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5th out of 183 books
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Rites of Spring: The Great War and the Birth of the Modern Age
A rare and remarkable cultural history of World War I that unearths the roots of modernism author Modris Eksteins examines the lives of ordinary people, works of modern literature, and pivotal historical events to redefine the way we look at our past and toward our future.
Paperback, 416 pages
Published
September 14th 2000
by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
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Modris Eksteins' fantastic autopsy of the European mindset before, during, and after the Great War—the half-decade of unmitigated slaughter that brought a thunderous mailed fist down upon all that a near century of European peace had accomplished—opens with an electrifying setpiece, one which brought to my mind Thomas Mann's The Magic Mountain. The frenzied response to Diaghilev's The Rite of Spring at its opening in Paris anticipates the currents that would flood though the sluice when the Guns...more
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Simply stunning - beautifully structured and written arguments and an immensely informative text on not just World War One but a wide variety of cultural issues from the 1850s to 1945. Ekstein has attempted the most difficult of tasks facing the historian, i.e. to describe the cultural and social nuances of an age and explain how and why they change; and he succeeded brilliantly here. A single poignant event, such as a performance of the Ballet Russe in 1913 or the Unofficial Christmas Truce of ...more
Having read and enjoyed Paul Fussel's The Great War and Modern Memory I came to Modris Eksteins’ The Rites Of Spring and discovered another great work of cultural history that both augmented and complemented Fussel's book. The author transports the reader by demonstrating the advent of the modern through a mood laced with death, movement, irony, rebellion and inwardness. The book unveils a pre-war world of German industrialization and avant-garde art, discusses the disillusionment of an unending...more
Along with Paul Fussell's "The Great War and Modern Memory," this is the best cultural/literary history I've ever read about The Great War.
I became, for a time, obsessed with WWI, partly because I felt that I hadn't learned enough about it in the course of my traditional schooling (as was the case with so many historical subjects, alas), and partly because I began to understand that it was *this* war, and not WW2, which is in some respects the defining event of the twenti...more
I became, for a time, obsessed with WWI, partly because I felt that I hadn't learned enough about it in the course of my traditional schooling (as was the case with so many historical subjects, alas), and partly because I began to understand that it was *this* war, and not WW2, which is in some respects the defining event of the twenti...more
This book succeeds in doing exactly what it sets out to do, which is provide a cultural history of the Great War, beginning with the avant-garde and the premiere of Stravinsky's "Rite of Spring" in 1913 and ending with Hitler's rise to power. The approach works well: Eksteins strikes the right balance between supplying general information and counting on the reader to have a little background on the subject; he writes with both the rigor of academia and the accessibility of popular hi...more
This was the text for a class I took on the Birth of Modernism. It changed how I saw the world and helped me understand the effects of WW1 on the 20th century and beyond. It's totally NOT boring!
this book gave me lots to think about. it's a beautifully written cultural history of WWI, with a particular focus on the arts as they relate to national identity. rites of spring is probably best approached with a rudimentary understanding of the war, but it's also written with literary flair and a lack of military tech-talk. it's probably the most approachable book on the subject i've encountered, though not dumbed-down in any way.
as someone with a background in the arts, the book ...more
as someone with a background in the arts, the book ...more
Jodi
added it
The history journal, History Today, highly recommended this book. It was suggested that if you only had time to read part of it to read Chapter 10--I did and it was powerful. Only reason there were no stars for rating this was felt I couldn't since I didn't read the entire book.
Ekstein’s discussed the impact of Hitler's artistic temperament on the Nazi party; how Hitler considered The Third Reich to be theatre and that his speeches were actually ‘acts.’ Ekstein stresses Hitler’s bohemi...more
Ekstein’s discussed the impact of Hitler's artistic temperament on the Nazi party; how Hitler considered The Third Reich to be theatre and that his speeches were actually ‘acts.’ Ekstein stresses Hitler’s bohemi...more
If you've read Paul Fussell's The Great War and Modern Memory, then you must read this one as as well. This is one the most important books I've ever read. If you decide to read this book, seek out an edition (paperback or the original hardback) that has Nijinsky dancing on the cover. A later paperback edition does not include the photographs that Eksteins selected to underscore powerful points made in the text. The exlcusion of the photographs was an incredibly stupid thing to do in order save...more
Rites of Spring is, as you might suppose, as much about the time period surround WWI as the years of the war itself. Rather than a straightforward history book, Eksteins (much like Paul Fussell, although less literary) examines . . . what I tend to think of as the zeitgeist. In this instance, he discusses the Great War and the modern world - and also, kind of, Modernism - so there's plenty from people who never picked up a gun, or who lived with the aftermath of the war but didn't experience the...more
Interesting yet unsatisfying on several levels. I read along enjoying the review of the era, but acquiring few new insights, except perhaps in Ekstein’s depiction of the general mood at the opening of WWI as largely euphoric/ heroic / romantic, unlike the mood fraught with a sense of futility, waste and negation of the war that came afterward and which infused the post-war literature about WWI. My own exposure to the period comes largely from that literature and some contemporary fiction, such ...more
I hold this book in very high esteem, not only because it is very well-written, but because it forced me to completely revise my understanding of twentieth century nation-states.
In Rites of Spring, Ecksteins argues that fascism represented the ultimate manifestation of the "modern" nation-state. That is, Nazis (and many of their admirers such as American aviation hero Charles Lindbergh) saw themselves as cutting-edge modernists, and were merely applying technology worship...more
In Rites of Spring, Ecksteins argues that fascism represented the ultimate manifestation of the "modern" nation-state. That is, Nazis (and many of their admirers such as American aviation hero Charles Lindbergh) saw themselves as cutting-edge modernists, and were merely applying technology worship...more
There is no other book I want to read that I understand less than this one. It was so full of references and philosophical concepts that I could not get through more than a few dozen pages. Perhaps one day I will have learnt enough to understand this book.
It links a performance of the ballet "The Rite of Spring" (where people rioted - a more common occurrence than you may think) with a change in collective consciousness that led to the acceptance of World War 1.
It links a performance of the ballet "The Rite of Spring" (where people rioted - a more common occurrence than you may think) with a change in collective consciousness that led to the acceptance of World War 1.
Rites of Spring by Modris Eksteins
First Mariner Books, 2000
Originally published 1989
331 pages
Non-fiction; History; WWI
4/5 stars
Summary: A new examination of WWI, its origins, actions, and aftermath on the twentieth century.
Thoughts: I read this for class and I enjoyed it a lot. It's not too scholarly (ie not esoteric) but it is in depth looking at motivations for war on all sides, art, literature, the battles, etc. as well as looking at the end and t...more
First Mariner Books, 2000
Originally published 1989
331 pages
Non-fiction; History; WWI
4/5 stars
Summary: A new examination of WWI, its origins, actions, and aftermath on the twentieth century.
Thoughts: I read this for class and I enjoyed it a lot. It's not too scholarly (ie not esoteric) but it is in depth looking at motivations for war on all sides, art, literature, the battles, etc. as well as looking at the end and t...more
Excellent social history largely centering on Europe and the birth of modernism in the early 20th century. Shows how strains in art and cultured mirrored the political, ethnic, religious, and intellectual tensions of the era. War is an ever present theme and Eksteins brilliantly portrays the ways in which war influenced the every element of cultural life. Brief in size, its scope is grand and analysis is brilliant.
Fantastic, illuminating account of the Modernist mind and its impact on 20th Century European history and the reciprocal impact of the Great War on the consciousness of the West. Eksteins makes connections that seem implausible until he connects the dots -- then, it's "Aha!" A great aid to understanding the art and literature of the first half of the 20th Century.
Really hard to get into, and I wouldn't have read it if not for school, but the discussions about the circular nature of history, especially since world war one, as illustrated by art and ballet gave me a rounded idea of how culture and historical events and... everything tie in together and can't be teased apart when looking back on the past.
Beginning with the debut of the then-controversial ballet The Rites of Spring in Paris in 1913 and ending with the death of Hitler in 1945, Eksteins has written a unique cultural history of the time period. His main emphasis is trench warfare during WWI, and how it affected a whole generation and led to WWII. There is a whole chapter on the spontaneous truce that erupted the first Christmas in the trenches, and quite a penchant explanation of why it never happened again. It also discusses Par...more
Another great history book about the era of WWI. The world we live in today is a direct descendant of this conflagration. There is something overwhelmingly poignant about watching the world in its springtime, tottering on the very edge of the presipice, just before the plunge.
One of the best books, on any topic, that I have ever read. Rarely do I recommend historical monographs to non-history majors, but I think anyone interested in modernity and its origins should read Rites of Spring.
Incredible meditation on the origins of World War I and the birth of Modernity. A deeply provoking examination of culture, politics and philosophy.
Probably my favorite history book I've ever read. Eksteins calls himself a post-modern narrativist, and he gives the reader a lot of responsibility. Presenting events, roughly in chronological order, he tells a cultural history from the days leading up to World War One to the beginnings of World War Two. He uses events like the opening night of the Rites of Spring ballet, or the 1914 Christmas Truce, or the flight of Charles Lindbergh to reveal the hearts and minds of Europeans. Eksteins often w...more
This is a most unusual and compelling book of political, artistic and social history in the period before and after World War I. Starting with the shocking effect that Stravinsky's Rite of Spring had on audiences and the musical world, Eksteins moves on to explore the romanticism and exuberance that most people in Europe felt at the outset of World War I, including those who would later become famous pacifists. After the horrors of the trench warfare that ensued, he explores the equally phenomen...more
This is wonderful book looking at the intersection of the arts and the political changes that occurred at the time of WW I.
Peter
rated it
Shelves:
20th-century,
canadian-writers,
history,
european-history,
cultural-history,
criticism,
wwi,
1914-1945,
nebcat1,
1980s
Best read alongside Paul Fussel's "The Great War and Modern Memory." Wars aren't quite as literary as they once were, but I hear Vietnam actually has produced a lot of good memoirs. I should look into that.
An incredible exploration of the cultural world surrounding Europe during the Great War period.
Alexis
added it
Rites of Spring : The Great War and the Birth of the Modern Age by Modris Eksteins (2000)
A great and powerful interpretation of the Great War and the interwar period.
WWI was not good. This book is generally about the art before and after the war. As a former history teacher, I don't think we learn enough about WW I anymore because it's so overshadowed by the next (Great War/Great Patriotic War/WWII). I think few sane people want war but the cultural cataclysm (I don't know if I spelled that right) can be...volcanic. I'm not sure if that made sense. But from the title, you might think that Stravinsky plays a huge roll. Not exactly. It's a good read if you'r...more
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