.
Art- Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque had invented a new type of art which was known
as cubism. it depicted 2 dimensions, and perspectives and angles were 2 important aspects.
My Responses:
I agree with tayy22 when she said that picasso's "Bread and Fruit Dish on a Table" has no perspective because when you first look at the actual picture it takes a while to actually be able to tell that it is actually fruit and bread on table. the contents in this picture are very sharp and "messy" as she had mentioned.
I also agree with evan when he said that cubism was "confusing and chaotic." although you could find inner meaning in the pictures if you study them, you can't really say that there's much "purpose" to it.
The age of anxiety was a time of great change and a reaction to the war that was happening aroundt them. people at first thought that this war wasnt even going to last that long, they thought it was going to be especailly quick but little did they know.
This war really made political thinkers, philosophers, and writers think really hard about thier situation and how this war has vastly changed their world and everything around it.
one writer that was greatly affected by the war even after it was a man named paul valery.
he called attention to the very clear fact that a crisis had now overtaken the european mind. he showed that through an essay he wrote called "The crisis of the Mind" other great thinkers of the time were Erich Maira Remarque, Albert einstien, George orwell who was a great writer and very political his most famous books are "Animal Farm" which was about how animals on a farm rebel against their human masters and begin to run the farm by themselves but the pigs who were much smarter than them enjoyed the power and became politically corrupt. also "1984" was also famous tells of the future and how corrupt everything and everyone is. so you can tell this really made a great impact on Orwell.
Artisitcally cubanism became real popular, what they drew also became a definite factor.
I agree with evan and daisy
i agree with evan because i think what he said about how Age of Anxiety was a setback for Europe, but it also allowed the emergence of opportunity and discovery.
i agree with Daisy because i believe that literature too was focused more on the controversial issues, dreams, and fantasies.
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