Many may argue that the Modernist movement was a completely new and unique movement within British literature. The goal of this paper is to determine whether or not the Modernist Literary Movement was completely unique or not. The similarities found in the works of Modernist authors and poets, such as Joseph Conrad and Hilda Doolittle (H.D.), will be examined against Romanticism themes and authors such as William Wordsworth. What will be found is that Modernism is not a completely unique movement, but one that combines elements from previous literary movements.
It has been discussed by Professors and authors that Joseph Conrad, author of Heart of Darkness, was a bridge between Romanticism and Modernism. Within the “Modernism” novella, Heart of Darkness, there are many themes that can also be found in Romantic works, one of them being the Byronic Hero. The Byronic Hero is so popular that it is even used today within literature, television, and movies. Some examples from today are Walt from Breaking Bad and Dexter from the television show Dexter. According to Craig White, Professor at the University of Houston Clear Lake, “The Byronic hero is a fictional and cultural character type popular in the Romantic era and beyond. This character may appear in fiction, poetry, or history” (http://coursesite.uhcl.edu/HSH/Whitec/terms/B/ByronicHero.htm). The term became popular from the English poet Lord Byron. This “Romantic” Byronic Hero is often a darker character. According to an excerpt from “”Manfred” and Its Time the Byronic Hero,” assigned on Jacksonville University’s BlackBoard, “The Byronic Hero frequently evokes the Romantic Satan, emulation his oppositional energy, sharing a torment by unredeemable sin, and bea...
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Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness. New York: Knopf, 1993. Print.
D., H. "Oread." Poetry Foundation. Poetry Foundation, 2014. Web. 27 Apr. 2014.
Doolittle, Hilda. "Hymen." (Hilda Doolittle) H. D.'s Poem:. ReadBookOnline.com, 2011. Web. 30 Apr. 2014. .Wordsworth: http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/174832
Flemming, James. "Byronic Hero: Definition, Characteristics & Examples." Education Portal.com. Education Portal, 2003. Web. 27 Apr. 2014. .
"H. D." Poetry Foundation. Poetry Foundation, 2014. Web. 27 Apr. 2014.
White, Craig. "Craig White's Literature Courses." Terms & Themes. University of Houston Clear Lake, 2014. Web. 30 Apr. 2014. .
A typical hero in today's definition would be someone with super abilities who makes the world a better place. Mary Shelley's heroes, however, fit a very different description. A byronic hero is usually the protagonist in Romantic literature, a rebel with many dark qualities who is exiled from the rest of society. Ted exemplifies the basic characteristics of the byronic hero throughout Mary Shelley's work, Frankenstein.
Eagleton, Terry. "Literature and the Rise of English" Literature in the Modern World. Dennis Walder, ed. Oxford University Press, N.Y., 1990. 21-27.
Modernist Poetry involves a movement away from the self and the emotions of the individual. Typically, the focus of Modernist poetry revolves around the rational notions of the self, unlike the Romantic period, which focused on the poet. Modernist poets ex...
Modernism can be defined through the literary works of early independent 20th century writers. Modernism is exp...
Thomas Stearns Eliot was a strong voice within the modernist movement, “the birth of modernism within poetry is usually defined by the publication date…The movement began within the end of 19th century after World War I and was continued into the mid 1900’s.” Authors like Modernist authors such as Joyce, Pound and Eliot had a different approach than others, “they were obsessed with the idea that literary artist could create any text in any medium, be in the novel, poetry or even a theatrical piece, that would freely and enthusiastical...
Both Hemingway and Fitzgerald capture the essence of the modernist period, and both approach different aspects of the same genre. The goal of the modernist writer was to create an enjoyable piece of literature, while confronting issues that had never before been raised in the literary world to date. The Modernist hoped to wipe away the images of perfection in the imaginary realties of the literary past and create a clean slate filled with the reality of the modernist period. The Modernist authors will always be remembered for their exploration of language and form, and for their dedication to keeping us in a well lit place, in an otherwise deceiving reality.
Modernistic work is a response to regional writers, shift of social mores, and or technology originating in the late 19th century early 20th century. It was also a response to World War I with the uses of allusiveness and deliberate shifts of social norms. Modernist writers looked to international interest outside of what was currently around them. This in turn was their way of not looking for acceptance of their work although they wanted it noticed.
Of the Romantic Movement, two of the most well-known Gothic literature writers were Nathaniel Hawthorne and Herman Melville. Gothic writers mainly wrote about themes that showed that they did not believe that people were ‘good’ by nature and the stories they wrote focused on the evils and flaws of mankind. These two authors presented their respective stories “Bartleby the Scrivener” and “The Minister’s Black Veil” as novels that explore the lives and behaviors of other human characters. Although the stories have different perspectives and settings, they both reveal more about how the other human characters are and what dark or unusual traits and motives they have.
Neoclassicism is an artistic style influenced by the Greek and Roman that students observed the first antique art works and reproduced them. Their inspiration came from the Greek mythology and used it as the resource. The definition of the Neoclassicism is that they emphasized on the historic subject matter, and moreover, the solemnity of composition. The Neoclassical style usually showing order and rational illusion in the works. The color usage is clam and the brushstroke is often being visible. Numbers of outstanding painters in this era, but the best-known painter is Jacques-Louis David. His famous painting is The Death of Socrates, which reveals a rational, solemn scene. In contrast, Romanticism expresses on emotion and imagination more than the Neoclassicism. Painters focus on the nature, violence, and legends of their paintings. In addition, emotional exploration had extended into the animal world that they will used animals as the metaphor of human behavior. Because of the influence of the Baroque eras, Romanticism is usually produces dramatic art
Modernists did not have faith in the external reality put forth by social institutions, such as the government and religion, and they no longer considered these avenues as trustworthy means to discover the meaning of life. For this reason they turned within themselves to discover the answers. Modernist literature is centered on the psychological experience as opposed to the external realities of the world. The experience is moved inwards in an attempt to make modernist works more representative of reality by making the experience more personal. The modernist era of literature is closely associated with the works of T.S. Eliot, James Joyce and Virginia Woolf, among others. These three authors stand out because they have made use of unique literary tactics and devices which emphasize the inward turn of modernist literature.
Literature is a form of art with many facets, many obvious and others subtle. The surface of literature can be composed of many elements such as genre, form, rhythm, tone, diction, sentence structure, etc. Time periods, authors’ personal style and type of work all determine what elements are used in the literature. The deeper more subtle side of literature is the use of symbolism, imagery and the significance of the work. In most works of literature, parallels can be drawn between the author’s personality and current life’s events through the subject matter, the characters, and the use of specific literary techniques. Lady Mary Wortley Montagu’s use of literary techniques in the first two stanzas of The Lover: A Ballad, are consistent throughout the six stanza ballad identifying and refuting the ways in which women were defined by literature of the 18th century era.
Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness is a great example of a Modernist novel because of its general obscurity. The language is thick and opaque. The novel is littered with words such as: inconceivable, inscrutable, gloom. Rather than defining characters in black and white terms, like good and bad, they entire novel is in different shades of gray. The unfolding of events takes the reader between many a foggy bank; the action in the book and not just the language echoes tones of gray.
Lord Byron is often regarded as a prominent leader in the Romantic Movement that is associated with early 19th century England. His unconventional lifestyle, along with his literary works, has contributed significantly to this title he has been given. Through his notorious sexual escapades and his extravagant adventures, his literature was born.
Lord George Gordon Byron was the most controversial poet of the romantic era. Byron works consisted of common themes during the romantics such as high romance and the love of nature and tragic loss. He created the idea of the hero being a tragic figure who is born to desire something that they will never accomplish. Through this Byron created and perfected the idea of the Byronic hero. Byron first used this in his poem, “Childe Harold's Pilgrimage”. The work introduced us to who would late become the example of a Byronic hero or character (Manning). The idea of the Byronic hero is one that consists of many different characteristics. The hero must have a rather high level of intelligence and perception as well as be able to easily adapt to new situations and use cunning to his own gain. It is clear from this description that this hero is well educated and by extension is rather sophisticated in his style. Aside from the obvious charm and attractiveness that this automatically creates, he struggles with his integrity, being prone to mood swings or bipolar tendencies. Generally, the hero has a disrespect for any figure of authority, thus creating the image of the Byronic hero as an exile or an outcast. The hero also has a tendency to be arrogant and cynical, indulging in self-destructive behavior which leads to the need to seduce women. Although his sexual attraction through being mysterious is rather helpful, this sexual attraction often gets the hero into trouble (Wikipedia). In Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte had a character that fit this description very well in Mr Rochester. But instead it was the influence of the culture surrounding the idea of the Byronic hero that made Rochester seem Byronic. Rochester seen through multiple examp...
...rature and art. Industrial and technology advances were documented in numerous ways as both a good movement and a not so good movement. And the realism religious controversy also played a part in the changes in the Victorian Age that changed the views of some individuals. Although the Victorian Age did overcome the Romantic Period for some time, each has its part to play in literary education among students; whether it’s everyday life or imagination, a focus on industry and technology or nature, or it’s religious controversy and feelings/emotions.