"In late 1929 the Great Depression hit worldwide as a result of the crash of the stock market in America and resulting mass bank failures. Germany was particularly affected because its economy had become deeply linked to the U.S. economy. Unemployment goes from about 1.5 million workers in 1929 to 4 million workers in 1930. The Nazi’s capitalized on the severe economic disaster. By 1930 they had become the second largest party in the Reichstag after the Social Democratic Party (SPD), it now became impossible to form a majority in parliament without them. Street fights between Nazi and Communist forces intensify. The centrist government under Chancellor Heinrich Brüning, invokes article 48 of the Constitution and declares a state of emergency in order to keep the government functioning because the Nazis are completely uncompromising and will not work with the more moderate parties."
   The term Great Depression refers to Economic depression across the nation, this all started when the stock prices started to fall. "The Great Depression had devastating effects in virtually every country, rich and poor .Personal income, tax revenue, profits and prices dropped, while international trade plunged by more than 50%. Unemployment in the U.S. rose to 25%, and in some countries rose as high as 33%. Cities all around the world were hit hard, especially those dependent on heavy industry. Construction was virtually halted in many countries. Farming and rural areas suffered as crop prices fell by approximately 60%. Facing plummeting demand with few alternate sources of jobs, areas dependent on primary sector industries such as cash cropping, mining and logging suffered the most,There were multiple causes for the first downturn in 1929. These include the structural weaknesses and specific events that turned it into a major depression and the manner in which the downturn spread from country to country,  as stated on http://en.wikipedia.org."
   " Nazism was founded out of elements of the far-right racist volkisch German nationalist movement and the violent anti-communist Freikorps paramilitary culture that fought against the uprisings of communist revolutionaries in post-World War I Germany. The ideology was developed first by Anton Drexler and then Adolf Hitler as a means to draw workers away from communism and into völkisch nationalism. Initially Nazi political strategy focused on anti-big business, anti-bourgeois, and anti-capitalist rhetoric, though such aspects were later downplayed in the 1930s to gain the support from industrial owners for the Nazis, focus was shifted to anti-Semitic and anti-Marxist themes", http://en.wikipedia.org.
    I chose this passage because i think the hardships we are facing in today's economy is somewhat of the same as what occurred throughout this era. A lot of individuals today are facing unemployment at this present time. It may not be the same as it was in 1929 but it is somewhat of a recurring action that is taking place.
   

Midterm

“Nihilism” comes from the Latin nihil, or nothing, which means not anything, that which does not exist. It appears in the verb “annihilate,” meaning to bring to nothing, to destroy completely. In Russia, nihilism became identified with a loosely organized revolutionary movement (C.1860-1917) that rejected the authority of the state, church, and family. Nihilism is the belief that all values are baseless and that nothing can be known or communicated. It is often associated with extreme pessimism and a radical skepticism that condemns existence. A true nihilist would believe in nothing, have no loyalties, and no purpose other than, perhaps, an impulse to destroy. While few philosophers would claim to be nihilists, nihilism is most often associated with Friedrich Nietzsche who argued that its corrosive effects would eventually destroy all moral, religious, and metaphysical convictions and precipitate the greatest crisis in human history,” as stated on  http://www.iep.utm.edu/nihilism/. Throughout our readings it is evident that Nihilism contributes in each of our reading. The novel ‘Siddhartha’ written by Herman Hesse and ‘On Pain’ written by Ernst Junger both depict Nihilism in their own unique way. In the novel ‘Siddhartha’ his strategy of detachment may be analyzed using Nihilism.  Ernst Junger makes statements in his novel ‘On Pain’ which depicts relationship to Nihilism.

Siddhartha by Herman Hesse explores various stages of development which are thoroughly outlined throughout the novel. Siddhartha was an individual who may be described as one in search of the meaning of his life exploring and using all the possibilities placed in front of him. Siddhartha may be referred to as a protagonist he is on a quest for enlightenment and tests the religious philosophies he comes in direct contact with. He is on a quest for knowledge using all individuals and what they offer him as a part of his contribution to success. The first stage which is described is when he made the decision to go on his quest.  “But he, Siddhartha, was not a source of joy for himself; he found no delight in himself. Walking the rosy paths of the fig tree garden, sitting in the bluish shade of the grove of contemplation, washing his limbs daily in the bath of repentance, sacrificing in the dim shade of the mango forest, his gestures of perfect decency, everyone's love and joy, he still lacked all joy in his heart. Dreams and restless thoughts came into his mind, flowing from the water of the river, sparkling from the stars of the night, melting from the beams of the sun, dreams came to him and a restlessness of the soul, fuming from the sacrifices, breathing forth from the verses of the Rig-Veda, being infused into him, drop by drop, from the teachings of the old Brahmans. Siddhartha had started to nurse discontent in himself, he had started to feel that the love of his father and the love of his mother, and also the love of his friend, Govinda, would not bring him joy forever and ever, would not nurse him, feed him, and satisfy him. He had started to suspect that his venerable father and his other teachers, that the wise Brahmans had already revealed to him the most and best of their wisdom, that they had already filled his expecting vessel with their richness, and the vessel was not full, the spirit was not content, the soul was not calm, the heart was not satisfied.”

     `Another part to his quest which taught him a valuable lesson was when he gave his garments to a homeless individual, “Siddhartha gave his garments to a poor Brahman in the street. He wore nothing more than the loincloth and the earth-colored, unsown cloak. He ate only once a day, and never something cooked. He fasted for fifteen days. He fasted for twenty-eight days. The flesh waned from his thighs and cheeks.” This quotation shows humility towards the less fortunate.

“When Siddhartha left the grove, where the Buddha, the perfected one, stayed behind, where Govinda stayed behind, then he felt that in this grove his past life also stayed behind and parted from him. He pondered about this sensation, which filled him completely, as he was slowly walking along. He pondered deeply, like diving into a deep water he let himself sink down to the ground of the sensation, down to the place where the causes lie, because to identify the causes, so it seemed to him, is the very essence of thinking, and by this alone sensations turn into realizations and are not lost, but become entities and start to emit like rays of light what is inside of them. Slowly walking along, Siddhartha pondered. He realized that he was no youth any more, but had turned into a man. He realized that one thing had left him, as a snake is left by its old skin, that one thing no longer existed in him, which had accompanied him throughout his youth and used to be a part of him: the wish to have teachers and to listen to teachings. He had also left the last teacher who had appeared on his path, even him, the highest and wisest teacher, the most holy one, Buddha, he had left him, had to part with him, was not able to accept his teachings.” In my opinion it is obvious that he started to lose faith and also start to question all his prior teachings, it can also be said that throughout his quest he started to thread the path of destruction, wanting to take his own life. This type of action is affiliated with Nihilism. He also became detached and became more aware of what was around him. I conclude that his temptation to commit suicide played a major role in his appreciation for his religious journey to enlightenment.

 One thing that defines Nihilism is the historical sense of a radical break from the past. Jugner’s intention is to argue a way of overcoming pain, “Boredom is nothing other than the dissolution of pain in time,” (Junger p.13) this statement can relate to Nihilism because the dissolution of pain may vary it all depends how a particular individual decides to deal with their boredom for example it may lead to destructive actions.

“In a world full of inferior values, every order of greatness is dragged through the dirt, and the most extreme sphere of suffering…” As a rule one will not have to go far to uncover the pain. Indeed, even the individual is not fully free from pain in this joyful state of security.

In conclusion it can be said Nihilism is dominant in many aspects throughout both novels. It plays vital role in both novels and both novels seem to depict detachment. Even though it is not in plain sight how Nihilism is depicted if analyzed it may seem dominant.

On Pain

     We  find ourselves in a situation where we are still capable of grasping what is lost; we can still sense the destruction of values and how the world is becoming more shallow and superficial. New generations are growing up far removed from all our inherited traditions, and it is an amazing feeling to see these children many of whom will live to experience the year 2000. By then, the last remnants of the modern, i.e., Copernican, age will most likely have disappeared (p. 45) This passage can be looked at as depicting Pain and detachment theme. this passage speaks truth, looking at today's generation it is obvious that their values today are way different than those of the previous era.

     This passage may be interpreted many different ways, i look at this passage and use it as a description of a relationship that both individuals decided to part but still have feelings for each other even though they have both moved on. Such scenarios seem to e very dominant in today's society, situations like this take place in our everyday life. Individuals nowadays are getting involved based on what the other individual has to offer as opposed for looking for love.

   Another way of looking at this passage is that nowadays individuals are more concerned with the superficial aspect of life as opposed to finding and appreciating the true vale of the things and luxury around them. Individuals nowadays are more concerned with the price of what they wear as opposed to appreciating the hard work which may have been done to obtain this lavish lifestyle. Many of these individuals if they were to work for these expensive items would appreciate them more. 
Many of past traditions have been just 'swept under the rug' , nowadays nothing is based on tradition but more of a statement, for example many individuals are getting married for the wrong reasons not because of love or to honor their vows but for a statement or just to say their married. Values are no longer upheld.


  This passage relates to the novel we read before Dream Story in terms of values and loyalty. I chose this passage because i thought i could relate to it using examples from everyday life. 

 Both films have similar traits which are obvious, Both films depict various themes such as Love, Obsession, Romance and Insanity just to name a few. In "The Blue Angel" the professor is forced to resign from his job because it was known that he had been with Lola. "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" he plays out his fantasies and made them seem real.

        In the film "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" the slave  Cesare was ordered to kill Jane but then fell in love with her and later died which was a similar event that happened in the film "The Blue Angel", Professor Rath was on a mission to catch his students at a club but ended up falling in love with a female named Lola when he got there. In both films each male individual end up dead at the end of all they went through. Both men seem to be caught up by the beauty of these females. A slave risks his life for a female and a professor risks his reputation. This depicts the theme of Love and it also shows determination.

     Another theme which is depicted in both films in my opinion is insanity and obsession which was depicted by various characters, for example in "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" Francis who later on in the film is found out to be a mental patient, uses his dillusion to make a fantasy of his seem real. In "The Blue Angel" Professor Rath seems to be obsessed with Lola and this cause him to change his ways for example he was late for his class which he was always on time.

      Betrayal also plays a major role in these films Professor Rath was betrayed and humiliated by his wife Lola Publicly when she had sex with a former lover in his presence. This made him furious wanting to kill his wife, whereas in "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" Ceasare  betrayed Francis by not killing Jane but instead he helped her to escape.

    Nhilisim is dominant in both films in various ways one is the defiant behavior towards others with authority which plays a part in both films, the students are acting rebellious towards their professor and the slave went against his masters wishes.

Quiz #1

1.  Nihilism is the belief that all values are baseless and that nothing can be known or communicated.It is also total rejection of established laws and institutions. I don't think it is correct to say that the belief is nothing because to believe all values are baseless is a belief.

2.According to Nietzsche the difference between Greco-Roman value and Judeo-Christian value is that they were almost completely opposite of each other. The Christians developed moral beliefs which were opposed to the beliefs of the Romans. He also argued that the Christians had resentment towards the Romans also that Nihilism is in Christianity. Nietzsche believes that the Greco- Roman values are better for living a full and healthy life because he described the Christians as being weaker than the Romans.

3. Dada art is said to be Pessimistic and  Bizarre because of the way each art piece was depicted, each artwork had their own unique element and depicted various events in one image.Most of Dada's art displayed both the good and the bad in whichever piece.It may be called Bizarre because of the images used to create a story.
In the German Society Dada artists tries to discredit and undermine the Cultural Societies

4. In the film "The Cabinet"  Dr. Caligari  if considering owning a slave a job i would say he has two a slave master and a Asylum Doctor.


5. Siddhartha left his father because he felt like he had learned all he needed from his father and he was in search of finding himself. He needed to go out into the world and experience certain situations for himself in order to appreciate certain teachings and the value.


6. In the film "The Cabinet" Cesare dies of exhaustion after he refused to kill Jane so he was on the run and after he got her out the clear he passed away.


7. The River is important to Siddhartha because this is where he had contemplated taking his own life but did not and then fell asleep by the river only to wake up appreciating his life more. He believes that the river provided him with some wisdom, he believes that the River is where he found peace.

Siddhartha

AWAKENING

He looked around, as if he was seeing the world for the first time. Beautiful was the world, colourful was the world, strange and mysterious was the world! Here was blue, here was yellow, here was green, the sky and the river flowed, the forest and the mountains were rigid, all of it was beautiful, all of it was mysterious and magical, and in its midst was he, Siddhartha, the awakening one, on the path to himself. All of this, all this yellow and blue, river and forest, entered Siddhartha for the first time through the eyes, was no longer a spell of Mara, was no longer the veil of Maya, was no longer a pointless and coincidental diversity of mere appearances, despicable to the deeply thinking Brahman, who scorns diversity, who seeks unity. Blue was blue, river was river, and if also in the blue and the river, in Siddhartha, the singular and divine lived hidden, so it was still that very divinity's way and purpose, to be here yellow, here blue, there sky, there forest, and here Siddhartha. The purpose and the essential properties were not somewhere behind the things, they were in them, in everything.

      This passage shows the growth of Siddhartha how he took a little bit of teaching from everywhere he went and incorporated this into his lifestyle. Siddhartha was now coming to the realization of what the world was really like also that he was looking at the world from his perspective as opposed to letting someone analyze it for him. He realizes how beautiful the world is hence the use of colors to give a vivid description of what he was seeing. He also realizes that relying on only his teachers and ignoring the world will not let him reach enlightenment, he realizes that the world will help him in achieving his goal and provide necessary teachings.

      I choose this passage because in my opinion it reflects on everyday life many times individuals live their lives through the teachings of others other than creating a path of their own. Often times individuals portray others because they have yet to find their own identity and figure that using the life experience and teachings of another individual will help in their day to day life. Individuals sometimes fail to appreciate natures beauty and how it contributes to our everyday living. 

Dada: Raoul Hausmann

    Raoul Hausmann was born in Vienna who then moved to Berlin with his parents at age fourteen in 1901. his father who was a professional conservator and painter was his earliest art trainer. as a young man Raoul Hausmann was intrested in the goals of the emerging expressionist movement in Germany. after meeting Johannes boader, an ecentric architect and another future member of Dada in 1905 and Elfride Shaeffer a violinist who he married in 1908, a year after the birth of their daughter he enrolled in a private art school where he stayed until 1911. Most of his work was considered expressionist colleagues, because he initially welcomed the war believing it to be necessary cleansing of a calcified society although being an Austrian citizen living in Germany he was spared the draft.
  
  The first art piece Raoul Hausmann's self portrait of the Dadosopher, collage-photomontage, 1920 portrays a man sitting in a chair but seems to be robot like, the image has the body of a human but the upper part where the head is supposed to be is replaced by a clock which seems to be ran by motors. This image also looks like an individual in an electric chair and the clock might signify the countdown.


  The second image Raoul Hausmann, Dada wins, 1920 displays numerous activities taking place, this image is like a collage its bits and pieces of events put together on one photograph. The image depicts four gentlemen obviously of different stature. The image in the background looks like a image after the war.


  In the third image  Raoul Hausmann, Two Nudes on a Beach [Hedwig Mankiewitz and Vera Broido], 1930, this image to me depicts some form of protest standing for what they believe in. It also shows courage and also that these individuals embrace their body.

Dada: Raoul Hausmann

Raoul Hausmann's Self Portrait of the Dadasopher, collage- photomontage, 1920

                                                     Raoul Hausmann: Dada Siegt 1920

                                             Raoul Hausmann: Vera Broido 1930