Modernism in American Literature.

How do you think T.S Eliot, Carl Sandburg, and Robert Frost captured the essence of literal modernism in their writings? Quite a few American modernists found it more comfortable to engage in Modernist experiments with literary forms and themes. Many works of modernist literature lack the narrative, dramatic, thematic, stylistic, and/or metrical unity and cohesion of the works of pre-modernist literature, appearing more like collages than unified compositions (to use a visual simile).

reply to post by RobFox


I am going to say that it is in the ear. It's done the same way that pop and rock stars tune in to the sound that people didn't know they wanted to hear until they heard it. It can't be taught.

Great question, O.P., American literature rocks.



Here, Bubba, let's use classical music. I used the example of "pop" because it is easy for most to grasp the idea. But check this out: here is American impressionist composer Aaron Copeland's Appalachian Spring, go forward to 2:48 to hear how Copeland captured the American zeitgeist in sound...

I would say that modernists were out to break the mold. They existed in a rapidly changing world.

I think Nietzsche was key in breaking the mold. Nietzsche broke drastically with convention, and challenged morality. Questioning morality was very important to modernism. This untethered the arc of the classic story line, the anti hero was born.

RobFox
How do you think T.S Eliot, Carl Sandburg, and Robert Frost captured the essence of literal modernism in their writings? Quite a few American modernists found it more comfortable to engage in Modernist experiments with literary forms and themes. Many works of modernist literature lack the narrative, dramatic, thematic, stylistic, and/or metrical unity and cohesion of the works of pre-modernist literature, appearing more like collages than unified compositions (to use a visual simile).

While Sandburg, Eliot, and Frost got the party started; imo it was Joyce that put on the lampshade and sang the anthem to the modernist that followed and even the post modern beats.