Academic literature on the topic 'Existentialism in art'

The purpose of my research is to examine the philosophic influences on three literary works: F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, Ernest Hemingway's Death in the Afternoon, and Norman Mailer's An American Dream. Through an investigation of biographical, historical, cultural, and textual evidence, I will argue for the influence of several European philosophers---Friedrich Nietzsche, Søren Kierkegaard, and Martin Heidegger---on these authors and on the structures and messages of their works. I will discuss how the specific works I have selected not only reveal each author's apt understanding of the existential-philosophical crises facing the individual in the twentieth century, but also reveal these authors' attempt to disseminate philosophic instruction on the "art of living" to their post-war American readers. I will argue that Fitzgerald, Hemingway, and Mailer address what they see as the universal philosophical crises of their generations in the form of literary art by appropriating and translating the existential concerns of existence to American interests and concerns. I will argue that Fitzgerald, Hemingway, and Mailer's emphasis on the individual's personal responsibility to first become self-aware and then to strive to see the world more clearly and truly reflects their own sense of responsibility as authors and artists of their generations, a point of view that repositions these authors as prophets, seers, healers, so to speak, of their times. Finally, I will discuss how, in An American Dream, Mailer builds on the Americanized existential foundations laid by Fitzgerald and Hemingway through his explicit invocation of and subtle references to the art and ideas of his literary-philosophic predecessors---Fitzgerald and Hemingway.

This dissertation is a claim for the act of Concrete Performance Poetry (and the Poet) as the "bridge" between existence and experience. I have structured the argument to locate the theory I have drawn on, and the practice of Performance Poetry, in three specific areas. "The Performance" (Chapter One); "The Concrete" (Chapter Two); and "The PoeU Poetry" (Chapter Three). Chapter One. The Performance provides a circumstance for the PHENOMENOLOGICAL rapport between the PERFORMER and LANGUAGE deriving from John Austin's SPEECH-ACT and Maurice Merleau-Ponty's EMPIRICAL and EXISTENTIAL speech. I also engage Charles Sanders Pierce's triadic model of interpretation to argue for the position of the Performer as the MECHANISM or INTERPRETANT of experience within the imperative to form the moment of existence. Chapter Two. This chapter has as its locus, the CONCRETE and I have used Lisolette Gumpel's claim that there are two areas in which the concrete operates. (1) In the realm of existence - emanating from a concrete world and (2) in the realm of experience - emanating from a language system. Chapter Three. This chapter examines the ACT of Concrete Performance Poetry and the specific dialogue between experience and existence - language and performer - as instanced in the work of Jas H. Duke and David Antin.

This is a series of daily writings. Each day consists of a new topic and is closed at the end of the day. The ideas presented are philosophical, humorous, rambling, lamentations, incantations, doubt-ridden, aesthetic pep talks which combine into an affective representation of my studio practice’s becoming. There will be little congruency, some stories, and a lot of parallels because that is who I am.

This dissertation will use the philosophy of John Dewey to develop a conception of the individual using an ecological model as an alternative to the atomistic type more typical of Western philosophy. An ecological model presents the individual as part of a biological and cultural milieu, but, contrary to a number of critiques of the Deweyan individual, it does not subsume the individual beneath the larger processes of which it is a part or sacrifice the individual to the social institutions such as the state. The Introduction and Chapter One provide an overview of various critiques of Dewey's understanding of the individual before arguing that the Deweyan individual is best understood in ecological terms. This first section also argues in favor of Dewey's current relevance, as his philosophy provides a number of resources for addressing contemporary social problems. Chapter Two briefly examines the claim that there are possible absolutist tendencies in Dewey's thought before discussing the threat of absolutism, examining absolutist practices as types of monocultures, and arguing that far from supporting such tendencies, a Deweyan ecological individualism works against such practices. Chapter Three examines some of the implications of using an ecological model for the individual, shows that such an understanding of the individual drives home the precariousness of existence, and argues that this model thus provides the basis for a Deweyan existentialism. While Chapter Three emphasizes the ways in which our interdependence highlights the dangers that individuals face, Chapter Four responds to these worrisome implications by arguing in favor of a Deweyan art of living that builds upon our social and biological interrelatedness with a Deweyan care ethics that responds not only to our status as ecologically integrated entities with responsibilities to our social and biological communities, but that also emphasizes our need for self-care. The final chapter examines the ecological individual and moral community through the lens of a Deweyan radical democracy that emphasizes the need for ecological literacy, citizen engagement, a knowledgeable respect for our diverse heritage, and a willingness to work together continually to change our institutions and our practices toward democratic ideals.

Over and above applying Sartrean literary philosophy to Banks and Kelman this thesis therefore also offers a model of literary criticism that can be applied to a number of other contemporary Scottish authors. In conclusion, this thesis suggests that Sartre’s theories of literature can assist in the attempt to better understand the value of the writer in society, and of Kelman and Banks in particular. The comparison and contrast between Banks and Kelman makes clear the importance of contextualising the individual writer not only with the work of their contemporaries, but with the time, place and position in which they are writing. The intention of the thesis is to discover how Sartre’s ideas of existentialism and literature can be applied to writers and their work in a way that allows ‘the critic’ to analyse both the novelist’s fictional technique and to gauge the value of their role in society – in other words, how Sartre’s theories allow us to better understand the individual writer in a social, political and moral context, both nationally and internationally.

Not always so remarkable but still most important. Every day. The beautiful, small, horrible and often insignificant experiences that makes us who we are, fascinates me. You see, choose and become with no interruption. The constant change inspires me.  This is a text circulating around an artistic practice, it´s an illustration of a why how what. Or, maybe more an attempt to put words onto a wish to see for tracing, where an aim is being become became. Be

L’image du germe, du développement organique, est très importante dans l’œuvre poétique et dramatique de Claudel. Dans ses écrits en prose qui constituent la seconde partie de son œuvre, et sont principalement consacrés à l’étude de la Bible et de ses mystères, cette métaphore devient centrale. Elle est le vecteur privilégié de l’interrogation du poète sur la vocation de l’homme, le sens de sa vie, les réalités spirituelles qui le déterminent souterrainement. La semence devient plus largement le symbole d’un monde dynamique, divinement orienté vers un achèvement parfait tout en restant acteur de son développement et ainsi véritablement créateur. À travers le travail sur cette métaphore, le poète atteint ainsi un équilibre entre la valorisation de la vitalité qu’il admire et célèbre, et la recherche d’une forme parfaite, liée à la reconnaissance d’un Dieu créateur. La mise au point de ce nouvel « art poétique » passe par un travail poétique sur les images et les motifs rencontrés dans la Bible, autour notamment de l’annonce de l’Incarnation. Pour les interpréter, Claudel puise dans la Tradition chrétienne, reçue à travers la liturgie, mais aussi par la lecture des Pères de l’Église ou de théologiens comme saint Augustin et saint Thomas. Mais il exploite également les découvertes scientifiques les plus récentes, et dialogue avec des philosophies plus modernes. L’insistance sur le mouvement et la prise en compte de la spontanéité du vivant et des obscurités de l’homme qu’exprime la métaphore séminale permettent ainsi de rapprocher Claudel, malgré son apparent isolement, de ses contemporains<br>The symbol of the germ, and the model of the organic development, play a very important role in Paul Claudel’s poetical and dramatical works. When the poet devoted himself to the study and the poetic commentary of the Bible in the last part of his life, this metaphor becomes central. Claudel uses it particularly in questions such as the meaning of human life and its links with spiritual realities. More broadly speaking, the image expresses the energy and the power of development contained in a world that aims at its complete achievement. Through this image, Claudel celebrates the vigor he admires in nature, and, at the same time, the perfection of a divine realisation. The reading of the Bible leads him to renew his approach of these themes. We also have to consider the influence on him of other sources, especially the Fathers of the Church, great theologists as Thomas Aquinas or Saint Augustine and other spiritual books which he frequently refers to. Nevertheless, we should not forget that he exploits as well the more recent scientific discoveries and discusses contemporary issues. The image of the germ allows Claudel to stress the dynamism of the world, the spontaneity of living things and to illustrate the mystery of man; thus, it is at the heart of his poetical world