Introduction
In American literature, modernism began at the turn of the 20th century, specifically during the time of the Great War and ending in the period after the Second World War. The general mood for this era – at least for the creative minds that produce novels, poems, and other works of art – can be summarized using the words of one commentator who pointed to the numbing effect of World War I and he said, “Four years of slaughter in the trenches of the Western Front purged Americans’ faith in progress and the perfectibility of man and replaced it with cynicism, preoccupied with dislocation, fragmentation, and dehumanization” (Burt, p. 335). Based on the literature produced during this era, modernism can be characterized by disillusionment, aimlessness, and rebellion against social norms.
Since the general mood is disillusionment, then what follows is a feeling of aimlessness. In Fitzgerald’s Winter Dreams, the protagonist Dexter Green was supposed to be successful, but he was wandering aimlessly. He had money, he had the American Dream guiding him, but at the end of the journey, he felt empty, achieving nothing of significance. Aimlessness is also prevalent in Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises. Postmodernism, on the other hand, is the period after World War II. According to many, this is one of the most socially disruptive eras in American history (Burt, p. 487). How can authors survive in this age of cynicism? How can they write love stories and love ballads if their hearts are filled with these negative emotions? It is, therefore, interesting to find out how authors and poets tried to deal with a favorite subject matter – love. The following works by different authors tried to describe love using different approaches.
Winter Dreams
In the second chapter of the story, Dexter was taking a swim, and out of the blue came Judy Jones. She was in a motorboat, and she explained her presence as well as her need for assistance by saying, “…I live in a house over there on the island, and in that house, there is a man waiting for me. When he drove up at the door, I drove out of the dock because he says I’m his ideal” (Fitzgerald, Chapter II). Even the wariest reader can be forced to take a second look at this passage because it revealed a new side of Judy Jones that was never mentioned before prior to this incident. It was clear as day when Miss Jones declared to Dexter her moral values and what kind of woman she is. Again, the need for a double-take is the need for an assurance knowing that in the latter part of the story, Dexter will fall in love with this girl and one has to wonder why he was unable to discern her character knowing that he was forewarned with these words from her.
There are two kinds of love being shown here. The first one is the love of self as exhibited by the promiscuous and sensual behavior of Miss Jones. It colors a major portion of the story and helps explain why Judy Jones was able to continue with her amorous relationships with a dozen men. But there is another side to this story, and it is not only all about indiscriminate love but also about true love when Dexter refuses to give up on her, even if he is well aware of her escapades. He loved her until the end. These two types of love, the first one selfish and the other one unconditional, created a contrast that held the story together as well as the attraction between two former lovers.
The Sun Also Rises
Love is seen as self-centered. Even in the intense love of a man towards a woman, the end result is destructive because the man is only considering his own happiness without any regard to the feelings of others. For instance, Jake continued to pursue Lady Brett Ashley even if he knew that she was already engaged. Jake was still interested in Breatt, but his feelings for her were no match to the attraction felt by Cohn. While both men lusted after her, Lady Brett was a class all by herself because while she was still engaged to Mike Campbell, she pursued Romero, a bullfighter from Spain. Both Brett and Romero had an affair. But this did not last long because Romero loved himself more than others, and so he broke up with Brett.
In this story, no one seems to remember the time when men and women marry till death. There seems to be no remembrance of commitment and loyalty exhibited by couples who are still together after so many decades of marriage. Contrast this to Brett, Romero, Jake, Mike, and Cohn, who will willingly engage in scandalous relationships in exchange for a fleeting moment of happiness. There is emptiness in their lives that can only be explained by the kind of experiences they went through, especially for those who witnessed firsthand the blood and gore of the First World War.
I, Being Born a Woman
Edna St. Vincent Millay used the well-known imagery of a woman desperately in love with a man but unable to tell him about her feelings. In fact, the man had no idea she was feeling this way. She explained the reason why she struggled and pointed out that it is rooted in two sources:
1) her needs and
2) the notions of her kind.
It is easy to understand that the author lived in a time when it was unthinkable for women to be very vocal about their desires. So her language can be likened to a pent-up raging volcano ready to erupt at any moment, but instead of hot volcanic anger, the outflow was love – intense and sure. But alas, it is not permitted.
The author described her love as a one-way street; everything came from her without a single response from the opposite sex. She desperately wanted to be with him, but she knew it was not appropriate. Thus, she acknowledged the struggle, and Millay said that it clarifies the pulse but clouds the mind a fitting description as to how emotions can overpower rational thought: making her heart race but staggering the mind, like a drunkard knowing instinctively that something is wrong but having no power to control her heart from loving him.
Lady Lazarus
It is difficult to force the idea that this poem talks about love. The poem talks about death, dying, and other morbid things pertaining to being examined under the glaring eye of a doctor while sprawled on a cold metallic operating table. There is even an allusion that the lady longed for death, but death will not come easily for her because she has nine lives. Due to her terrible experiences and in anticipation of future trials and tribulations, she learned how to thrive under such awful circumstances. It must also be pointed out that the lady was a Jew at a time and place when the Nazis were supreme rulers.
But if one will be forced to discover love in the most unlikely place, then it can be seen by how the doctor loved to examine his patient. Moreover, there is a reference to the Holocaust, and it is common knowledge that during that period, the Jews were murdered, mutilated, and robbed of their possessions. If one will be forced to find love under these circumstances, then it can be seen with how the doctor value the patient as a cash cow, loving the dead remains of the Jews who went through the horrors of the Holocaust, because in the end, their byproducts consist of valuables such as gold earrings, gold fillings, wedding rings, etc.
Separating
The short story was about a couple, who after almost two decades of marriage, decided to call it quits. In most cases of divorce, there is no trace of love left and what can be expected is animosity between two former lovers. But a closer examination will reveal that love is still evident in the Maples’ household. It is the love between parents and their children. In fact, it is this kind of love that holds the family together when they are on the brink of being torn apart by the awful forces of divorce.
The story is a perfect example of the turbulent times experienced by many in the postmodern world. In the 19th century, it was unthinkable to think that Americans could easily consider divorce as a solution to their problems. But again, there were so many things that happened in this period that encouraged people to rebel against social norms or at least experiment with solutions and ideas that could easily shock even the most sophisticated Western man or woman a century earlier.
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23 February 2009
Alienation in Modern and Post Modern American Literature
Modernism can be characterized by cynicism, dislocation, fragmentation, and dehumanization (Burt, p. 335). Mechanized warfare destroyed the illusion that in an era of improved communication and transportation, it would be easier for people to talk and lay down their differences. Instead, technology made it easier to slaughter people by the millions. In The Lynching, a highly sophisticated society is still capable of performing barbaric acts. This led authors such as E.E. Cummings to question the greatness of America. Postmodernism, on the other hand, raises cynicism to a higher level, but this time, American writers and poets are no longer impressed by the capability of the United States to make significant changes in the global political realm, as evidenced by the Vietnam fiasco as well as other problems relating to diplomacy and the negative impact of American capitalism (Hogue, p. 151).
Looking at postmodern America, one commentator was able to succinctly explain the impact of all these changes, and he wrote, “If one dominant theme of the period was liberation – the redefinition of traditional concepts of gender, race, and class – a countertheme was the dissolution of long-esteemed sources of order and authority, necessitation an anxious search for sustaining values” (Burt, p. 487). This is made evident in Miller’s The Death of a Salesman, where the protagonist tried in vain to reassess his life using the ideals of the American Dream. These problems can easily create hostility, anger, and frustration, which can lead to alienation. The following works will help explain how writers of the two aforementioned eras in American literature tried to deal with alienation.
The Lynching
Alienation is seen in how society treats people belonging to another race. There is a race highly esteemed, and there is one despised to the point that they are treated a little higher than vermin. Lynching is public execution without the benefit of a fair trial. It is a punishment intended not only to humiliate and punish the guilty but also to seriously warn future offenders. This creates a barrier between two people, whites and blacks and thus alienating one from the other.
The modernist perspective is seen in how the poet questioned the values held by Americans, a nation that came out as a superpower at the end of World War I and yet unable to change for the better. It is a country blessed with so many resources and the capacity to transform itself to lead other nations in a path that will bring about peace and greater prosperity. But disillusionment and cynicism set in upon the realization that if the U.S. government could not take care of its own people, the same men and women freed from slavery, then there is no hope for others.
next to, of course, god America I
Alienation is the result of how the speaker expressed his displeasure over how America sent its young men to slaughter. The one speaking here was describing the horrors of war and how others try to justify senseless violence by exalting the ideals of liberty, heroism, and glory on the battlefield. But for the author, this is a half-truth, and using satire exposes the hype. By doing so, he alienates himself from the majority of Americans who truly believe in the greatness of their country and those who believe that America is always justified when it decides to go to war and send its finest young men and women to die on the battlefield.
Cummings poetry is a good example of how to question authority and to question social norms. There is no better way of doing it than attacking the most sacred symbol of Americanism which is the Star-Spangled Banner. It was the spirit of the times and Cummings’ words and the way he writes them – breaking the rules and conventions – that alert the readers to his true intentions. Cummings did not only created a poem that talks about alienation, but he also delivered a masterpiece that could alienate him from die-hard patriots.
Death of a Salesman
In this story, alienation occurred at different levels and was expressed in different ways. The first example of alienation can be seen in the life of the protagonist Willy Loman, specifically when it comes to his job. He does not like his work because it is not his dream job, and at the same time, office politics is making it hard for him to succeed. His company and the way it operates make him feel like a failure, and this is putting pressure on his relationships with his co-workers, but most especially with his family.
He also felt ostracized by society in general, and for him, it seems that people are judging him for failing to achieve the American Dream. His frustrations alienate him from his two children. Willy Loman projected on them his dreams and aspirations. He wanted them to succeed beyond their wildest dreams, to have fame and fortune. But his children did not have the propensity to think like him or the drive to shoot for the stars.
The Drunk in the Furnace
In this poem, alienation is seen in the way people treat the homeless. Their disdain for the poor man living inside an abandoned furnace increases upon learning that he is a drunkard and a gambler. It was not made explicit that the self-righteous are having a hard time accepting the failures of others, but it was implied in the poem that self-righteous people have an explanation why others are poor as a church mouse while others are blessed. In this kind of thinking, there is no way to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor, at least for those who think that poor people are the ones to blame for their misfortunes.
Defenders of the Faith
If Roth was trying to describe alienation, its nature, and what it can do to a person, then he did an excellent job in Defenders of the Faith. He illustrated the alienation felt by Jews, and he did it on two levels. The first is the general alienation of the Jews with regards to their fellow citizens and to the rest of the world. He had a perfect backdrop – World War II and Nazi Germany – to show how far non-Jews would go to make them feel different. The Jews need not be told twice that they are different, they knew it, and they either hate it or accept it.
But there is the second level of alienation, and this can be seen within the Jewish community or at least among the Jewish people. There are Jews who are more orthodox than others, and those who believe that they are more faithful can sometimes look down upon those who tried to get the best of both worlds, meaning they are Jews, and yet they find it easy to compromise their beliefs if it means getting along with others. In training camp, the feeling of being alienated was illustrated by how Jewish recruits had to suffer through discrimination, but at the same time, the protagonist of the story, Sergeant Nathan Marx, had to endure alienation from fellow Jews who accused him of not doing everything he can to defend their faith.
Works Cited
Burt, Daniel. The Chronology of American Literature: America’s Literary Achievements from the Colonial Era to Modern Times. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004.
Hogue, Lawrence. Race, Modernity, Postmodernity: A Look at the History and the Literatures of People of Color since the 1960s. New York: State University of New York Press, 1996.