The Break with the 19th Century and the Outburst of Modernism • Modernism was the reaction movement against the past (19th Century) • it has to do with visual art (Futurism, Cubism, Expressionism, Surrealism), music and literature . • after the war the dominant feeling is ANXIETY + there is no longer faith (and optimism) in the society The precursors of Modernism: Henry James, David Herbert Lawrence and Joseph Conrad • Henry James (1843 -1916) wrote his novels from the point of view of one single character , adopting the “narrative consciousness” technique. • Joseph Conrad (1857 -1924) chose to do the opposite: he used multiple point s of view as a means to give voice to the fragmented self of the characters. His technique was called “impres sionistic” and was based on the use of disconnected images and narrative details: we, as readers, have to put the scenes together to have a plot + his writing is like a painting. • The work s of the writer David Herbert Lawrence were deeply influenced by Sigmund Freud’s theory of the unconscious; he combines a realistic description of the conditions of life and a provoking analysis of the psychological