Dada and our "Postmodern Society"

Dada was emerging at a similar time as Futurism. However, I have a bit more respect for it!

Dada, in a sense, was a bridge between the movements of Modernism and Postmodernism. It stripped Modernism of its roots. It valued an even more collage-like and free-for-all/freeform approach to art and life. A poem could be drawn at random from a hat. A work of art could be a signed urinal.

Appropriation was key, was alive and kicking.

Meaning could be found in meaninglessness. And, indeed, Hugo Ball, who wrote the Dada Manifesto, believed that Truth resided in its lack; meaning was to be found in chaos, randomness, etc..

We see much of this in our western world today – "what is meaning?" Life seems to be a bit of a rootless free-for-all for many people in today's society – just floating out in one's own created or chosen meaning. We are often flippant, irreverent towards ideas about meaning, purpose, rootedness. And, again, unlike many of the Modernists (and even Dadaists) who were directly responding to events and forms of their time -- who were often consciously rebelling -- much of the Postmodern movement seems not to know where to turn. It is not rebelling against anything. It is often just standing there, screaming.

Linked to these sentiments of Postmodernism (which were issued in by the ideas and practices of Dada) was nihilistic thought. The popularity of nihilism and existential thought was on the rise during the time of the Dada movement, and Fredrich Nietzche was an influential figure of the time. Nietzche’s existentialism and nihilism informed and often spurred Dadaists. Ideas of “meaning/purpose” were on their way out, and to refer back to Nietzche, God had died. And again, for better or worse, we see this in our society today – “What and where is God? What structures do we cling to? Is it all random?”

All history informs all history.

Short distillations of Nihilism and Existentialism:

Nihilism: Existence is void of meaning.

Existentialism: Existence precedes essence; meaning is created and not inherent.

Happy happy thoughts!