Modernism

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"Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that’s no matter – to-morrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther…And one fine morning –

So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past."

As I read and worked on the period that held the modernist movements, I was taken back to my first experience with the early part of this period. For me one of the most memorable literature pieces to arrive within modernism is The Great Gatsby. Though it may not fit the bill solely from a modernist view because of it's portrayal of realism on several layers, it is a promotion of the modern movement taking place during that time.

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The Great Gatsby was written by F. Scott Fitzgerald and it saw a first publishing in 1925 in the United States. Fitzgerald, and American writer that had already reached success as an author, sought to capture the lifestyle of 1920's. A time when the World War one had just ended, alcohol was not legal, and achievement was emphasized in possessions like no other time. The era was redefining for modern woman hood, it held a sort of disconnect with the previously held conservative values, and achievement seemed limitless. The setting for The Great Gatsby 1922 New York, more specifically most of the book takes place in the luxurious setting of the Long Island Sound. The narrator Nick, is nearly an impartial witness, as he seems to hold no judgment, and a stronger than average moral compass for the era. Nick weeds us through the complexity of a struggling adolescent culture, overcome by its own progression.

Fitzgerald approaches all of these defining pieces of modernism and does a great job portraying them to the reader. I really get a great feel for the overwhelming pace of it all. The people seem frivolous and self indulged with little open value on things that been a staple in previous eras. With this we see gains in physical values but find an increasingly widening distance occurring at the emotional and spiritual level. Fitzgerald show us a world being consumed by the pace of technology and the relief from the end of a war. The great success achieved has us riding the euphoric feelings into complete detachment from ll that is real. Something that I think can be witnessed even today as we place less emphasis on spirituality and emotions, we find a culture attached to status by possession.

Jay Gatsby find himself a shining product of the modern movement. He managed to pursue progress and succeed, something that was allowed via empowerment. His desire to redeem his love was of course the underlying drive for success, though it is masked for part of the book. This is a fine example of the losses that occurred at the hands of limitless improvement. Love though the true drive, is not forthcoming because of the nature of the process. Gatsby strives for things, he throws lavish parties seeking approval, but beyond all of this he only wants the love he has lost, ironically a love that he obtained before his lavish monetary success.

http://iosifthoughts.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/money-over-love.jpg

I am not making an argument that The Great Gatsby is the most defining work of modernism, but it is one the most popular. Above all it did provide us with a look into a confused lifestyle that placed emphasis in atypical areas of life in comparison to history. It was a look into the destructive type of lifestyle that is often consequence of materialistic devotion, but also a look into the growing pains of an entire culture.

Belle Epoque

Durkheim

      During the Belle Epoque history saw significant advancements in both science and technology. The period saw improvement made on vehicles, the addition of the telephone for communication, all the way to the much needed advancements in biological science that led to a better understanding of germs and even the creation of a new scientific field. Many notable figures developed throughout the Belle Epoque, for myself one the most notable is Emile Durkheim. Emile Durkheim provided the ground and framework for many modern scientific and sociological processes. To highlight a few in this weeks post I will associate our modern approach to sociology, criminology, and labor views with the work of Emile Durkheim.

      In modern society we see sociology at work in every aspect of our lives. It is completely recognized in our societies, and is an undeniable force at the chisel of our being. So true in fact, sociology is taught at nearly all levels of education, and importantly at the college level. This though has not always been the case, as Emile Durkeim created the first European department of sociology at the University of Bordeaux in the year 1895. Durkheim created a format in which to create and sustain a flow of sociological ideology as well as the methodology through the ages. By establishing an official educational system for sociology he established it to the mainstream populous, thereby turning sociology loose to turn into it's modern form.

suicide

      Emile Durkheim made an astonishing effort at the explanation of Suicide through the sociological perspective. During his work on that study he utilized the quantitative data of suicide rates across varying cultures or communities. Durkheims use of these research methods lead the way for the current use quantitative methods for crime research. By following in the path of Durkheim's work on suicide, modern criminologists can form and organize data to project trends of occurrence. Using trending allows for crime prevention education for the population of target areas, as well as a more directed investigation effort on past crimes.

ED

     Possibly some of Emile Durkheim's most influential works were those that focused on labor. His dissertation titled The Division of Labor in Society  pushed throughout society to advance sociological theories. Durkheims description and theory of current events gave an outcome that he felt necessitated change for a smoother transition from primitive to modern. One of the major advocations of Durkheim  was the use of a mediator type group to allow for continuity and a sense of attachment between the  worker and the vast state above. This middle group would be considered our labor unions in the modern form. A tool that Durkheim envisioned as being instrumental towards the safety and well being of our working class, something that our labor unions have definitely helped provide for in our modern time.

      From the task of creating crime prevention models, to our modern view of the sociological impact on globalization, we can see influence from Emile Durkheim and others from the Belle Epoque. Though he may not be considered the establishment of the study of sociology, Durkheim was one of the main force behind it's propulsion into view and its delivery into our modern society.