The Inner War Period 1914-1945
The events of the first half of the twentieth century are seen quite differently today from the way they were seen at the time. Historians describe the period between 1914 and 1945 as a birth of mass culture, resulting in fresh forms of popular expression. During World War I and II, the making of masses into a historically powerful force was the most significant event of this time period. The rise of masses heralded the onset of a new phase of culture in which ordinary men and women from the lower middle class and the working class challenged bourgeois dominance in such the same way that the bourgeoisie had earlier challenged and eventually overcome the aristocracy. Mass culture triggered negative responses in most serious artists, writers, and musicians, who preferred the difficult and somewhat remote style of Modernism. The leaders of Modernism, partly because of the extreme popularity of mass culture, now fashioned works that grew more and more revolutionary in form, constantly testing the limits of the arts. Modernism is a reflection of the fast paced modern world whose foundations and boundaries seemed to constantly shifting. The period between 1914 and 1945 thus saw both the rise of mass culture and the zenith of M
In 1940, Frida Kahlo painted Self Portrait Dedicated to Dr. Eloesser. Kahlo reveals a modernist sensibility in this likeness, which draws on multicultural sources, including Christianity and her indigenous Mexican heritage. The necklace of thorns which makes her neck bleed, refers to both Christ’s crown of thorns worn during the Crucifixation and to the Aztec prophetic ritual that required self-mortification with thorns. The earring in the form of a hand-a gift from Picasso- symbolizes the hand of fate, and the jungle of over-sized leaves evokes and image of nature out of control. During World War II photojournalism made its debut. Photojournalism became a popular form in which the photograph rather than the text dominates the story. During World War II photojournalism reached new heights, appearing in illustrated magazines such as Life. In a photo taken by Margaret Bourke-White, one of the first women war journalists, was the only foreign correspondent-photographer present in the Soviet Union when the Russians invaded in June 1941. (refer to page 567 for example and explanation). Photojournalism portrayed the horror and atrocities. Perhaps one of the most powerful photos that really show the magnitude of these atrocities is of a Nazi death camp. It is a gruesome and most disturbing insight into the brutality of the Nazi regime. Another example of modernism and ideological thought is the painting “We are Making a New World,” by Paul Nash. In this painting Nash illustrates the cold reality of war and its destructive power. Again Nash’s painting illustrates the horror of World War I. In his battle scenes, farmlands were turned into quagmires and forests into no man’s lands. The artist’s title ch
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Approximate Word count = 1172
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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