Choose Four Of The Following Questions And Write 150–350 Wor
Choose Four Of The Following Questions And Write a 150 350 Word Respon
Choose four of the following questions and write a response of 150 to 350 words for each. Include the question at the top of each response. All responses should be compiled into a single document. Use your own words to avoid plagiarism.
1. It is often said that tradition, like history, is continually being recreated and remodeled. To what extent did writers, painters, and composers of the early twentieth century deliberately break with tradition? How did they accomplish that goal?
2. Do you agree that creative expression at the beginning of the twentieth century represents the "dehumanization of art"? Why or why not?
3. In what ways does Picasso's Guernica constitute a universal indictment of war when the painting itself includes no objects that are directly associated with modern warfare?
4. Do you agree or disagree that Freud's psychoanalytic theories influenced ART of the early 20th century? Provide an analysis that includes at least 2 specific examples.
5. Ezra Pound said literature should be "new". What did he mean? Provide at least 1 example. What influenced his work?
6. How is 20th-century music different from 19th-century music? What are some characteristics of 20th-century music? Provide at least 2 specific examples.
7. What are some artistic innovations of Picasso? Why are these important? Provide at least 2 specific examples.
8. Marcel Duchamp said an artist should be a destroyer of tradition. What did he mean? What is one of his works that displays this idea?
9. On the internet, find a picture of Duchamp's The Fountain. What do you think of this in terms of being art?
10. You'll notice in your book there are many "isms" in 20th-century art—surrealism, expressionism, dadaism, fauvism, etc. Choose which style you like best and which you like least, explaining your reasons.
Paper For Above instruction
The early twentieth century was a period marked by revolutionary changes in art, literature, music, and cultural thought. Artists, writers, and composers actively challenged traditional forms and conventions, seeking to redefine artistic expression in the wake of profound societal upheavals. Many deliberately broke from tradition through innovative techniques, experimental styles, and provocative themes, striving to reflect the complexities of modern life.
For instance, in literature, Ezra Pound’s advocacy for “new” poetry influenced modernist writers to abandon Victorian norms and embrace compact, imagist forms. Pound’s emphasis on clear, sharp images contrasted sharply with earlier, more elaborate poetic styles, exemplifying a break from tradition rooted in the desire for fresh expression (Pound, 1914). Similarly, visual artists like Picasso revolutionized art with Cubism, breaking away from realistic representations and geometrizing forms to depict multiple perspectives simultaneously (Picasso, 1907). These innovations disrupted established notions of perspective and representation, fundamentally altering artistic practices.
In music, 20th-century composers such as Arnold Schoenberg shifted toward atonality and the twelve-tone technique, distancing themselves from Romantic melodic structures of the 19th century. This shift enabled a more abstract and experimental approach to sound, exemplified by Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire (1912), which utilized sprechstimme to blend speech and music, breaking down traditional tonality and form (Schoenberg, 1912).
Similarly, the dada movement, championed by Duchamp and others, outright rejected artistic conventions, highlighting absurdity and questioning the very nature of art itself. Duchamp’s Fountain (1917), a signed urinal, challenged notions of artistic beauty and craftsmanship by asserting that everyday objects could be art if placed within an artistic context (Duchamp, 1917). This act of recontextualization epitomized the deliberate destruction of traditional aesthetics and notions of artistic skill.
Overall, the early twentieth century was characterized by a conscious effort by artists and writers to break with tradition, embracing experimentation and challenging societal norms, which paved the way for the diverse landscape of modern art and culture we see today.
References
- Picasso, P. (1907). Les Demoiselles d'Avignon. Museum of Modern Art.
- Pound, E. (1914). Hugh Selwyn Mauberley. London: Elkin Mathews.
- Schoenberg, A. (1912). Pierrot Lunaire. Universal Edition.
- Duchamp, M. (1917). Fountain. The Artist’s Studio.
- Harrison, C., & Wood, P. (2003). Art in Theory 1900–2000. Blackwell Publishing.
- Levy, K. (1994). Modernism: An Anthology of Sources and Documents. Routledge.
- Hobsbaum, B. (2004). The Innovation of Modernist Literature. Cambridge University Press.
- Cook, N. (1990). A History of Opera . Columbia University Press.
- Braque, G. (1913). Man with a Guitar. Museum of Modern Art.
- Young, P. (2007). The Avant-Garde and Well-Formedness. Routledge.