Expressionist Poetry Against Industrialization 

Nowhere else is the Expressionist revolt against industrialization as apparent as it is in its poetry. Jokob van Hoddis' poem The City comments on the contemporary life in the city during his lifetime. Many poets felt that the materialization of the new way of life left the world empty and meaningless, as van Hoddis states here in the above poem, "Can I succumb to nothingness, can I be tormented by the wicked wind of cities, of vast cities?" Life in the industrialized cities was very often dark with smoke from factories that had taken over.

In Eternally in Revolt Johannes Becher speaks of the revolt against the established powers of the factory owners and that it is now completely apparent that they are the cause of the destruction of the individual. "Of the most frenzied murderers, Of the butchers of the lamb."

The painting Funeral March (1917) by George Grosz allows the audience to view the streets of a city ruled by these industrialized powers. There are no individuals depicted; only a large and angry mass. The colors portray tension, ciaos, and harsh brutality. The chaotic loss of individuality was one of the major inspirations for the Expressionists to unite against the development of factories, mass production, and the exploitation of the working class.

My piece accentuates not only the factory but also the repetitiveness of the city and thus the loss of individuality.

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