This term-paper was prepared in order to show the different poetic movements of the postmodern
avant-garde. These are known under the names “Black Mountain school”, “San
Francisco Renaissance”, “Beat-generation” and ” New York School” and began in the 1950s
in America.
My term-paper will show the development of these different poetic movements, give an
understanding of the most important poets of each movement and explain if and how the
different movements are linked to each other and what they have in common.
From the middle of the 1950s up to the early years of the 1960s the world of American poetry was divided into two different groups. One of these groups represented the lyrical mainstream while the other group saw themselves as a kind of counterculture. The idols of this group where William Carlos Williams, Ezra Pound, Louis Zukofsky and Gertrude Stein. By the beginning of the 1950s this new way of writing, which was called postmodern avant-garde, was just in the beginning years. In 1960 the anthology New American Poetry was published by Grove Press and brought together many writers of this new poetic line for the first time.
Table of Contents
I. Introduction
II. Postmodern avant-garde
III. Black Mountain school
1.) Development
2.) Artists
3.) Example
4.) Short Analysis
IV. San Francisco Renaissance
1.) Development
2.) Artists
3.) Example
4.) Short Analysis
V. Beat-generation
1.) Development
2.) Artists
3.) Example
4.) Short Analysis
VI. New York School
1.) Development
2.) Artists
3.) Example
4.) Short Analysis
VII. Comparison and Conclusion
Research Objectives and Key Topics
This paper explores the landscape of the postmodern avant-garde in American poetry during the 1950s and 1960s. It aims to document the historical development, key figures, and aesthetic philosophies of four influential movements, while analyzing the connections and commonalities that bound them together as a form of artistic counterculture.
- Evolution of the Black Mountain school and its impact on poetic structure.
- Development of the San Francisco Renaissance and its fusion with jazz and Eastern influences.
- Origins and cultural significance of the Beat generation and its non-conformist lifestyle.
- Integration of visual arts and literature within the New York School.
- Comparative analysis of shared counter-cultural themes and techniques across the movements.
Excerpt from the Book
A Supermarket in California
What thoughts I have of you tonight, Walt Whitman, for I walked down the sidestreets under the trees with a headache self-conscious looking at the full moon. In my hungry fatigue, and shopping for images, I went into the neon fruit supermarket, dreaming of your enumerations! What peaches and what penumbras! Whole families shopping at night! Aisles full of husbands! Wives in the avocados, babies in the tomatoes! --and you, García Lorca, what were you doing down by the watermelons?
I saw you, Walt Whitman, childless, lonely old grubber, poking among the meats in the refrigerator and eyeing the grocery boys. I heard you asking questions of each: Who killed the pork chops? What price bananas? Are you my Angel? I wandered in and out of the brilliant stacks of cans following you, and followed in my imagination by the store detective. We strode down the open corridors together in our solitary fancy tasting artichokes, possessing every frozen delicacy, and never passing the cashier.
Where are we going, Walt Whitman? The doors close in a hour. Which way does your beard point tonight? (I touch your book and dream of our odyssey in the supermarket and feel absurd.) Will we walk all night through solitary streets? The trees add shade to shade, lights out in the houses, we'll both be lonely. Will we stroll dreaming of the lost America of love past blue automo- biles in driveways, home to our silent cottage?
Ah, dear father, graybeard, lonely old courage-teacher, what America did you have when Charon quit poling his ferry and you got out on a smoking bank and stood watching the boat disappear on the black waters of Lethe?
Summary of Chapters
I. Introduction: The introduction outlines the scope of the paper, identifying the four main poetic movements of the postmodern avant-garde and setting the goal to analyze their interconnectedness.
II. Postmodern avant-garde: This chapter defines the emergence of the postmodern avant-garde in the mid-1950s as a reactionary counterculture to the lyrical mainstream.
III. Black Mountain school: This chapter examines the experimental and strict writing style developed at Black Mountain College, heavily influenced by Charles Olsen’s concept of projective verse.
IV. San Francisco Renaissance: This section details the poetic activities centered in San Francisco after World War II, characterized by a diverse accumulation of communities and influences from jazz and Eastern culture.
V. Beat-generation: This chapter covers the history of the Beat generation, focusing on its non-conformist lifestyle, influences on social taboos, and the emergence of iconic works like Howl.
VI. New York School: This chapter discusses the collaboration between poets and painters in New York, highlighting how the movement blended abstract expressionist aesthetics with literary spontaneity.
VII. Comparison and Conclusion: This final chapter synthesizes the findings, noting that all discussed movements shared a common disaffirmation of materialistic consumerism and utilized irony and satire as central techniques.
Keywords
Postmodern avant-garde, American poetry, Black Mountain school, San Francisco Renaissance, Beat generation, New York School, Charles Olsen, Projective Verse, Kenneth Rexroth, Allen Ginsberg, Frank O’Hara, Abstract Expressionism, Counterculture, Spontaneity, Poetic movements.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core subject of this paper?
The paper provides an introduction to the diverse poetic movements that constituted the postmodern avant-garde in the United States during the 1950s and 1960s.
Which primary movements are analyzed?
The study focuses on the Black Mountain school, the San Francisco Renaissance, the Beat generation, and the New York School.
What is the main objective of the author?
The author intends to show the development of these movements, highlight the most important poets, and identify shared characteristics and inter-movement links.
What methodology does the author employ?
The paper uses a descriptive and comparative approach, analyzing the history, creative philosophies, and representative poems of each movement.
What content is covered in the main body?
The main body systematically reviews each movement’s origins, key figures, representative poetic examples, and provides a short analysis of those specific works.
Which keywords characterize this work?
The work is defined by terms like postmodernism, avant-garde, counterculture, experimental poetry, and the specific names of the movements mentioned.
How did abstract expressionism affect the New York School?
The New York School poets had strong social and professional relationships with painters, which led to a collaborative atmosphere where poetic style was influenced by the spontaneity and abstraction found in painting.
Why is the poem "A Supermarket in California" significant for the Beat generation?
It illustrates Allen Ginsberg's homage to Walt Whitman, bridging the gap between traditional American poetry and the new, counter-cultural sensibilities of the Beat generation.
What role did Black Mountain College play?
It served as a central hub for an educational experiment that emphasized creative arts and became a mecca for the intellectual avant-garde under the rectorship of Charles Olsen.
- Quote paper
- Stefan Langenbach (Author), 2006, Postmodern avant-garde - A comparison of the different movements, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/88592
