Modernism Midterm Sparknotes

Amelia Baumgardner
FYS 1399
Modernism Midterm
Modernism
In it’s broadest sense, Modernism is modern thought or reason. More specifically, Modernism explains the adventurous new ideals of society that originate from the sweeping and widespread changes of Western culture in the earliest portion of the 20th century. In other words, Modernism was a rebellion from the conventional pillars of realism. Modernism seems to snub many of the overhanging values of the Enlightenment, such as religion, as well as the “outdated” political views of the industrialized globe. It is of course important to note that this does not mean that the Modernist movement simply discarded faith or the philosophical ideals of the Enlightenment period, but rather those Modernism
One is Greenberg's first pioneering essay, "Modern Painting," illuminates many of his ideas on Modernism. Although he later came to reject it, in its second paragraph he offers what one of the most refined definition Modernism: “... the use of characteristic methods of a discipline to criticize the discipline itself…to entrench it more firmly in its area of competence.” Greenberg feels that the fundamental self-criticism of Modernism comes from the condemnation of the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment reproach in an expected sense: from the outside looking in. Modernism, on the other hand, critiques from within. In other words, Modernists critique the processes themselves of that
I believe the answer to that question, why Modernism expresses itself so forcefully in art, is because it has immense power. Art evokes emotion. Many assume that it is primarily happiness, but that is not always the case. Sometimes powerful art makes people angry, sad or even uncomfortable. But art can be strong and powerful even if it doesn’t make people happy. More important even than that emotional power is art’s power to destroy. Destruction is the power deemed to be incredibly important in progression of the Modernism movement. Peter Gay, author of Modernism: The Lure of Heresy, explains that Modernism two significant inclinations: overturning the society it’s a part of and personal exploration. This first inclination, which Gay refers to as “the lure of heresy”, breaks the societal rules, while work to create “a single aesthetic mind-set,” a “climate of thought, feeling and opinion,” unifying disconnected artistic rebellion. In other words, Modernism refuses to conform to the materialistic lifestyle of society, meaning that it must manifest itself in a non-materialistic vehicle. There are very limited options for a widespread manifestation of Modernism, but they were primarily religion and art. While they may both seem like adequate vehicles for Modernism, there is a reason why art was chosen. At first glance, religion seems like a good suitor, but in