Surrealism in English Literature

 INTRODUCTION:  

Surrealism is a movement of art and literature which was founded by the poet and critic Andre Breton in 1924. It became popular in English literature in 1920s and lasted till 1940s. Andre Breton published the ‘Manifesto of Surrealism’ in 1924 where he has explained this new movement in detail. It was a movement which was mainly inspired by the psychoanalytical theories expounded by Sigmund Freud.

ORIGIN OF THE TERM ‘SURREALISM’:

The term ‘surrealism’ was first derived from a French play ‘Les Mamelles de Tiresias’ (The Breasts of Tiresias) written by Gaullaume Apollinaire in 1917. The term ‘surrealism’ was coined by Gaullaume to describe his new type of drama.

DEFINITION OF ‘SURREALISM’:

Surrealism is a 20^th century new movement which is placed in contrast to realism of the 19^th century. Andre Breton, a French surrealist has defined the term ‘Surrealism’:

“Surrealism is a pure psychic automation, by which one intends to express verbally, in writing or by any other method, the real functioning of the mind. Dictation by thought, in the absence of control exercised by reason, and beyond any aesthetic or moral preoccupation.”

·      Verbal representation of the psyche

·      Expression of the activity of the mind.

·      Absence of reason or logic

·      No aesthetic or moral purpose

Surrealism means super realism. It means the reality which is “beyond reality”. It expresses the true process of thoughts.  Images come from the subconscious mind.  Here, the artist fuses dream and reality, merge reality and fantasy.

 FEATURES OF SURREALISTIC LITERATURE:

1. Automatic Writing: The writers of surrealistic literature believed in ‘automatic writing’. They wrote whatever came to their minds without stopping or without giving a proper structure and unity to their impressions or images. Example, Tristan Tzara’s poem ‘Volt’

2. Juxtaposition: The writers freely used crazy and opposite images together. They may compare a head to a shoe, or a door to a snake, or a cup to a tree. For example, Robert Desnos' poem "The Zebra" juxtaposes a zebra's dark stripes with prison bars.

3. Associations: The surrealist writers use the device of association. They associate or join the thoughts and images in a strange manner. For example, in his poem ‘Central Heating’, the Surrealist poet Pierre Reverdy associates the central heating system to the human body and heart.

4. Irrationality: In the literature of surrealism, there is no place for reason. Their art is irrational having no logic. They believed that logic and rules of conscious mind stop or hinder the real expression of the mental pictures or images. For example, Gregor Samsa, the protagonist of Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis, wakes up one morning to find himself transformed into a gigantic bug.

5. Unconscious Mind: The surrealists gave much emphasis on the expression of the thoughts of the unconscious mind. The suppressed emotions and images of the unconscious mind are presented in such literature. They believed that the real ‘reality’ lies in the subconscious mind. In Franz Kafka’s play, ‘The Metamorphosis’, the protagonist finds himself turned into a bug.

6. Dream & Fantasy: We come to know about the thoughts of our subconscious mind only through our dreams. Hence, dreams and fantasy are part and parcel of surrealist literature. Here, strange things and actions are presented which actually do not happen in real life. Example, ‘The Metamorphosis’. In Pierre Reverdy’s poem ‘Live, Flesh’, the dead body wakes up, rises and starts walking.

7.Surrealism Vs Fantasy: There is much difference between surrealism and pure imagination or fantasy. Both express the mental thoughts. But unlike fantasy, Surrealism has some reality in it. It is a combination of the reality, and the subconscious. Pure fantasy has no touch of reality. But in surrealism the artist uses various paradoxical images from his mind and presents it verbally or in any other method with a touch of reality. This makes his art meaningful. It is just like taking a photo of one’s mind. In short, it represents the unconscious mind and the conscious real world.

MAJOR WRITERS OF SURREALISTIC LITERATURE:

It was between 1924 and 1945 that the movement of surrealism became widely popular in literature. Major writers who became the outstanding exponents of surrealism in literature were Andre Breton, Salvador Dali, De Chirico, Robert Desnos, Marcel Duchamp etc.

CONCLUSION:

In nutshell, surrealism was a literary movement which emerged and became popular after the World War I and ended before the World War II. It was a sharp reaction against the traditional ways of expression in literature. It was mainly influenced by the dream theory of Sigmund Freud. Juxtaposition, association, dream and fantasy, lack of unity and logic are some of the important elements of surrealistic literature.

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