Concetti Chiave
- The Age of Anxiety marks a transition from Victorian values, heavily impacted by WWI, leading to themes of emptiness and anger in poetry, notably by war poets.
- Philosophical shifts with Freud's exploration of the unconscious and Bergson's concept of time influenced novel writing, focusing on internal experiences and consciousness.
- Scientific advancements like Einstein's theory of relativity paralleled the rise of Modernism, characterized by innovation and experimentation across arts in both Europe and America.
- Modern literature embraced new forms, with poetry rejecting traditional structures in favor of free verse, emphasizing musicality and flexibility in language.
- The modern novel moved away from omniscient narration to explore individual consciousness through techniques like stream of consciousness and interior monologues.
The age of anxiety
A sort of continuity with Edwardian age, but there are some differences. The system of the Victorian values comes to an end, crumbles dramatically under the impact of some blows
1) Historical
WWI- a million British soldiers died--> impact: emptiness, anger, direness became the subject matter of poetry--> war poets
Dissolution of the empire into the Commonwealth
2) Philosophical
Freud- "The interpretations of dreams" 1900
New investigation of the unconscious, the power of the mind.
William James- "Principles of Psychology"
Idea of consciousness, the idea that it flows--> the stream of consciousness
Free association of ideas and the flacks of thoughts.
Bergson
He makes differences of different ideas of time:
• External - historical, chronological development of events.
• Internal - psychological, measured by the emotional intensity of a moment, the time of the mind.
3) Scientific
Einstein - theory of relativity
Cinema/ photography
Modernism
-powerful international movement (not just in London, also overseas)
Definition--> spirit of revolt, innovation, experimentation in all artistic fields, a radical remaking of all arts that went on in America and in Europe in the years following 1914.
Modern Literature
Innovation- idea of new
Tradition- it's risky, why? Many artists started to want to break it. The writers liked it because it was controversial.
Eliot believed that tradition and innovations are connected, interlined.
Cosmopolitan- spread out, up to America.
Modern Poetry (chart on the book)
Importance of musicality of words.
• Georgian
• Imagism
• Symbolism
• 1930s
• 1940s
• Free Verse
Rejection of the conventional patterns of traditional poetry
• No more traditional Meter (blend of the verse)
• No rhymes, compensated with alliterations, assonance and the musicality of words
• Flexibility in the length of the line
Modern Novel
"No poet, no artist of all arts, has his complete meaning alone" Elliot's Idea of tradition
"Tradition is not a load we drag alone with us", you have to labour.
Before: Victorian novel (18th/19th century)
-omniscient narrator
- chronological development of events
- Social world focus
- Little psychological analysis
Shift: transformation of British society, war cancels all the certainties. New social and psychological investigations.
From Society to man' sinner world: attempt to rediscover the unique experience of the individual by exploring their inner world, their consciousness.
Main influences that contributed to the development of modern novel: Bergson + Freud
New features
No omniscient narrator--> it's multiple
The point of view shifted to the internal one
New technique: interior monologues. It is used to depict the stream of consciousness.
Direct interior monologue:
- the most revolutionary one, because it was taken to extreme by Joyce.
- flow of thoughts is free
- Narration takes place in the mind of the character
- How? Breaking down the syntax
Indirect interior monologue
- anonymous/third person narrator (free indirect speech) that filters the character's thought
Domande da interrogazione
- Quali sono stati gli effetti della Prima Guerra Mondiale sulla letteratura britannica?
- In che modo le teorie di Freud hanno influenzato la narrativa moderna?
- Qual è il contributo di William James alla comprensione della coscienza?
- Come ha influenzato la teoria della relatività di Einstein il movimento modernista?
- Quali sono le caratteristiche distintive del romanzo moderno rispetto a quello vittoriano?
La Prima Guerra Mondiale ha avuto un impatto significativo sulla letteratura britannica, portando a un senso di vuoto, rabbia e disperazione che è diventato il tema principale della poesia, in particolare tra i poeti di guerra.
Le teorie di Freud sull'inconscio e il potere della mente hanno sfidato i valori vittoriani, spostando l'attenzione della narrativa moderna dalla società all'esplorazione della mente e della coscienza individuale.
William James ha introdotto l'idea che la coscienza fluisce, concetto noto come "stream of consciousness", che ha influenzato la tecnica narrativa del monologo interiore nella letteratura moderna.
La teoria della relatività di Einstein ha contribuito al modernismo, un movimento caratterizzato da innovazione e sperimentazione, che ha cercato di ridefinire le arti in risposta ai cambiamenti scientifici e culturali del tempo.
Il romanzo moderno si distingue per l'assenza di un narratore onnisciente, l'uso di monologhi interiori e un focus sull'esperienza individuale e la coscienza, in contrasto con il romanzo vittoriano che si concentrava sullo sviluppo cronologico e il mondo sociale.
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