@prefix vivo: . @prefix edm: . @prefix ns0: . @prefix dcterms: . @prefix skos: . vivo:departmentOrSchool "Arts, Faculty of"@en, "Theatre and Film, Department of"@en ; edm:dataProvider "DSpace"@en ; ns0:degreeCampus "UBCV"@en ; dcterms:creator "Insell, Maria Katherine"@en ; dcterms:issued "2010-08-31T21:16:32Z"@en, "1988"@en ; vivo:relatedDegree "Master of Arts - MA"@en ; ns0:degreeGrantor "University of British Columbia"@en ; dcterms:description "This analysis of the narrative/anti-narrative debate in avant-garde film theory and praxis is contextualized in terms of the developments in Modernism in the visual and plastic arts. The problems raised by the aesthetic strategies formal autonomy versus narrative appropriation are explored by examining several discrete historical paradigms rather than following a strict linear historical chronology of the development of Modernism and avant-garde practices. Therefore the late 1930's East/West debates between the four writers associated with the Frankfurt school were discussed because their discourses reveal a spectrum of possibilities which span each end of this polarized autonomy/efficacy argument. The discourses look at the issues of production aesthetics and reception aesthetics also. Within the parameters of East/West debates, the positioning of the subject in terms of \"distracted habit\" or \"praxis\" are critical considerations to a reception aesthetic. Another historical paradigm for this debate was the writing and film practice which emerged from the nexus of the events of May 1968. The East/West debates informed this writing and the development of the aesthetic questions raised by Peter Wollen in the \"Two Avant-Gardes.\" Here the important issues of materialism, ontology, and the development of human perception are raised. The return to narrative is represented by the \"second\" avant-garde's film practice (Godard, Straub etc.) and informs the issues of new narrative in feminist film practices. This is narrative with a difference however. Here questions of language and the production of culture are critically examined and naturally the narrative/anti-narrative debate continues. Finally, these issues are brought foreword to the contemporary context and related specifically to the production of avant-garde film in Canada. One can see this contemporary debate in light of the past, however, the conclusions drawn by the thesis do not presume to resolve the narrative/anti-narrative debate or prescribe one particular approach, since this will arise from actual practice. The intention of the study is to introduce the central issues raised by social commitment/artistic autonomy and contribute to a better understanding of theoretical and practical implications of the debate over the use of narrative."@en ; edm:aggregatedCHO "https://circle.library.ubc.ca/rest/handle/2429/28074?expand=metadata"@en ; skos:note "A V A N T - G A R D E F I L M T H E O R Y A N D P R A X I S A N H I S T O R I C A L A N A L Y S I S O F T H E N A R R A T I V E / A N T I - N A R R A T I V E D E B A T E b y M A R I A K A T H E R I N E I N S E L L B . A . S i m o n F r a s e r U n i v e r s i t y 1 9 8 1 T H E S I S S U B M I T T E D I N P A R T I A L F U L F I L L M E N T T H E R E Q U I R E M E N T S F O R T H E D E G R E E O F M A S T E R O F A R T S i n T H E F A C U L T Y O F G R A D U A T E S T U D I E S T H E A T R E D E P A R T M E N T , F I L M P R O G R A M M E W e a c c e p t t h i s t h e s i s a s c o n f o r m i n g t o t h e r e q u i r e d s t a n d a r d T H E U N I V E R S I T Y O F B R I T I S H C O L U M B I A • - A t j H 1 '• 1 9 8 8 - - ' ® M a r i a K a t h e r i n e I n s e l l , 1 9 8 8 / In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the head of my department or by his or her representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. / Department of The University of British Columbia Vancouver, Canada DE-6 (2/88) i i ABSTRACT T h i s a n a l y s i s o f the n a r r a t i v e / a n t i - n a r r a t i v e debate i n av a n t -garde f i l m t h e o r y and p r a x i s i s c o n t e x t u a l i z e d i n terms of the developments i n Modernism i n the v i s u a l and p l a s t i c a r t s . The problems r a i s e d by the a e s t h e t i c s t r a t e g i e s formal autonomy versus n a r r a t i v e a p p r o p r i a t i o n are explored by examining s e v e r a l d i s c r e t e h i s t o r i c a l p a r a d i g m s r a t h e r t h a n f o l l o w i n g a s t r i c t l i n e a r h i s t o r i c a l c h r o n o l o g y of the development of Modernism and avant-g a r d e p r a c t i c e s . T h e r e f o r e the l a t e 1930's East/West d e b a t e s between the four w r i t e r s a s s o c i a t e d with the F r a n k f u r t s c h o o l were d i s c u s s e d b e c a u s e t h e i r d i s c o u r s e s r e v e a l a s p e c t r u m o f p o s s i b i l i t i e s w h i c h s p a n e a c h e n d o f t h i s p o l a r i z e d autonomy/efficacy argument. The d i s c o u r s e s look at the i s s u e s of p r o d u c t i o n a e s t h e t i c s and r e c e p t i o n a e s t h e t i c s a l s o . W i t h i n the parameters of East/West debates, the p o s i t i o n i n g of the s u b j e c t i n terms of \" d i s t r a c t e d h a b i t \" or \" p r a x i s \" are c r i t i c a l c o n s i d e r a t i o n s t o a r e c e p t i o n a e s t h e t i c . Another h i s t o r i c a l paradigm f o r t h i s debate was the w r i t i n g and f i l m p r a c t i c e which emerged from the nexus of the events of May 1968. The East/West debates informed t h i s w r i t i n g and the development of the a e s t h e t i c q u e s t i o n s r a i s e d by P e t e r W o l l e n i n the \"Two Avant-Gardes.\" Here the important i s s u e s o f m a t e r i a l i s m , o n t o l o g y , and the development o f human p e r c e p t i o n are r a i s e d . The r e t u r n to n a r r a t i v e i s rep r e s e n t e d by the \"second\" avant-garde's f i l m p r a c t i c e (Godard, Straub e t c . ) and in f o r m s the i s s u e s of new n a r r a t i v e i n f e m i n i s t f i l m p r a c t i c e s . T h i s i s n a r r a t i v e with a d i f f e r e n c e however. Here q u e s t i o n s of language and the p r o d u c t i o n of c u l t u r e are c r i t i c a l l y examined and n a t u r a l l y the n a r r a t i v e / a n t i - n a r r a t i v e debate c o n t i n u e s . F i n a l l y , these i s s u e s are brought foreword to the contemporary context and r e l a t e d s p e c i f i c a l l y t o the p r o d u c t i o n of a v a n t - g a r d e f i l m i n Canada. One can see t h i s contemporary debate i n l i g h t of the p a s t , however, the c o n c l u s i o n s drawn by the t h e s i s do not presume t o r e s o l v e t h e n a r r a t i v e / a n t i - n a r r a t i v e d e b a t e or p r e s c r i b e one p a r t i c u l a r approach, s i n c e t h i s w i l l a r i s e from a c t u a l p r a c t i c e . The i n t e n t i o n o f the s t u d y i s t o i n t r o d u c e the c e n t r a l i s s u e s r a i s e d by s o c i a l commitment/artistic autonomy and c o n t r i b u t e to a b e t t e r u n d e r s t a n d i n g of t h e o r e t i c a l and p r a c t i c a l i m p l i c a t i o n s of the debate over the use of n a r r a t i v e . CONTENTS i i i C h a p t er I . INTRODUCTION 1 The N a r r a t i v e / A n t i - N a r r a t i v e Problem 3 An Approach t o t h e Problem 4 The Problem L o c a t e d - Avant-Garde and Modernism 5 Community and Sources f o r the Study 8 Notes 17 I I . AVANT-GARDE FILM: THE MODERNIST CONTEXT 20 Modernism: The H i s t o r i c a l C o n t e x t 20 The Avant-Garde and Modernism 29 The Avant-Garde: E l i t e , Mass, or P o p u l a r C u l t u r e 36 P o p u l a r C u l t u r e 36 Mass C u l t u r e 39 On t h e Problem of Autonomy v e r s u s E f f i c a c y 42 Autonomy; P r e - H i s t o r y 43 Autonomy A e s t h e t i c : A P h i l o s o p h i c a l Concept 44 A r t Engage v e r s u s Autonomy; H i s t o r i c a l Paradigms 49 Notes 52 I I I . ART ENGAGE VERSUS AUTONOMY: HISTORICAL PARADIGM 57 Lukacs 60 Lukacs's C l a s s i c i s m v e r s u s B r e c h t ' s A n t i - A r i s t o t e l i a n View. 63 B r e c h t 65 Ben j amin • • • • 71 Adorno 73 Notes 80 IV. CONTEMPORARY DEBATE: CONCLUSION 86 May 1968 - The Two Avant-Gardes - Canada 86 May 1968 88 M a t e r i a l i s m 90 P o l i t i c s / O n t o l o g y - The Two Avant-Gardes 92 Human P e r c e p t i o n 96 New- N a r r a t i v e Avant-Garde: Feminism i n Canada and the U.S.A 101 Notes 114 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 118 I would l i k e to thank my a d v i s o r s Dr. J . Newton, Dr. J . Yamaguchi, and Dr J . Reynertson f o r t h e i r p a t i e n t support and a s s i s t a n c e i n the completion of t h i s manuscript. I would a l s o l i k e to thank Tom I n s e l l , Meg Thornton, and my mother f o r t h e i r constant support and encouragement at each stage of p r o d u c t i o n . Vancouver 1987 Maria Katherine I n s e l l 1 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION In e v e r y e r a t h e attempt must be made t o w r e s t t r a d i t i o n away from a conformism t h a t i s about t o overpower i t . W a l t e r Benjamin The n a r r a t i v e / a n t i - n a r r a t i v e debate emerging from the c r i t i c a l h i s t o r y of a v a n t - g a r d e f i l m t h e o r y and p r a x i s r a i s e s a number of t h e o r e t i c a l q u e s t i o n s about the p o s i t i o n i n g of the s u b j e c t t h a t r e q u i r e c a r e f u l c o n s i d e r a t i o n . The a e s t h e t i c s t r a t e g i e s of f o r m a l autonomy v e r s u s n a r r a t i v e a p p r o p r i a t i o n w i l l be c o n s i d e r e d i n l i g h t of the h i s t o r i c a l e v o l u t i o n of a v ant-garde a e s t h e t i c s , t h e changes i n c u l t u r a l p o l i t i c s and the v a r i o u s l e v e l s of p r o d u c t i o n . For example i f a f i l m m a k e r adopts an a p p r o p r i a t i o n a l s t r a t e g y , then the i n s t i t u t i o n s of d i s t r i b u t i o n / e x h i b i t i o n and the a u d i e n c e ' s r e c e p t i o n / a p p r o p r i a t i o n of t h e f i l m i c t e x t s h o u l d be c o n s i d e r e d c a r e f u l l y . Audience s u b j e c t p o s i t i o n i n g i s p a r t i c u l a r l y i m p o r t a n t and the r e s p e c t i v e p o s i t i o n s of s e l f - r e f l e x i v i t y v e r s u s d i s t r a c t e d h a b i t pose d i f f e r e n t i d e o l o g i c a l c h o i c e s . The f o c u s of t h i s h i s t o r i c a l a n a l y s i s , however, i s not t o argue f o r or a g a i n s t the r e t u r n to n a r r a t i v e but to focus r a t h e r on the h i s t o r i c a l and i d e o l o g i c a l aspects of t h i s debate. The i n t e n t i o n of t h i s study i s to i n t r o d u c e the c e n t r a l i s s u e s r a i s e d , those focused on s o c i a l commitment and a r t i s t i c autonomy, to c o n t r i b u t e t o a b e t t e r understanding of the t h e o r e t i c a l and p r a c t i c a l i m p l i c a t i o n s of the debate over the use of n a r r a t i v e i n avant-garde cinema. T h i s study w i l l examine, i n c r i t i c a l and h i s t o r i c a l terms, the problems r a i s e d by both the n a r r a t i v e and a n t i - n a r r a t i v e approaches, the advantages/disadvantages of each approach, and w i l l show t h a t e i t h e r i s p o t e n t i a l l y p r o g r e s s i v e or r e g r e s s i v e i n r e p r e s e n t a t i o n a l terms. Therefore n e i t h e r approach can be valued more than the o t h e r . The development of new n a r r a t i v e avant-garde f i l m i s i n t e r e s t i n g because the predominant a e s t h e t i c approaches of the past, those of r a d i c a l formal d i f f e r e n c e and autonomy, are being re-examined. New n a r r a t i v e r e p r e s e n t s a c r i t i q u e of the t r a d i t i o n a l o p p o s i t i o n s : c o n v e n t i o n a l versus o r i g i n a l , n a r r a t i v e versus a n t i - n a r r a t i v e , r e p r e s e n t a t i o n a l versus n o n - r e p r e s e n t a t i o n a l , and the use of language versus i t s e x c l u s i o n . T h i s approach c r i t i q u e s the s e p a r a t i o n between the h i g h , or e l i t e , a r t sphere from the popular c u l t u r a l sphere. I t r e p r e s e n t s an a e s t h e t i c p o p u l i s t p o s i t i o n w i t h i n the avant-garde sphere of c u l t u r a l p r o d u c t i o n . 3 While these o p p o s i t i o n s pose fundamental problems f o r a r t i s t s i n a \"post-modern\" 1 context, i t i s s t i l l important to c o n s i d e r the r e - a p p r o p r i a t i o n of n a r r a t i v e i n terms of a e s t h e t i c l o s s e s . Does the r e t u r n to n a r r a t i v e imply l o s s e s to the development of a p o e t i c idiom of c i n e m a t i c expression? The idiom of democratic p r i v i l e g e Maya Deren a s s e r t e d no man had the r i g h t t o deny because: I b e l i e v e t h a t , i n every man, there i s an area v h i c h speaks and hears i n the p o e t i c idiom. . .something i n him which can s t i l l s i n g i n the d e s e r t when the t h r o a t i s almost too dry f o r speaking. With t h i s thought i n mind one must ask, what w i l l become of the g r e a t developments i n the c r i t i q u e of r e p r e s e n t a t i o n and human p e r c e p t i o n i t s e l f ? What are the p o l i t i c a l consequences of p o s i t i o n i n g the s u b j e c t i n terms of an i d e n t i f i c a t i o n w i t h n a r r a t i v e enigma, c h a r a c t e r f a t e , or d e s t i n y , r a t h e r than engaging i n an o b j e c t i v e examination of the c i n e m a t i c apparatus and s p e c t a c l e i t s e l f ? These are p r e s s i n g q u e s t i o n s which Canadian and f o r e i g n filmmakers must c o n s i d e r i n t h e i r debates on avant-garde f i l m a s t h e t i c s and p r a x i s . The debate over the use of n a r r a t i v e emerges from the h i s t o r i c a l dimensions of the avant-garde, and t h e r e f o r e one must begin by s i t u a t i n g avant-garde f i l m theory and p r a c t i c e w i t h i n a h i s t o r i c a l c o n t e x t . T h i s w i l l l o c a t e a r e a d i n g of these c u l t u r a l products i n the context of the a e s t h e t i c t r a d i t i o n s which informed the l o g i c of t h e i r p r o d u c t i o n and the s p e c i f i c codes of t h e i r f o r m a t i o n . I t i s u s e f u l here to o u t l i n e the methodological c o n s i d e r a t i o n s f o r t h i s s e t t i n g w i t h i n a h i s t o r i c a l context. An attempt w i l l be made to avoid the p i t f a l l s of P o s i t i v i s t h i s t o r i o g r a p h y , which i s the t r a d i t i o n a l view of h i s t o r y . The t r a d i t i o n a l view, F o u c a u l t says, p o s t u l a t e s a l i n e a r p r o g r e s s i o n implying a c a u s a l f o r c e , between \"great men, great c i v i l i z a t i o n s , or g r e a t events or, a l t e r n a t i v e l y , assume a 3 meaningful c o n t i n u i t y founded i n a t r a n s c e n d e n t a l Logos.\" T h i s c r i t i q u e of h i s t o r y , d e r i v e d from Foucault and o t h e r s , r e f u t e s the n o t i o n t h a t meaningful h i s t o r i c a l events o r i g i n a t e d i r e c t l y i n r e l a t i o n to the t r a n s c e n d e n t a l s u b j e c t . Rather than c a u s a l i t y and c o n t i n u i t y , Foucault proposes the n o t i o n of d i s c o n t i n u i t y and t r a n s f o r m a t i o n . H i s t o r y i s not a \"question of progress, but rearrangements i n the r e l a t i o n s among the m u l t i p l e f o r c e s — m a t e r i a l , economic, s o c i a l — t h a t 4 comprise a s o c i a l f o r m a t i o n . \" F o u c a u l t ' s c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n of h i s t o r i c a l change e x e m p l i f i e s how the n o t i o n of the avant-garde, as an h i s t o r i c a l e n t i t y , has been s u b j e c t e d to t h i s t r a n s f o r m a t i o n a l p r o c e s s . The t r a d i t i o n a l n o t i o n of the avant-garde, as i t was h y p o s t a t i z e d i n the burgeoning p o l i t i c a l m i l i e u of French romanticism, f o r example, changed s i g n i f i c a n t l y with i t s l a t e r use i n the romantic and 5 s y m b o l i s t p e r i o d of l ' a r t pour l ' a r t . T h e r e f o r e , we w i l l pursue the a e s t h e t i c d i s c o u r s e which informs the i s s u e s r a i s e d i n the present through an examination of s e v e r a l d i s c r e t e h i s t o r i c a l paradigms as examples from the p a s t . The contemporary debate i s fundamentally rooted i n the h i s t o r i c a l emergence of modernism and the c r i s i s i n modernist a e s t h e t i c s , s i n c e v i r t u a l l y a l l d e f i n i t i o n s of avant-garde f i l m are i m p l i c a t e d i n the development of modernism i n the v i s u a l and p l a s t i c a r t s i n g e n e r a l . So i t i s v a l u a b l e to c o n s i d e r the c o n t e x t of European c u l t u r a l and p o l i t i c a l l i f e where l i t e r a r y and a r t i s t i c modernism f i r s t developed. A c u l t u r a l context w i l l emerge by s e t t i n g t h i s debate a g a i n s t the backdrop of profound change i n E i g h t e e n t h - and Nineteenth-Century l i b e r a l thought. T h i s context informs the d i v e r s e movements of modernism, the s t r a t e g i c e v o l u t i o n of the v a r i o u s avant-gardes, and the reasons f o r the c r i s i s i n modernist a e s t h e t i c s , of which the new-narrative (and the post-modernist) a e s t h e t i c i s a r e s u l t . The a e s t h e t i c d i s c o u r s e on the r e l a t i o n s h i p between avant-garde f i l m and n a r r a t i v e i s informed by the h i s t o r i c a l debate between l ' a r t pour l ' a r t and l ' a r t engage.^ Questions of a e s t h e t i c autonomy versus s o c i a l commitment are s t i l l important i s s u e s to contemporary avant-garde filmmakers, while they are compounded by the a d d i t i o n a l problems t h a t a r t i s t s who d e a l with mass c u l t u r e must s p e c i f i c a l l y address. Understanding t h i s h i s t o r i c a l c o n t e x t , and a n a l y z i n g how the i n s t i t u t i o n s which mediate the p r o d u c t i o n , d i s t r i b u t i o n , and e x h i b i t i o n of a work a f f e c t i t s r e c e p t i o n and meaning, i s e s s e n t i a l . In chapter I I , the f i r s t task w i l l be t o i n t r o d u c e the reader to the genesis of the term \"avant-garde\" 7 and to s i t u a t e avant-garde f i l m i n the mainstreams of modernism i n 6 the v i s u a l and p l a s t i c a r t s i n g e n e r a l . However, one cannot assume, as some c r i t i c s have, t h a t the two terms \"avant-garde\"^ and \"modernism,\"^ are synonymous. The two t r a d i t i o n s are m u t u a l l y dependant because of t h e i r shared f e a t u r e s , yet they are e s s e n t i a l l y d i f f e r e n t . Furthermore, r a t h e r than f o l l o w i n g a s t r i c t l i n e a r h i s t o r i c a l chronology of the avant-garde, one w i l l probe the key h i s t o r i c a l i s s u e s r a i s e d by the r e l a t i o n s h i p between a r t and l i f e . The chapter examines how the v a r i o u s a e s t h e t i c i d e o l o g i e s of the avant-garde have posed the i s s u e s of a e s t h e t i c autonomy and a e s t h e t i c e f f i c a c y . A f t e r the context which has formed and mediated the present c o n t r o v e r s y i s i s o l a t e d , i t w i l l be u s e f u l i n chapter II to examine the c r i s i s of the avant-garde and modernism i n g e n e r a l . We can analyze why avant-garde a r t i s t s have not adequately t h e o r i z e d t h e i r p o s i t i o n w i t h i n mass c u l t u r e today. The argument cannot be o v e r s t r e s s e d t h a t the importance of theory i s fundamental t o the p r a c t i c e of avant-garde filmmaking, and knowledge of the laws of p r o d u c t i o n i n our present context i s i m p e r a t i v e . Peter Wollen has r i g h t l y s t a t e d t h a t : To t h i n k about the f u t u r e of the avant-garde means t h i n k i n g about i t s p a s t , not as a n t i q u a r i a n i s m or as archaeology, but to understand the mechanisms i n which we are s t i l l caught. T h e r e f o r e , chapter I I w i l l a l s o examine how the legacy 7 of modernism, the s t r e s s on formal i n n o v a t i o n as the p r i n c i p a l means to t r a n s f o r m h a b i t u a t e d p e r c e p t i o n s and c o n s c i o u s n e s s , rendered modernist a r t ( i n the a e s t h e t i c p o p u l i s t view) i n e f f e c t u a l . T h i s problem stems i n p a r t from the m a r g i n a l i z a t i o n of the avant-garde i n the e l i t e c u l t u r a l sphere because of the degree of l i t e r a c y r e q u i r e d to a p p r e c i a t e the e s o t e r i c and formal s i g n i f i c a t i o n of the a r t . T h i s r e q u i s i t e l i t e r a c y i n e f f e c t a l i e n a t e s the avant-garde from the v e r y people the work should reach. Some a r t i s t s argue, however, that through a f i l t e r i n g down p r o c e s s , the new ideas generated i n the h i g h a r t sphere, move v i a c o n c e n t r i c c i r c l e s of i n f l u e n c e , to the other c u l t u r a l arenas. T h e r e f o r e these works e x e r t an i n d i r e c t i n f l u e n c e on those audiences. Rock v i d e o i s both a good and bad example of how the experimental and a r t i s a n a l f i l m a e s t h e t i c i s r e a c h i n g a broader audience. Of course, one must r e c o g n i z e the problems inherent i n t h i s process of a p p r o p r i a t i o n . One must see t h a t the new i d e a s of the avant-garde do indeed f i l t e r down, but i n the p r o c e s s these ideas are a s s i m i l a t e d i n t o the mainstream c u l t u r e without t h e i r t r a n s f o r m a t i v e e f f e c t s . The new i d e a s and techniques become p a r t of mass c u l t u r e , w h ile the a r t i s t has no say i n how, or i n what c o n t e x t , they are 8 received. The central question which has emerged from t h i s s i t u a t i o n ~i\"S: tan the avant-garde s t i l l play a s i g n i f i c a n t and meaningful role in combating the elements of hegemony in form and thought to produce a r i c h e r , more heterogeneous p o l i t i c a l and c u l t u r a l r e a l i t y ? Chapter III w i l l refer to an h i s t o r i c a l paradigm for the present debate—the late.1330*s East/West debates. The four writers who were associates of the Frankfurt S c h o o l — Georg Lukacs and Bertolt Brecht (the eastern debate) and Walter Benjamin and Theodor W. Adprno (the western debate)—represent an aesthetic discourse and a body of c r i t i c a l thought about the autonomy versus e f f i c a c y issues. These discourses reveal a spectrum of p o s s i b i l i t i e s which span each end of th i s polarized autonomy/efficacy argument. Thus each of t h e i r respective positions have provided a set of alternate vantage points and penetrating insights, which may also provide the means to transcend the binarism of an avant-gardiste opposition to narrative per se. However, the opposition does not necessarily r e f l e c t actual avant-garde h i s t o r i c a l practice i n r e l a t i o n to narrative but rather the cl e a r position within the avant-garde to oppose the i l l u s i o n i s m and mimeticism of the dominant or c l a s s i c a l narrative form. P h i l l i p Drummond notes also that t h i s binarism was useful since i t provided the d i s t i n c t i o n s which indicated past p o l i t i c a l / a e s t h e t i c strategies. 9 The debates examined the r e l a t i o n s h i p between h i g h a r t , p o p u l a r c u l t u r e , and mass c u l t u r e . Consequently they have d i s t i l l e d the terms and problems which a r i s e from the m a r g i n a l i z a t i o n or i n t e r p e n e t r a t i o n of these c u l t u r a l spheres. In a d d i t i o n t o the exchanges i n the debates proper, we w i l l r e f e r t o the s p e c i f i c essays by these t h e o r i s t s which are p e r t i n e n t t o the d i s c u s s i o n of autonomy and e f f i c a c y . Walter Benjamin, f o r example, has developed h i s c r i t i c a l i n s i g h t s on p o s t - a u r a l a r t (Benjamin's use of the term \"aura\" r e f e r s t o the r i t u a l i s t i c - m a g i c a l use of a r t and the Renaissance c u l t of beauty) i n h i s seminal essay, The Work of A r t In The Age of Mechanical Reproduction, and he addresses the i s s u e of autonomy i n The Author as Producer. Adorno's essay, On Commitment, c r i t i q u e s the t e n d e n t i o u s aspects of a r t engage*. His views on autonomous a r t are c o m p e l l i n g because he a s s e r t s t h a t theory cannot be compromised to economic, h i s t o r i c a l , and i d e o l o g i c a l e x i g e n c i e s , otherwise t r u t h and knowledge (here read a e s t h e t i c knowledge) would u l t i m a t e l y be compromised. The ideas i n Georg Lukacs's book, H i s t o r y and C l a s s Consciousness, inform h i s a e s t h e t i c r e a l i s t views, which were then f u l l y developed i n The Meaning of Contemporary Realism. Brecht's a e s t h e t i c views on the \"popular\" 1^and \" r e a l i s t i c \" ^ a s p e c t s of E p i c Theatre are important to our p r e s e n t d i s c o u r s e because of the combined p o p u l i s t and s e l f - r e f l e x i v e approach. The i m p l i c a t i o n s of an a p p r o p r i a t i o n a l versus o p p o s i t i o n a l a e s t h e t i c s t r a t e g y are d e a l t w i t h i n t h i s body of t h e o r e t i c a l work. Each of these w r i t e r s ' views on the a e s t h e t i c l o s s e s or gains d e r i v e d by these t a c t i c a l c h o i c e s r a i s e s important q u e s t i o n s regarding the p o s i t i o n i n g of the s u b j e c t . W i thin the terms of the East/West debates, the n o t i o n s of \" d i s t r a c t e d h a b i t \" 1 3 ( i n t e r p r e t a t i o n v i s - a - v i s a l i e a t o r y technique and apperceptual h a b i t ) and \" p r a x i s \" 1 4 ( i n t e r p r e t a t i o n informed by theory) have s i g n i f i c a n t a e s t h e t i c i m p l i c a t i o n s and d e f i n e the s u b j e c t d i f f e r e n t l y . Having r a i s e d the i s s u e s of a e s t h e t i c s and the r o l e of the s u b j e c t , chapter IV w i l l continue to develop t h i s d i s c u s s i o n by r e f e r r i n g to another h i s t o r i c a l paradigm f o r t h i s contemporary debate: the w r i t i n g and f i l m p r a c t i c e which emerged from the nexus of the events of May 1968 i n France and the developments i n S t r u c t u r a l i s t - M a t e r i a l i s t f i l m , which Peter Wollen termed \"the Co-op movement.\"!5 We w i l l then focus on the d i f f e r i n g a e s t h e t i c i m p l i c a t i o n s of a m a t e r i a l i s t a e s t h e t i c as i t was understood by the \"two a v a n t - g a r d e s u l ^ a n d to the more complex t h e o r e t i c a l apparatus of S e m i o t i c s and S t r u c t u r a l i s m (re the p h i l o s o p h i c a l sense), which informed much of the w r i t i n g at the time. T h i s w i l l broaden the terms of the a e s t h e t i c i s s u e s r a i s e d by Brecht and continued through h i s i n f l u e n c e on Godard and the D z i g a - V e r t o v Group. Peter Wollen says Vertov was the l i n c h p i n t h a t connected the m a t e r i a l i s t a e s t h e t i c of the two avant-gardes d e s p i t e t h e i r d i f f e r i n g conceptions of the meaning of a m a t e r i a l i s t a e s t h e t i c . T h i s a e s t h e t i c concern 11 f o r the m a t e r i a l s of p r o d u c t i o n vas a l s o d e r i v e d from the modernist break from Renaissance a e s t h e t i c s . The h i s t o r i c a l t h r u s t of avant-garde f i l m p r a c t i c e has been to d e f i n e what i s e s s e n t i a l l y cine~matic. T h e r e f o r e , the n a r r a t i v e / a n t i - n a r r a t i v e debate r a i s e s the important a e s t h e t i c i s s u e s which c e n t e r on the r e l a t i o n s h i p between the \"image, , 1'7(re-presentational codes) and the \" t e x t \"1^ ( l i n g u i s t i c c o d e s ) . The r e l a t i o n s h i p between images, words and the th i n g s they perhaps represent i s a s a l i e n t i s s u e i n the h i s t o r i c a l development of the c i n e m a t i c avant-gardes. Much t h e o r e t i c a l d i s c o u r s e has a l s o focused on questions r e g a r d i n g the cinSma's b a s i c nature o r , as Andre Bazin puts i t , \"Qu'est-ce que c'est l e Cinema?\"1 9 When the f i r s t c i n e m a t i c avant-garde (the I m p r e s s i o n i s t movement of 1917, with filmmakers such as Germaine Dula c , L o u i s D e l l a c , Jean E p s t e i n and others) posed the q u e s t i o n : What i s the e s s e n t i a l q u a l i t y of t h i s medium? the answers they gave were based on the movement of the image (the photogene) and the time-based essence which the cinema shares with music ( s y n a e s t h e s i a ) . When Bazin addressed t h i s q u e s t i o n , h i s n o t i o n of a c i n e m a t i c essence was based on the o n t o l o g i c a l nature of the photographic document—the p r o - f i l m i c event th a t the camera m e c h a n i c a l l y r e c o r d e d . However, when a s t r u c t u r a l i s t - m a t e r i a l i s t filmmaker l i k e Peter G i d a l answered t h i s q u e s t i o n he s a i d : 12 The s t r u c t u r a l / m a t e r i a l i s t f i l m must minimize content in i t s overpowering, i m a g i s t i c a l l y seductive sense, in an attempt to get through t h i s miasmic area of 'experience' and proceed with f i l m as f i l m . 2 0 This statement r e f l e c t s how the subject i s positioned in a s e l f - r e f l e x i v e and c r i t i c a l mode. Rather than seeing the cinema as only a form of entertainment, s t r u c t u r a l i s t -m a t e r i a l i s t filmmakers focus on the material aspect of cinema which teaches us how the cinematic apparatus conditions human perception. This subject positioning c r i t i q u e s the id e o l o g i c a l positioning of the subject in the c l a s s i c a l i l l u s i o n i s t narrative form. But i t i s precisely t h i s ontological tautology that avant-garde c r i t i c s i s o l a t e as the l i m i t a t i o n of the f i l m as f i l m approach. The focus on f i l m as f i l m mirrors the modernist h i s t o r i c a l cul-de-sac of l ' a r t pour l ' a r t , p r e c i p i t a t i n g a return to narrative forms in some avant-garde pr a c t i c e s . Yet feminist avant-garde filmmakers are not un i f i e d in th e i r r e l a t i o n s h i p to narrative because some argue that women should develop t h e i r own forms of cine'matic expression, since the exis t i n g narrative forms necessarily draw on a pa t r i a r c h a l discourse through the use of language. This view of women's re l a t i o n s h i p to language i s drawn from women's s o c i a l experiences and Lacan psychoanalytic theory of language. He proposed that language i s a \"symbolic,\" 2 1 order which derives i t s significance and structure through the \"law\" 2 2 of the father. 13 However, f e m i n i s t s who use new n a r r a t i v e forms argue t h a t women have been m a r g i n a l i z e d - e x c l u d e d from c u l t u r a l d i s c o u r s e s l ong enough. The image of women i s used as the ground f o r r e p r e s e n t a t i o n and male s u b j e c t i v i t y , y e t women are denied a v o i c e t o express t h e i r p a r t i c u l a r s u b j e c t i v e p e r s p e c t i v e s . For example, Laura Mulvey's essay, V i s u a l P l e a s u r e In N a r r a t i v e Cine*ma, analyzes the s t r u c t u r e of the male gaze through \"primary\"23(camera) and \"secondary \"24 ( c h a r a c t e r ) i d e n t i f i c a t i o n i n c l a s s i c a l n a r r a t i v e cinema. Mulvey uses n a r r a t i v e i n her own f i l m s t o fo r g e a p l a c e f o r the feminine s u b j e c t , and many women use n a r r a t i v e forms to foreground the female v o i c e r a t h e r than the image. When the image i s used, i t i s used i n a s e l f - r e f l e c t i v e and c r i t i c a l manner. The t e x t u a l i s s u e s r a i s e d by n a r r a t i v e are an important p a r t of f e m i n i s t f i l m theory and are l i n k e d to the w r i t e r s a s s o c i a t e d w i t h the j o u r n a l s Screen and T e l Quel. The t h e o r e t i c a l i n s i g h t s developed by these p u b l i c a t i o n s were grounded i n p r e v i o u s developments i n s t r u c t u r a l l i n g u i s t i c s , Neo-Freudian p s y c h o a n a l y t i c t h e o r y , s t r u c t u r a l anthropology, Russian f o r m a l i s t theory, and semiology. The o r i g i n a l development of semiology as the s c i e n t i f i c study of s i g n s and s i g n systems began w i t h the work of Ferdinand de Saussure when he f i r s t p u b l i s h e d h i s Course i n General L i n g u i s t i c s (1916). L a t e r , the appearance of the work of Ch a r l e s P i e r c e (1930-5) was a l s o i n f l u e n t i a l . In a d d i t i o n , the other important f i g u r e s who pro v i d e a t h e o r e t i c a l context f o r t h i s d i s c u s s i o n are the French psychoanalyst Jacques 14 Lacan and the s t r u c t u r a l anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss. These prominent figures map or simply indicate the f i e l d s of discourse from which feminist f i l m theory drew. The figures of p a r t i c u l a r interest who emerged from the Tel Quel group to develop the study of cinema and narrative are Roland Barthes, Jean-Louis Baudry, and J u l i a Kristeva. Roland Barthes's deconstructive analysis of narrative provided a greater discursive c l a r i t y of the subject. His structural analysis in S / Z of. the f i v e basic codes that functionally operate in the Balzac novella Sarrasine are invaluable to the study of cinematic narrative. Baudry's Ideological Effects of the Basic Cine~matoqraphic Apparatus i s important to the study of cinSma because he aptly describes how the cine\"matic text i s dependent, by i t s very nature, on the cinematographic apparatus. The apparatus establishes the attribute of l i t e r a l succession, which reinforces the fundamental syntagmatic organizational elements (leaving aside the paradigmatic relationships created by e d i t i n g , fades, dissolves, e t c . ) . In addition, the composition of images within the l i t e r a l successive chain also contribute to a s i g n i f i c a n t syntagmatic aspect of the cinematic experience. But Baudry also says that the cinema's psychical apparatus produces \"features which are s p e c i f i c to dream: capacity for f i g u r a t i o n , t r a n s l a t i o n of thought into images, r e a l i t y extended to representations.\" J He 1 5 s u b s t a n t i a t e s t h i s analogy by r e f e r r i n g to Freud's a n a l y s i s i n The I n t e r p r e t a t i o n of Dreams. J u l i a K r i s t e v a ' s experience as an a n a l y s t has c o n t r i b u t e d g r e a t l y to the theory of d e s i r e i n language and to the p s y c h o a n a l y t i c understanding of the \" s p l i t s u b j e c t , \" ^ ^ t h a t s u b j e c t i v i t y i s not f i x e d , u n i f i e d , and unchanging, but r a t h e r t h a t the s u b j e c t i s a l v a y s a s u b j e c t i n p r o c e s s . Moreover she vas r e s p o n s i b l e f o r c o i n i n g the nov v i d e l y used, however misunderstood, term \" i n t e r t e x t u a l i t y . £ h e idea of i n t e r t e x t u a l i t y p l a y s a s i g n i f i c a n t r o l e i n the development of the modern \" p o l y p h o n i c \" 2 8 l l o v e i a n c j i t s c o n s e q u e n t i a l break from the Nineteenth-Century r e a l i s t \"monologic\"29novel. The aspect of s i n g u l a r v ersus m u l t i p l e n a r r a t i v e v o i c e s i s i m p l i c a t e d i n the development of t h i s debate on n a r r a t i v e . The s e m i o t i c theory of the cinema, developed by a former student of Barthes, C h r i s t i a n Metz, was a l s o s i g n i f i c a n t to the development of new-narrative because h i s understanding of the cine\"ma as a multi-coded system of communication i s perhaps as important as the e s s e n t i a l i s t d i s c o u r s e on the cinema's b a s i c nature. Metz's s t r e s s on the p l u r a l i t y of codes i n the cinema spawned the i n s i g h t t h a t the f i l m t h e o r i s t must be a Renaissance person i n a sense, i f s/he wishes to f u l l y understand the c i n e m a t i c phenomenon. T h e r e f o r e one must take an i n t e r d i s c i p l i n a r y and p l u r a l i s t i c approach to the a n a l y s i s of the cinema. The c o n c l u d i n g chapter w i l l l o c a l i z e t h i s debate i n terms of the contemporary d i s c u s s i o n s amongst avant-garde filmmakers i n Canada. S p e c i f i c r e f e r e n c e w i l l be made t o the sometimes stormy c r i t i c a l debate i n f i l m j o u r n a l s such as Opsis and Cine~ma Canada. Chapter IV w i l l a l s o r e f e r to two conferences h e l d i n Vancouver/ the New N a r r a t i v e Conference and the panel d i s c u s s i o n organized by the w r i t e r f o r N a t i o n a l F i l m Week t i t l e d Avant-garde F i l m P r a c t i c e s ; S i x Views. Some of these d i s c u s s i o n s are polemic i n nature, but they r e f l e c t many filmmakers' r e a l concerns about a l t e r n a t i v e f i l m forms and the p r e s e r v a t i o n of the p o e t i c idiom i n the cinema. T h i s i s a l s o why some experimental filmmakers ask the q u e s t i o n , \"So what i s new about new n a r r a t i v e ? \" 3 0 The a e s t h e t i c s t r a t e g i e s of formal autonomy vers u s n a r r a t i v e a p p r o p r i a t i o n , however, s t i l l must address the p o s i t i o n i n g of the s u b j e c t and c o n s i d e r the h i s t o r i c a l e v o l u t i o n of avant-garde a e s t h e t i c s , the changes i n c u l t u r a l p o l i t i c s , and the v a r i o u s l e v e l s of p r o d u c t i o n . There i s value i n both the n a r r a t i v e and a n t i - n a r r a t i v e approaches, however; e i t h e r approach can c o n t a i n p r o g r e s s i v e and/or r e g r e s s i v e elements of r e p r e s e n t a t i o n . T h i s i s why i t would be i n a c c u r a t e to v a l o r i z e one approach over another. 17 NOTES TO CHAPTER I ••The term \"post-modern\" i s used p r o v i s i o n a l l y because many h i s t o r i a n s f i n d the term p r o b l e m a t i c . Here r e f e r t o the Modernism and Modernity Conference Papers ed. Serge G u i l b a u t , Benjamin H. D. Buchloh, and David S o l k i n (Vancouver: U n i v e r s i t y of B r i t i s h Columbia P r e s s , 1981). 2Maya Deren, \"Statement of P r i n c i p l e s , \" F i l m As F i l m (London: Hayvard G a l l e r y p u b l i s h e d e x t r a c t s , c a t a l o g u e , 1979), p.123. 3 C h a r l e s C. Lemert and Garth G i l l a n , M i c h e l F o u c a u l t : S o c i a l Theory as T r a n s g r e s s i o n (Nev York: Columbia U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1982), p. 11. 4 I b i d . , p. 12. ^The anarcho-romantic movement of \" a r t - f o r - a r t * s sake\" developed from the work of Charles B a u d e l a i r e and the sy m b o l i s t movement durin g the mid-1880s. B a u d e l a i r e and Arthur Rimbaud were both very much i n f l u e n c e d by the R e v o l u t i o n s of 1830, 1948 and the P a r i s Commune i n France. Rimbaud combined B a u d e l a i r e ' s Swedenborgianism w i t h F o u r i e r t o develop h i s v i s i o n a r y idea of a u n i v e r s a l language. The symbolist poets Paul V e r l a i n and Stephane Mallarme developed the Ba u d e l a i r e a n idea of p o e t i c enigma and foreground, the element of chance i n p o e t i c c o m p o s i t i o n . T h i s a n t i c i p a t e d the a n a r c h i c element of chance i n l a t e r dada and s u r r e a l i s t a r t . Some of the B r i t i s h exponents of \" a r t - f o r - a r t 1 s sake\" ( i n f l u e n c e d by Swinburne) are Oscar Wilde and the p r e - R a p h a e l i t e s Dante G a b r i e l R o s s e t t i and Edward Burne-Jones. 6The r e f e r e n c e to t h i s idea of engaged a r t i s d e r i v e d from Jean-Paul S a r t r e , \"Qu'est-ce que l a L i t e r a t u r e ? \" , Les Temps Modernes (1947). 7The term i s d e r i v e d from the Utopian s o c i a l i s t Henri de Saint-Simon, who was i n s p i r e d by the idea of progress t h a t developed from the progress i n s c i e n c e and technology l e a d i n g up to the I n d u s t r i a l R e v o l u t i o n . T h i s was how the id e a of progress was passed on i n t o the a r t s . See chapter I I , note 19. 18 ^ A e s t h e t i c modernism developed i n the l a t e n i n e t e e n t h century as a \" r e v o l t a g a i n s t p o s i t i v i s m \" and the r e s u l t of the c r i s i s i n e i g h t e e n t h - and n i n e t e e n t h century l i b e r a l thought. Modernism c u l t i v a t e d the formal concerns of s p a t i a l montage, paradox, and the fragmented r e p r e s e n t a t i o n of the i n d i v i d u a l s u b j e c t r e f l e c t e d the \" c r i s i s of i n d i v i d u a l i t y . \" l u P e t e r Wollen, Readings and W r i t i n g s ; Semiotic C o u n t e r - S t r a t e g i e s (London: Verso E d i t i o n s , 1982), p.36. H-Brecht's use of the terms are d e f i n e d i n chapter I I I and he counterposes those concepts v i t h the d o c t r i n e of s o c i a l r e a l i s m . The a e s t h e t i c i s d e r i v e d from bourgeois c r i t i c a l r e a l i s m . 1 2 I b i d . 1 3 D i s t r acted h a b i t : i n t e r p r e t a t i o n v i s - a - v i s a p p e r c e p t u a l h a b i t . ^ P r a x i s : i n t e r p r e t a t i o n v i s - a - v i s the p r a c t i c a l a p p l i c a t i o n of t h e o r e t i c a l knovledge. l ^ P e t e r Wollen, Readings and W r i t i n g s : Semiotic C o u n t e r - S t r a t e g i e s (London: Verso Editions,.. 1982) , p. 37. 1 6 I b i d . ^Image: r e p r e s e n t a t i o n a l codes. i ^ T e x t : l i n g u i s t i c codes. 1 9 T h i s r e f e r s to Andre Bazin's What i s Cinema 4 v o l s . ( B e r k e l e y : U n i v e r s i t y of C a l i f o r n i a P r e s s , 1958-65), p. 2. 2 0 P e t e r G i d a l , ed., Standard F i l m Anthology (London: B r i t i s h F i l m I n s t i t u t e P u b l i s h i n g , 1976), p. 2. 21-The symbolic order i s a term d e r i v e d from s e m i o t i c s and theory of s i g n i f i c a t i o n i n language. Lacan and P i e r c e d e f i n e symbolic s i g n s as s p e c i f i c a l l y l i n g u i s t i c s i g n s . 22»p]ie term i s d e r i v e d from Lacan and r e f e r s to the codes or r u l e s v h i c h govern l i n g u i s t i c systems. These r u l e s are r e l a t e d i n p s y c h o a n a l y t i c terms to the Oedipal myth and the r u l e of p a t r i a r c h y i n language and i n s o c i e t y . 19 ^ i d e n t i f i c a t i o n i n the cinema s h i f t s as i t does i n language from the f i r s t person to the second person. Primary i d e n t i f i c a t i o n r e f e r s to the camera p o i n t of view while secondary i d e n t i f i c a t i o n i s the s u b j e c t i v e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n w i t h the c h a r a c t e r . 24 Ib i d , 2 5 J e a n - L o u i s Baudry, \"The Apparatus: M e t a p s y c h o l o g i c a l Approaches to the Impression of R e a l i t y i n the Cinema,\" Camera Obscura 1 ( F a l l 1976): 115. 2 ^ l n her book D e s i r e In Language J u l i a K r i s t e v a a n a l y z e s the \"speaking s u b j e c t , \" which i s sim u l t a n e o u s l y a s p l i t s u b j e c t — d i v i d e d by conscious and unconscious m o t i v a t i o n — b e t w e e n p h y s i o l o g i c a l p rocesses and s o c i a l c o n s t r a i n t s . T h e r e f o r e the a c t i o n s and performances of the speaking s u b j e c t are the r e s u l t of a d i a l e c t i c a l p r o c e s s . J u l i a K r i s t e v a , D e s i r e i n Language (Oxford: B a s i l B l a c k w e l l , 1977), p. 6. 2 7 K r i s t e v a d e f i n e s i n t e r t e x t u a l i t y \"as the t r a n s p o s i t i o n of one or more systems of s i g n s i n t o another, accompanied by a new a r t i c u l a t i o n of the e n u n c i a t i v e and d e n o t a t i v e p o s i t i o n . \" T h i s d e f i n i t i o n i s d i f f e r e n t i a t e d from the misapprehension t h a t i n t e r t e x t u a l i t y r e f e r s to the i n f l u e n c e of one w r i t e r on another. I b i d . , p. 15. 28-phe pol y p h o n i c novel has m u l t i p l e n a r r a t i v e v o i c e s and i s a open t e x t . The work of M. M. Bakhtin and V. N . Voloshinov analyze the \" d i a l o g i c \" q u a l i t y of the v o i c e i n pol y p h o n i c t e x t . Ann Shukman, ed., Bakhtin School Papers (Oxford: Holdan Books, 1983). 2 ^ A l s o d e r i v e d from Bakhtin and Vo l o s h i n o v , the term \"monologic\" ( m o n o l o q i c h e s k i i ) i s d e f i n e d as the opp o s i t e of d i a l o g i c and i s n e g a t i v e l y valued because the t e x t i s c l o s e d , completed, and t h e r e f o r e not open to response. I b i d , 3°Nina Fo n o r o f f and L i s a C a r t w r i g h t , \" N a r r a t i v e i s N a r r a t i v e : So What i s New?\", H e r e s i e s 16, v o l . 4, no. 4 (1983), pp. 52-4. 20 CHAPTER II AVANT-GARDE FILM: THE MODERNIST CONTEXT The t h r u s t of modernism i s \"the d r i v e to g i v e works of a r t the i n t e g r i t y of o b j e c t s , and to l i b e r a t e them from the burden of human mimesis.\" Ortega y Gasset L i t e r a r y and a r t i s t i c modernism was born of the profound changes i n E i g h t e e n t h - and Nineteenth-Century l i b e r a l thought. T h i s context of European c u l t u r a l and p o l i t i c a l l i f e informed the d i v e r s e movements of modernism and the s t r a t e g i c e v o l u t i o n of the v a r i o u s avant-gardes. The modernists' break with n e o - c l a s s i c a l , r e a l i s t , and n a t u r a l i s t a e s t h e t i c s i s a product of a p e r i o d which saw an unprecedented e p i s t e m o l o g i c a l c r i t i q u e . Modernist p a i n t i n g p l a y e d an important r o l e i n the a e s t h e t i c d i s c o u r s e of avant-garde cin6ma and, c o n v e r s e l y , the advent of mechanical r e p r o d u c t i o n a l s o r e v o l u t i o n i z e d the codes and conventions i n the p i c t o r i a l a r t s . The t u r n of the cent u r y , t h e r e f o r e , r a i s e d s e r i o u s q u e s t i o n s r e g a r d i n g the f u n c t i o n of a r t i n the age of mechanical mass r e p r o d u c t i o n . T h i s h i s t o r i c a l c o n t e x t s e t the stage f o r the modern/post-modern i s s u e w i t h n a r r a t i v e today. Modernism: The H i s t o r i c a l Context The two major s o c i a l f o r c e s t h a t p r e c i p i t a t e d the s h i f t from one problem paradigm to the other were the dual 21 r e v o l u t i o n s — t h e i n d u s t r i a l r e v o l u t i o n i n England and the p o l i t i c a l r e v o l u t i o n i n France. The profound impact of i n d u s t r y and democracy produced r a d i c a l changes i n c o n s c i o u s n e s s , which i n t u r n were r e f l e c t e d i n the a r t s . With the i n v e n t i o n of the steam engine and the development of modern c i t i e s , man f e l t a ble to master the n a t u r a l environment f o r the f i r s t time. Along with the p o p u l a t i o n s h i f t from country to c i t y , however, came unforeseen s o c i a l consequences such as the sense of a l i e n a t i o n i n the impersonal atmosphere of the c i t y and f a c t o r y work. As man became separated from the support of small communities and c o n t a c t w i t h the n a t u r a l t e m p o r a l i t y of farm l i f e , he f e l t an i n c r e a s e d sense of a n x i e t y and fragmentation. In t h i s new age, man a l s o f e l t unable t o c o n t r o l the dehumanizing e f f e c t s of the technology which he had invented because the c e n t r a l focus of h i s world seemed to s h i f t from man to machine. P a r a d o x i c a l l y , as s o c i e t y appeared more r a t i o n a l , u t i l i t a r i a n , d emocratic, and the sense of u n l i m i t e d p rogress and m a t e r i a l wealth was f e l t by some, the sense of homelessness and a l i e n a t i o n i n t e n s i f i e d f o r many. Thus the b u r e a u c r a t i c and impersonal mass s o c i e t y of the g a s l i g h t c i t i e s produced the extreme p o l a r i t i e s between harsh f a c t o r y worker slums on the one hand and the decadence of the e l i t e i n d u s t r i a l i s t ' s suburbs on the other. These were the c o n d i t i o n s t h a t gave r i s e t o the p o l i t i c s of c l a s s c o n s c i o u s n e s s . Man's predetermined, c o s m o l o g i c a l p o s i t i o n a l s o changed s i g n i f i c a n t l y with the d e c l i n e of the t r a d i t i o n a l a u t h o r i t y of s t a t e and church d u r i n g the t r a n s i t i o n from a b s o l u t i s t t o democratic e r a s . T h i s d e c e n t e r i n g of world view and d e c l i n e i n r e l i g i o u s and p o l i t i c a l f a i t h s i g n a l l e d an end to a b s o l u t e f i e l d s of thought. New e p i s t e m o l o g i c a l q u e s t i o n s were r a i s e d about the nature of the knowledge t h a t had been the b a s i s of p o l i t i c a l d i s c o u r s e . Then, because those questions r a d i c a l l y undermined a l l p r e v i o u s e p i s t e m i c premises, p o l i t i c a l t h i n k e r s came to q u e s t i o n the l e g i t i m a c y of the powerful, to pe n e t r a t e the facades of the powerful e l i t e s . P o l i t i c a l t h i n k e r s such as S o r e l explored the \"myths,\"ipareto the \" d e r i v a t i o n s , \" 2 a n d Mosca the \" p o l i t i c a l f ormulas,\" 3which the r a t i o n a l i z e r s and a p o l o g i s t s f o r the powerful had promulgated. One r e s u l t of t h i s e p i s t e m i c and p h i l o s o p h i c a l q u e s t i o n i n g i n the a r t s was the modernist c r i t i q u e of language, r e p r e s e n t a t i o n , and meaning p r e v i o u s l y accepted i n the p r o d u c t i o n of t e x t s and images. In p h i l o s o p h i c a l terms, Clement Greenberg e x p l a i n s i n h i s a r t i c l e on modernist p a i n t i n g that the imminent s e l f - c r i t i c a l tendency of modernism was i n f l u e n c e d by Kant, but he d i s t i n g u i s h e s t h a t : The s e l f - c r i t i c i s m of modernism grows out of but i s not the same t h i n g as the c r i t i c i s m of the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment c r i t i c i z e d from the o u t s i d e , the way c r i t i c i s m i n i t s accepted sense does: modernism c r i t i c i z e d from i n s i d e through the procedures themselves of t h a t which i s being c r i t i c i z e d . . . . r e a l i s t i c , n a t u r a l i s t i c a r t had dissembled the medium, using a r t to co n c e a l a r t ; modernism used a r t to c a l l .attention to a r t . 23 A e s t h e t i c modernism f i r s t began to develop i n P a r i s as an i c o n o c l a s t i c r e j e c t i o n of the academic t r a d i t i o n of p a i n t i n g a s s o c i a t e d v i t h Bourbon a b s o l u t i s m i n France. The p a i n t e r Jacques L o u i s David e x e m p l i f i e d t h i s estrangement from the Royal Academy of P a i n t i n g and S c u l p t u r e although h i s p a i n t i n g was very much i n f l u e n c e d by c l a s s i c a l a e s t h e t i c s . Peter Wollen notes t h a t c l a s s i c a l r e p r e s e n t a t i o n a l codes \"always p o s i t e d an e s s e n t i a l u n i t y and coherence to every work, which p e r m i t t e d a uniform and e xhaustive decoding. I f 5 Modernism decentered the u n i t y of meaning and t h e r e f o r e t h i s fragmentation caused a r t to become e x t r a - r e f e r e n t i a l . As Wollen e x p l a i n e d , modernist a r t became c e n t r i f u g a l (throwing the reader out of the work to other works) r a t h e r than c e n t r i p e d a l (held together by the work's own c e n t e r ) . T h i s s h i f t i n reader and s u b j e c t p o s i t i o n i n g i s important to note because of the change i n t r a d i t i o n a l a u t h o r i t y . F o u c a u l t analyzed the h i e r a r c h i c a l p o s i t i o n i n g of the s u b j e c t , e s t a b l i s h e d through the codes of p e r s p e c t i v e , i n c l a s s i c a l p a i n t i n g such as i n the Velasquez Las Meninas. A t r i a d i c system of s o c i a l r e l a t i o n s i s e s t a b l i s h e d through the power of the gaze i n t h i s p a i n t i n g . F o u c a u l t saw i n the r e l a t i o n s h i p between the s p e c t a t i n g s u b j e c t , the o s t e n s i b l e s u b j e c t and model (the Spanish monarchy on whom the p a i n t e r ' s gaze i s f i x e d ) t h a t : . . . the p a i n t e r ' s s o v e r e i g n gaze commands a v i r t u a l t r i a n g l e whose o u t l i n e d e f i n e s t h i s p i c t u r e of a p i c t u r e : at the t o p — t h e only v i s i b l e c o r n e r — t h e p a i n t e r ' s eyes; at one of the base angles, the i n v i s i b l e p l a c e occupied by the model; at the other 24 base angle, the f i g u r e probably sketched out on the i n v i s i b l e s u r f a c e of the canvas. As soon as they place the s p e c t a t o r i n the f i e l d of t h e i r gaze, the p a i n t e r ' s eyes s e i z e h o l d of him, f o r c e him to enter the p i c t u r e , a s s i g n him a p l a c e at once p r i v i l e g e d and i n e s c a p a b l e , l e v y t h e i r luminous and v i s i b l e t r i b u t e from him, and p r o j e c t i t upon the i n a c c e s s i b l e s u r f a c e of the canvas w i t h i n the p i c t u r e . He sees h i s i n v i s i b i l i t y made v i s i b l e t o the p a i n t e r and transposed i n t o an image f o r e v e r i n v i s i b l e t o h i m s e l f . The p a i n t e r s such as Courbet, Manet, Degas and others who succeeded David, e x e m p l i f i e d t h i s modernist r e j e c t i o n of the v i s u a l codes p e r s p e c t i v e d e f i n i t i v e l y e s t a b l i s h e d d u r i n g the Renaissance. There was a c l e a r departure from Nineteenth-Century r e a l i s m d u r i n g the e a r l y decades of the T h i r d Republic i n the p a i n t i n g of the i m p r e s s i o n i s t s and then l a t e r with the c u b i s t , e x p r e s s i o n i s t , and s u r r e a l i s t movements. The i n f l u e n c e of Japanese composition and p l a n a r p e r s p e c t i v e on the p a i n t e r s i n these movements r e f l e c t e d the b a s i c c r i t i q u e of a Western e p i s t e m i c cosmology. Malcom Le G r i c e a s t u t e l y connected the d e c l i n e i n r e l i g i o u s f a i t h with the development of s c i e n c e through h i s deduction t h a t : The Nineteenth Century saw the d e c l i n e of a r e l i g i o u s view of the world, with i t s b a s i s i n f a i t h and u n d e r l y i n g q u i e t r e p l a c e d by a s c i e n t i f i c m a t e r i a l i s m , with i t s b a s i s i n o b s e r v a t i o n , experiment and t e c h n o l o g i c a l d e t e r m i n a t i o n . Photography was a r e s u l t of t h i s p h i l o s o p h i c a l t r a n s i t i o n , and, as an o b s e r v a t i o n a l instrument, s t i l l s i g n i f i c a n t l y a i d s s c i e n t i f i c r e s e a r c h . 7 The t e c h n o l o g i c a l development of cinematography and s c i e n t i f i c m a t e r i a l i s m i n the a r t s d u r i n g the cinema's e a r l y decades combined w e l l . Impressionism was born, f o r example, from a p o s i t i v i s t d e s i r e to s c i e n t i f i c a l l y capture and a c c u r a t e l y r e c o r d the e f f e c t s of i n s t a n c e s of l i g h t on c o l o r and hue i n the n a t u r a l environment. The a e s t h e t i c i n f l u e n c e of photography was c o n s i d e r a b l e s i n c e i t c o n t r i b u t e d to the \"snapshot\"** q u a l i t y of impressionism. Chronophotography a l s o p r o v i d e d the image base f o r p a i n t i n g s such as M a r c e l Duchamp's B r i d e Descending the S t a i r c a s e (1911) and Giacomo B a l l a ' s Dog On A Leash (1912). In h i s book A b s t r a c t F i l m And Beyond, Le G r i c e a l s o notes t h a t i m p r e s s i o n i s t p a i n t e r s such as Monet produced works which were \" i n t r i n s i c a l l y more 'cinematic' than anything which was achieved i n cinema as s u c h . \" 9 Of i n t e r e s t i s the manner i n which a r t i s t s working i n a v a r i e t y of media were i n f l u e n c e d by one another. The advent of photography d i s p l a c e d the p a i n t e r ' s r o l e i n mimetic r e p r o d u c t i o n and t h i s i n i t i a t e d an a e s t h e t i c d i s c o u r s e among p a i n t e r s , the d i s c o u r s e c u l m i n a t i n g i n the c u b i s t a e s t h e t i c a s s e r t i o n of the f l a t canvas s u r f a c e . T h i s s e l f - r e f l e x i v e concern with the f l a t aspect of the p a i n t e d s u r f a c e i s a l s o f e a t u r e d i n the a b s t r a c t e x p r e s s i o n i s t p a i n t i n g of Jackson P o l l o c k and the work of m i n i m a l i s t p a i n t e r s such as Don Judd and Robert M o r r i s . Then, as each of the a r t s began to examine the processes and e f f e c t s unique to each r e s p e c t i v e medium, Greenberg a l s o shows how the modernist methodology, as e x e m p l i f i e d by K a n t i a n s e l f - c r i t i c i s m , was f u l l y expressed i n s c i e n c e r a t h e r than p h i l o s o p h y : 26 That v i s u a l a r t should c o n f i n e i t s e l f e x c l u s i v e l y to what i s given i n v i s u a l experience, i s a n o t i o n whose only j u s t i f i c a t i o n l i e s i n s c i e n t i f i c c o n s i s t e n c y . S c i e n t i f i c method alone asks, or might ask, that a s i t u a t i o n be r e s o l v e d i n e x a c t l y the same terms as that i n which i t i s presented. The r a d i c a l s h i f t i n consciousness d u r i n g the l a t e n i n e t e e n t h - and e a r l y t w e n t i e t h century i s manifest i n the a e s t h e t i c form of modernist a r t i n a number of s p e c i f i c ways. The f i r s t f e a t u r e of modernism i s m a n i f e s t through the a e s t h e t i c of s e l f - c o n s c i o u s n e s s or s e l f - r e f l e x i v e n e s s . M odernists draw a t t e n t i o n to the media and m a t e r i a l s with which they work. Thus the very processes of c r e a t i o n and c r a f t are foregrounded. In avant-garde cin§\"ma, t h i s i s c l e a r l y seen i n George Landow's F i l m i n Which There Appears Sprocket Holes, Edge L e t t e r i n g , D i r t P a r t i c l e s , E t c . (1966). The a l t e r e d temporal s t r u c t u r e s of modern a r t and l i t e r a t u r e e x e m p l i f i e d the second f e a t u r e of modernism. The new temporal approaches were p r e c i p i t a t e d by a r a d i c a l l y transformed modernist context t h a t a l t e r e d the p s y c h o l o g i c a l e x p e r i e n c e of time. The i m p r e s s i o n i s t ' s emphasis on the temporal moment i n a d d i t i o n t o the advent of the cinema f u r t h e r c o n t r i b u t e d to t h i s new p e r c e p t i o n of time. Henri Bergson's p h i l o s o p h y and h i s i n t e r p r e t a t i o n of time was very i n f l u e n t i a l because he thought t h a t time was a t r u l y c r e a t i v e f o r c e , which was animated with the s p i r i t u a l content of the p r e s e n t . In the l i t e r a t u r e of t h i s p e r i o d , t e m p o r a l i t y was based on the e x p e r i e n c e of s i m u l t a n e i t y , j u x t a p o s i t i o n , and montage. For example, symb o l i s t p o e t r y and the l i t e r a t u r e of Joyce and Proust r e p r e s e n t t h i s temporal experience i n c o n t r a s t to the l i n e a r o r d e r i n g of n a r r a t i v e s t r u c t u r e and s e q u e n t i a l p r e s e n t a t i o n of events common to the n i n e t e e n t h century r e a l i s t n o v e l . T h e r e f o r e avant-garde f i l m s such as A l a i n Resnais's L 1Annee Derniere a Marienbad (1961) or S t r a u b / H u i l l e t ' s Not R e c o n c i l e d (1965) broke •with the l i n e a r o r d e r i n g of n a r r a t i v e . The t h i r d f e a t u r e of modernism i s the c u l t i v a t i o n of paradox and ambiguity as a r e s u l t of the p r e v i o u s l y d i s c u s s e d d e c l i n e i n t r a d i t i o n a l a u t h o r i t y . For example, the d i a l o g i c novel of modern l i t e r a t u r e r e p l a c e s the p r e v i o u s monologic n o v e l . The monologic novel f e a t u r e s an omniscient n a r r a t o r , v h i l e the d i a l o g i c novel e i t h e r e x e m p l i f i e s a l i m i t e d and f a l l i b l e p e r s p e c t i v e or p r o v i d e s a number of p e r s p e c t i v e s f o r one event. Three avant-garde f i l m s which f e a t u r e m u l t i p l e p e r s p e c t i v e s are Maya Daren's Meshes of the Afternoon (1943), Oshima's Death by Hanging (1968), and L o u i s Bunuel's Un Chien Andalou (1928). These f i l m s a l s o r e f l e c t e d N i e t z s c h e ' s and Freud's s i g n i f i c a n t c o n t r i b u t i o n s to the development of modernist c u l t u r e . T h e i r r e s e a r c h and c r i t i c a l thought began to e x p l a i n how the unconscious d r i v e s of man are o f t e n the m o t i v a t i o n a l b a s i s f o r an i n d i v i d u a l ' s , as w e l l as a c i v i l i z a t i o n ' s , r e a l human a t t i t u d e s and a c t i o n s . Freud, a r a t i o n a l i s t i n the age of i r r a t i o n a l i s m , f e l t t h a t unconscious d r i v e s c o u l d be c a n a l i z e d by the c o n s c i o u s i n t e l l e c t and t h a t t h i s was the r e a l hope f o r mankind. N i e t z s c h e , on the other 28 hand, e x e m p l i f i e d the pessimism of h i s age. The n o t i o n of a f i x e d v iewpoint was not p o s s i b l e i n t h a t g e n e r a l atmosphere of c r i s i s , economic i n s t a b i l i t y , pessimism, d e c l i n e i n r e l i g i o u s and p o l i t i c a l f a i t h , and e p i s t e m o l o g i c a l c r i t i q u e . Thus r e f l e c t e d i n the artworks of a more complex and enigmatic c u l t u r a l c o n t e x t , these elements f i n a l l y c o n t r i b u t e d to the f o u r t h f e a t u r e of modernism, the movement away from the d e p i c t i o n of the i n t e g r a t e d s u b j e c t . The h i g h l y developed p e r s o n a l i t y or c h a r a c t e r i n the n o v e l , f o r example, gave way to a stream of consciousness or the d e p i c t i o n of the s u b j e c t as a p s y c h i c b a t t l e f i e l d . T h i s was represented i n p a i n t i n g by the fragmentation or complete a b s t r a c t i o n of the f i g u r e . Weimar e x p r e s s i o n i s t cinema f e a t u r e d a fragmentation of the s u b j e c t i n f i l m s l i k e The Cabinet of Dr. C a l i q a r i and M e t r o p o l i s . In an atomized, a l i e n a t e d mass s o c i e t y , the demise of i n d i v i d u a l i t y and the l o s s of b e l i e f i n p o s i t i v i s t progress was p i c t u r e d v i v i d l y i n these f i l m s . The l o s s of f a i t h i n t e c h n o l o g i c a l progress was r e f l e c t e d i n f i l m s such as M e t r o p o l i s , where machines are a s s o c i a t e d w i t h the dehumanization of man. The l o s s of i n d i v i d u a l i t y i s a l s o seen i n the l i t e r a r y and h i s t o r i c a l antecedents of t h i s f i l m . Works such as V i l l i e r s de l ' l s l e Adam Hadaly's L'eve f u t u r e (1886) and J u l i e n O f f r a y de l a M e t t r i e ' s L'homme machine (1748), are examples of t h i s motif of man and machine. The r e p r e s e n t a t i o n of the r o b o t - a n d r o i d was d e s c r i b e d by Andreas Huyssen i n t h i s manner: The an d r o i d i s no l o n g e r seen as testimony to the genius of mechanical i n v e n t i o n ; i t r a t h e r becomes a nightmare, a t h r e a t to human l i f e . In the machine-man w r i t e r s begin to d i s c o v e r h o r r i f y i n g t r a i t s which resemble those of r e a l people. T h e i r theme i s not so much the m e c h a n i c a l l y c o n s t r u c t e d automaton i t s e l f , but r a t h e r the t h r e a t i t poses to l i v e human b e i n g s . I t i s not hard to see t h a t t h i s l i t e r a r y phenomenon r e f l e c t s the i n c r e a s i n g t e c h n o l o g i z a t i b n of human nature and the human body which reached a new stage i n the e a r l y 19th c e n t u r y . 1 1 Contemporary a r t i s t s d e a l w i t h man's dehumanization i n an i r o n i c manner as does Andy Warhol when he says \"I want to be a m a c h i n e . \" 1 2 T h i s statement i s r e l a t e d to the h i s t o r i c a l a v a n t - g a r d i s t e c r i t i c i s m of the i n s t i t u t i o n of a r t and the n o t i o n of the a r t i s t as genius who c r e a t e s an o r i g i n a l and s i n g u l a r work of a r t . The Avant-Garde and Modernism T h i s h i s t o r i c a l and a e s t h e t i c c o n t e x t u a l i z a t i o n of modernism shows how the a r t s were i n f l u e n c e d by the s o c i a l and i n t e l l e c t u a l c o n t e x t and i n d i c a t e s how the v a r i o u s avant-garde movements have been i m p l i c a t e d i n the development of modernism. But the two terms modernism and avant-garde should not be c o n f l a t e d . The meaning of the term avant-garde has been i m p l i c a t e d i n , yet i s d i s t i n c t from, the term modernism i n a number of s i g n i f i c a n t ways. 30 T r a d i t i o n a l l y , the avant-garde has s i g n i f i e d a p o s i t i o n of a r t i s t i c and s o c i a l r a d i c a l i s m by s m a l l , p r o g r e s s i v e groups a g a i n s t a b s o l u t i s t and bourgeois a u t h o r i t y . The avant-garde h e l d t h i s a u t h o r i t y r e s p o n s i b l e f o r the s o c i a l i n j u s t i c e s c r e a t e d by c l a s s d i f f e r e n c e s t h a t r e s u l t i n the l i m i t a t i o n of the s o c i a l development of i n d i v i d u a l a r t i s t s and workers; t h e r e f o r e the c u l t u r a l h i s t o r i a n Donald Egbert says t h a t the response of the avant-garde has been: . . . to express i n some way outrage at the \" r u l e s \" imposed by a u t h o r i t y , whether the r u l e s of the academic t r a d i t i o n i n a r t developed under a b s o l u t i s m and taken over by a P h i l i s t i n e b o u r g e o i s i e or the r u l e s determining the economic development of s o c i e t y under the c o n t r o l of bourgeois c a p i t a l i s m s i n c e the I n d u s t r i a l R e v o l u t i o n . 1 ^ The i n t e l l e c t u a l h e i r of Rousseau and the enlightenment, Henri De S a i n t Simon (1760-1825), was the f i r s t to use the term \"avant-garde.\" Simon was a Utopian s o c i a l i s t and the product of p o s i t i v i s t thought; thus he b e l i e v e d that mankind would ev o l v e through the development of s c i e n t i f i c p r o g r e s s . His thoughts r e g a r d i n g the avant-garde were rooted i n these i d e a l s when he f i r s t wrote: I t i s we, a r t i s t s , who w i l l serve you as avant-garde: the power of the a r t s i s i n f a c t most immediate and most r a p i d : when we wish to spread new ideas among men, we i n s c r i b e them on marble or on canvas; . . . and i n t h a t way above a l l we exert an e l e c t r i c and v i c t o r i o u s i n f l u e n c e . We address o u r s e l v e s to the i m a g i n a t i o n and to the sentiments of mankind; we should t h e r e f o r e always e x e r c i s e the l i v e l i e s t and most d e c i s i v e a c t i o n ; and i f today our r o l e appears n i l or at l e a s t very secondary, what i s l a c k i n g t o the a r t s i s t h a t which i s e s s e n t i a l to t h e i r energy and to t h e i r success, namely, a common d r i v e and a g e n e r a l i d e a l . 1 4 . The term avant-garde, from the m i l i t a r y genesis of the 15 word f o r the vangard of an army, has been c r i t i c i z e d by many h i s t o r i a n s because the m i l i t a r y i n t e r p r e t a t i o n has no h i s t o r i c a l r e l e v a n c e t o the f i n e a r t s . T h e r e f o r e the term should be understood i n the metaphoric sense r a t h e r than the l i t e r a l . Furthermore, with r e s p e c t to the f i l m i c avant-gardes, Janet Bergstrom c h a r a c t e r i z e d these a r t i s t i c movements as 16 1*7 \"apart from\" r a t h e r than \"ahead o f \" 1 ' t h e t r a d i t i o n of commercial cinema. N e v e r t h e l e s s , the term avant-garde has p r i m a r i l y r e f e r r e d to new ideas and works t h a t are temporally and i n t e l l e c t u a l l y ahead of t h e i r time. Matei C a l i n e s c u notes t h a t t h e r e are b a s i c a l l y two etymologic c o n d i t i o n s fundamental to the meaningful e x i s t e n c e of a s o c i a l , p o l i t i c a l , or c u l t u r a l avant-garde. C a l i n e s c u e x p l a i n e d t h a t they are: . . . o n e — t h e p o s s i b i l i t y t h a t i t s r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s be conceived o f , or con c e i v e themselves as being i n advance of t h e i r time . . . and t w o — t h e idea t h a t there i s a b i t t e r s t r u g g l e to be fought a g a i n s t an enemy s y m b o l i z i n g the f o r c e s of s t a g n a t i o n , the tyranny of the p a s t , the o l d forms and ways of t h i n k i n g t h a t t r a d i t i o n imposes on us l i k e f e t t e r s to keep us from moving forward. In Theory of the Avant-Garde, Peter Burger pointed out t h a t the a c t u a l h i s t o r i c a l p r e c o n d i t i o n f o r the avant-garde took p l a c e at the beginning of our century when the \" h i s t o r i c a l \" 1 9 o r \" c l a s s i c a l \" 2 1 a v a n t - g a r d e , the European avant-garde movements of dadaism, s u r r e a l i s m , and f u t u r i s m i n the 1920s, c r i t i c i z e d the autonomous p o s i t i o n of a e s t h e t i c i s m . Burger e x p l a i n e d why a r t i s t s f e l t a sense of a r t i s t i c i n c o n s e q u e n t i a l i t y : 32 A e s t h e t i c i s m ' s i n t e n s i f i c a t i o n of a r t i s t i c autonomy and i t s e f f e c t on the f o u n d a t i o n of a s p e c i a l realm c a l l e d a e s t h e t i c experience permitted the avant-garde to c l e a r l y r e c o g n i z e the s o c i a l i n c o n s e q u e n t i a l i t y of autonomous a r t and, as the l o g i c a l consequence of t h i s r e c o g n i t i o n , to attempt to l e a d a r t back i n t o s o c i a l p r a x i s . 2 1 Burger notes t h a t at the p o i n t where a r t i s t s began to comprehend the s o c i a l s t a t u s of a r t i n i n d u s t r i a l bourgeois s o c i e t y , the avant-garde s t a r t e d q u e s t i o n i n g the nature of the i n s t i t u t i o n s which mediated t h e i r work. The h i s t o r i c a l meaning of the term avant-garde, then, i m p l i e s an a r t i s t i c and s o c i a l l y r a d i c a l p o s i t i o n , w h i le the term modernism does not n e c e s s a r i l y imply t h i s . Burger compared, f o r example, the c o n s e r v a t i v e modernist Thomas Mann and the c l a s s i c a l a v a n t - g a r d i s t e , Andre Breton. T h e i r a e s t h e t i c i d e o l o g i e s are d i f f e r e n t because Breton wanted to merge a r t and l i f e by l i b e r a t i n g the unconcious from s o c i a l r e p r e s s i o n - o p r e s s i o n , w h i l e Mann was not i n t e r e s t e d i n s o c i a l change. To understand why the avant-garde has developed t h i s antagonism towards s o c i a l and a r t i s t i c t r a d i t i o n (or as i n the dada performances towards the p u b l i c a l s o ) , one must r e f e r t o the economic c o n t e x t . In Renato P o g g i o l i ' s book The Theory of the Avant-Garde, the avant-garde i s c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n terms such as \" a c t i v i s m / ' 2 2 and \"antagonism,\" 2 -but t h e r e i s no e x p l a n a t i o n of what c r e a t e d those a t t i t u d e s . For i n s t a n c e , i f one examines the p r o f e s s i o n a l p o s i t i o n of the a r t i s t i n the l a t e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y , one sees a s i g n i f i c a n t change a f t e r the d e c l i n e of patronage and the r i s e of the market system. The s i t u a t i o n developed where a r t i s t s were f o r c e d to compete i n an u n s t a b l e marketplace. They f e l t a l i e n a t e d from the uneducated and i n d i f f e r e n t m i d d l e - c l a s s p u b l i c on whom they depended f o r t h e i r l i v e l i h o o d . T h i s e n f o r c e d dependence on an o f t e n P h i l i s t i n e and c r a s s p u b l i c a l i e n a t e d the a r t i s t from the s o c i a l e s t a b l i s h m e n t . I t i s understandable why avant-garde a r t c h a l l e n g e d and q u e s t i o n e d the i n s t i t u t i o n s which mediated a r t because i t was r e c o g n i z e d t h a t the market undermined that quest f o r a e s t h e t i c and s o c i a l t r u t h . Andre Breton a l s o a s s e r t e d t h a t the quest f o r a r t i s t i c and s o c i a l t r u t h could not be subsumed to p a r t i s a n p o l i t i c s or o v e r t propaganda as was suggested by the \"Aragon Af f a i r . \" 24