The Modernist Temperament
This chapter gives an in-depth analysis of the various movements and perceptions from across all sectors against “realism” and “naturalism.” The chapter outlines that since the 1880s, the belief and perception that art should represent both human behavior and the physical world (the premise of realism and naturalism) had dominated theory and practice as well (161). Unsurprisingly, however, this premise received criticism from many artistic movements, and such rejections are what gave rise to the “modernist temperament.” More broadly, the chapter demonstrates the various artistic movements, and the first movement to reject realism and naturalism was the “symbolism movement.” This movement rejects the earlier beliefs on the pretext that the claim by the realist that ultimate truth is discovered through the five senses lacks the basis and argued instead that truth is beyond any form of objective examination. Unfortunately, as a movement in the theatre, the symbolism movement lost its appeal and definitely ceased in 1900 due to the fact that; the symbolism movement unlike the realist and the naturalist the symbolists chose their subjects from the past and more specifically they never took the initiative to solve societal problems. It is for these reasons that most people viewed the symbolists as vague and mysterious. Moreover, the symbolism was not the only group that challenged realism and naturalism; the “Arts for Art’s sake” movement, much like the symbolism movement, was also at the center stage in criticism. This movement, however, was brought forward by one of its members known as Oscar Wilder, who was by far articulate in voicing the movement’s basic principles. It is interesting to highlight that the movement challenged the idea of realism and naturalism on the grounds that art has an independent life, and therefore its imaginative power should not be linked or attached to the concerns of its time. Besides, this movement, also contrary to the realist and naturalists it advocates for lying and telling untrue things as it is the main purpose of art. To understand more about Wilde’s ideas, the play “The importance of Being Earnest “gives a clear picture of Wilde’s sentiments and inner meaning regarding what art actually is all about. In a nutshell, the synopsis of the events in the play recounts what Wilde uttered concerning art in their movement. The chapter also explicitly explains the influence of modernists on theatrical visionaries. It explains in brief that modernism has influenced art from renaissance to the twentieth century as the visual arts depicted all that related to a fixed eye point. However, at the beginning of the 21st century, all the details depicted the details of the same picture from an eyepoint. The arts industry, in a nutshell, has witnessed a major transformation, such as the advocacy of “Appia” to introduced lights from different angles in the theatre. This advocacy was initiated on the pretext that it can change moment by moment, which helps in reflecting the change of moods (166). More broadly, the chapter recounts how the period between 1910-1920 became the mother of all artistic movements whereby each movement outlined new perspectives with regard to the human experience. Most notably, and of great importance to note is that futurism, dada, and expressionism were the most pronounced movements during this era. First, futurism advocated for the destruction of the old art form and replaced it with new art forms such as collage. It also proposed to replace the existing drama with synthetic drama. Dada, on the other hand, ensued during the Word War one as it was against the values that resulted in World War One. Dada, however, proposed various art forms such as “chance” poems and short plays before coming to an end immediately after the war ended. Expressionism, which emerged in Germany, in 1910, on the other hand, aimed at countering materialism and industrialism. This movement was against the act of machines replacing men, and their main objective was to generate reforms that will eventually result in the regeneration of man.
Furthermore, the expressionism attracted various writers across the globe and among the noteworthy plays by writers were “The adding Machine” and “The Hairy Ape.” The Hairy Ape, for example, utilizes the main theme of expressionism, which is “humanity’s frustrated search in regard to identity in a hostile environment.” The chapter further looks into the Postwar Era and highlights that various audiences still loved and enjoyed the art that was common before modernity came into place. It is believed that at around 1929 in the US, for example, majority or rather two-thirds of people who attended live theatre were stilled attached to the previous realism. Further, in the US, the economic depression of the 1930s proved to be a fundamental aspect since it marked a new era in the development of the American theatre. As the depression deepened, the US Congress outlined a plan to create jobs, and one of the ways was through theatre, and this initiative gave rise to the Federal theatre as well as the Group Theatre. As technology crept in, so did the new forms of theatre as depicted in most parts of Europe. In Germany, for example, the most renowned new form of theatre was the “Epic Theatre” developed in the wake of expressionism. In a nutshell, the chapter brings together all the movements and forms of art that were common during the 20th century before technology and innovations took over.
Chapter 8 Summary
This chapter seeks to unearth the implications that World War 2 had on the art industry or rather on the theatrical activity. The chapter further demonstrates the rise of reevaluation, decentralization as well as subsidization and its impacts on art or theatre across the globe. Most notably, in the aftermath of WW2, the world witnessed a shift in theatrical activities as it motivated the reassessment of values and theatrical practices. It goes unnoticed that reassessment led to decentralization, and decentralization resulted in subsidization that was accomplished through financial assistance (187). How the US benefitted as a result of the war was that it saw a little change in its theatrical practices, but unsurprisingly however the country continued to experience the Modified realism as its main theatrical production approach. However, the post-war was dominated by psychological realism, and the two major dramatists were Arthur Williams and Tennessee Williams. “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,” a major play in 1955 by Tennessee Williams, is a play about lying and deception. The play recounts and, more importantly, attacks past events with respect to various actions. Besides, this play brings to light the race and gender differences that were most witnessed at that time. In as much as the play reflected and coherently articulated its message well, the play from today’s perspective has been faulted in regard to its misogynistic representation of women.
Post War America
Notably, it is interesting to learn that in as much as the modified realism of post-war American drama was much hyped and studied; the musical was the most popular theatrical in the US. The 18th century introduced major musical forms in the US, such as Comic Opera, and more importantly, music was often used as additional entertainment whenever plays did not require music.
Post War Europe
Unlike the post-war music in America, the post-war music in Europe was theatrical fare typical. The typical musical form in Europe was due to the fact that Europe, unlike the US, suffered so much devastation in its post-war era, and it is for this reason therefore that Europe had a different music form in comparison with the US. In Germany, for example, most music or plays was based on societal problems as well as actual events. More broadly, it is evident that among the European countries as well, the tone of the drama differed; France and Germany, for example, differed in tone, but the plays were built on a similar set of questions regarding truth and values. However, with respect to these values and truths, a group of philosophers known as existentialists emerged, and they aimed at pursuing questions regarding truths and values and criticized most of the underlying questions. Further, one of the famous philosophers, Albert Camus, for example, argued that most people seeking clarity and certainty are often met with the irrationality of the universe, and through this, he concludes that our situation is absurd. Albert Camus attracted the attention of a large group of playwrights, and in France, for example, a group of writers believed in Camus’s and Sartre’s sentiments, but they, however, claimed that making meaningful choices was impossible in an irrational universe. The critics, on the other hand, labeled the drama that contained all the Camu’s characteristics as absurd, and through this, the “Absurdist Drama” came into place. The theme of isolation and loneliness was brought forward by the Happy Days storyline. This storyline highlights that human beings organize their day to day activities around routines in a bid to convince themselves that they are controlling their own lives.
Decentralization and Subsidization
The post-war period sparked or rather brought new ideas as most of the developed countries felt the urge to make all the theatres more readily available as opposed to having them concentrated only in the big cities such as France, and New York. However, implementing this policy required a lot of money that could be raised from subsidies. Through subsidization, therefore, theatres were geographically dispersed through most parts of the developed countries such as the US and France. It was possible to subsidize these theatres since most of the countries globally own the theatres. The France government, for instance, had four state theatres in France and various cultural centers in other parts of the country.
Post British Theatre
British, unlike other European countries, never awarded subsidies to its theatres on the grounds that the theatre is a commercial business, and it is in a position to support itself. However, the situation changed when the government asked the local authorities to allocate some percentage of their revenues to the art sector. After the allocations, the theatres grew rapidly in Britain, and this clearly proved that subsidization goes a long way in supporting arts.
Off-Broadway and Off-Off-Broadway
Much like the British, America, on the other hand, delayed its subsidization process aimed at supporting arts on the grounds that arts are self-supporting. The main aim that the US-supported theatres in 1930 were as a result of a high rise in unemployment, which prompted the government to support theatres in a bid to curb the unemployment rates. Further, in the aftermath of the World War, the government outlined various plans aimed at decentralizing theatres in the US. It is through this, therefore, that the influential and well-renowned Broadway groups came into place. Off-Off-Broadway, on the other end, occurred as a result of the high production cost of Off-Broadway, which prompted the development of Off-Off-Broadway. In a bid to support arts in the US, the government rolled out various plans that promoted the subsidization of arts further. The federal government, for example, encouraged states to initiate art councils, and this marked a new twist in regard to art development in the US. However, for Broadways, the subsidization and decentralization actually altered their patterns since prior to this, they were attracting large audiences, but after the introduction of subsidization and decentralization, their prowess and success were lessened significantly. Therefore for Broadways, the initiative did more harm than good. After 1960, new playwrights in the US joined the arts industry and, due to stiff competition, the most common playwrights as at that time (Miller and Williams) were overshadowed by the new generation. In a nutshell, the chapter illustrates the impacts of subsidization and decentralization on arts both in the US and Europe.