Movements associated with Kafka’s stories:
1.Existentialism: ​Late 19th-century and 20th-century
philosophical movement that focuses on creating
the true self and the meaning of life through free
will, choice, and responsibility. Existentialism
gained popularity after World War I and World War
II.
Existentialist Concepts:
● Existence before essence
● Thrownness- You are thrown into an alien world
● Human free will and choice
● Individual alienation or estrangement
● Authenticity
● Freedom from society’s unnatural traditions and
rules
● Responsibility for one’s own actions
● Internal locus of control
● Identity not given but created through choice
● Futility of the world and of worldly desires
● Irrationality of the world
● Absurdity of human life/​Absurdism ​(the idea that
human needs are not met by the silent, indifferent
world; the world is irrational, chaotic, and
meaningless)
● Death/Nothingness
as final destination
to be
reached alone
● Temporality
● Angst/Anxiety/Dread
Major Existentialist Philosophers:
● Soren Kierkegaard (Absurdist)
●
●
●
●
●
●
Albert Camus (Absurdist)
Friedrich Nietzsche
Jean-Paul Sartre (Absurdist)
Martin Heidegger
Simone de Beauvoir
Franz Kafka (Absurdist)
*​The Metamorphosis is considered
story with absurdist elements.
an
existentialist
2. Freudianism: Philosophical,
psychological,
and
literary theory movement based on the theories and
practices of father of Psychoanalysis Sigmund Freud
(1856-1939).
Freudian Concepts:
● The unconscious mind influences every human action
● Dreams and nightmares are symbolic expressions of
the unconscious mind and should be interpreted
● Early experiences (first 5 years of life) are the
most influential
● Repressed complex early parental relationships
shape mental development
● Oedipus Complex
● Electra Complex
● Psychosexual Stages of Development: Oral; Anal;
Phallic; Latent; and Genital.
Major Neo-Freudian Psychologists (followers of Freud):
● Carl Jung
● Anna Rank
*Critics have widely used Freudian Psychoanalytic
Theory
to
interpret
​The
Metamorphosis
and
to
psychoanalyze its author, Kafka.
3. Expressionism: ​Artistic and literary movement that
focuses on the expression of inner reality, which is
subjective. (Key years: 1905-1025)
Expressionist Concepts:
● Subjective
reality
is
more
important
than
objective reality
● Emotions and feelings are reality
● Individual response matters more than situation
● Distortion
● Exaggeration
● Fantasy
● Spontaneity
● Intensity
● Symbolism
● Creativity over realism
Major Expressionist Painters:
● Vincent Van Gogh (my # 1 favorite)
● Egon Schiele
● Marc Chagall
● Edward Munch
4. Surrealism: ​Artistic and literary movement that
focuses on the expression of a “super reality” and of
the imagination, especially as revealed in dreams.
(Key years: 1920-1930).
Surrealist Concepts:
● Surrealism=above reality
● Imagination
● Dreams and nightmares
● Expression of the unconscious mind
● Juxtaposition
of
seemingly
contrasting
or
unrelated items unlikely to appear together in
reality
● Incongruity
● Influenced by Freud’s model of the unconscious
mind
Major Surrealist Painters:
● Salvador Dali (my other favorite)
● Max Ernst
● Joan Miro
● MC Escher
Homework-Classwork on Movements:
In
order
to
further
understand
the
movements
introduced in class, select one artistic movement and
one philosophical movement to explore. Find more
information about the movements if necessary.
1)Project an image of an expressionist or surrealist
painting. Provide painting’s title and year and
painter’s name. Turn in your written analysis of
the painting, pointing out its expressionist or
surrealist
elements
and
providing
your
own
interpretation.
2)Project an existentialist or Freudian quote or
short passage. Turn in your written analysis of
the passage. Provide your personal views.
Present
class.
both
the
painting
Due Date: to be announced!
and
the
passage
to
the