"Entartet" in German means "degenerate." What does "degenerate" mean? "Art" in German does not mean "Art" in English, rather, it means "type," or "kind." Something like "genre" maybe? And "ent-" is a prefix which negates the word-root that follows, so something like "without type or kind"? Post a comment to the HCC Reader readings pages 85-133.
picture: room with some of the works confiscated as degenerate art by the Nazis
19 comments:
Degenerate: "to fall below a normal or desirable level in physical, mental, or moral qualities; deteriorate" (dictionary.com)
Degenerate art(according to reader) is art that goes against the Nazi's and Hitler's beliefs. Basically if it is overally sexualized and erotic, it is degenerate art. If it shows disabilities of people, it is degenerate (p.100). Hitler only wants beautiful art, that shows the Aryan race. He does not want to see flaws. Since Art doesn't mean art in German but more of a genre, it makes sense since Hitler's genre for "non-degenerate" art would be "beauty without sensuality"(p.120), a perfect human being but does not arouse or show sexual desire.
Referring to art without type or kind, Hitler does not want art with defects, and that would explain the inclusion of ent, to exclude unacceptable art according to Hitler, "without" flaws.
"ent-" is a prefix which negates the word-root that follows, so something like "without type or kind"
"Entartet" in German means "degenerate."
p102, middle of 3rd paragraph: "..."degenerate art were organized to show the GErman people the products of th "cultural collapse" of Germany that would be purged from teh THird Reich."
From these statements, it makes sense that Hitler did not want to promote works of art which did not resemble the ideal Aryan race. So, what this meant was no expressionist art would be accepted, nor would images of deformed people be allowed to be seen--- they were counter intuitive to what "beauty" would be like for Hitler.
Here is an example of degenerate art: <3
Shannan's post:
The “Entarte Kunst” exhibit of degenerate art used unacceptable art (degenerate art) to show unacceptable art in Nazi Germany. Abstract, Dada, Photomontage, Cubist, Expressionist, Surrealist, and foreign art were taken out of museums and put into the degenerate art museum. Any art that showed ugliness, modern thought, or avant–garde styles were also unacceptable.
Modern books and periodicals were attacked and often burned by Nazis. Any pictures that showed one’s idea of something outside of its normal representation was considered degenerate. The defects of humans like baldness or diseases among other human defects were defamed in "Entarte Kunst." Degenerate literally means in biological terms means that a plant/animal has changed so much that it is not part of its species. The Nazis used the term to mean art that was so imaginative and innovative that it had no genre and was not considered art anymore.
To foil the degenerate art the Nazis called for another new exhibit called the “Grosse Deutsche Kunstausstellung” later that same year.“Great German Art” in the eyes of the Nazi was art that promoted the Aryan race, (a strong youth with light hair, light eyes, and light skin) promote the Nazi party, and the Nazi army. The acceptable art also included pieces that made the Jews look defective. By putting the two exhibits across the street from one another, the German public was given a chance to clearly see what was and was not acceptable art in German culture.
In defining and understanding Degenerate Art, I think it helps to understand the meaning of both words, as well as the meaning of "art" in English in order to make a comparison and create relations between the German and English definitions.
From the New English-German Dictionary:
entartet - degenerate
die entartete Kunst - Degenerate Art
From the Oxford English Dictionary:
art, n. - I. Skill; its display or application. Sing. art (abstractly); no plural. II. Anything wherein skill may be attained or displayed. Sing. an art; pl. arts. III. Skillful, crafty, or artificial conduct.
degenerate, adj. - 1. Having lost the qualities proper to the race or kind; having declined from a higher to a lower type; hence, declined in character or qualities; debased, degraded. a. of persons.
From the Encyclopedia Britannica, entartet "refers to art that is unclassifiable or so far beyond the confines of what is accepted that it is in essense 'non-art'" (97).
The advent of entartete Kunst brought into view the rejection of modernist art and the revisited embrace classical art. With the Modernist art, the National Socialists viewed it as lacking the tangible and actual representation of how things were in reality. In a sense, abstraction had no place in society in the eyes of the Nationalist Socialists.
This is evident in the National Socialists' rise to power in 1933 where "one of their first acts was an attack on contemporary authors" which led to he "[rejection] and [censuring of] virutally everything that had existed on the German modern art scene prior to 1933" (94). If an artist had been pro-Nazi, their art was not salvaged from condemnation. Die Kunst des 20. Jahrhunderts (The art of the twentieth century) was used "as a guide by many of the National Socialists in defining who and what was modern, and consequently 'un-German' and to be vilified" (95).
Degenerate art brought with it a reformation of art with the rejection of abstraction and intangibility and the conformity of idealistic "perfect" art. While Hitler and the Nazis sought to improve intellectual art by conforming to classical art and rejecting modern art, their conformity detracts from the betterment of society by condemning the intellect of the modernists who have paved the way for society today. Ironically, "[m]ovements such as Expressionism, Cubism, and Dada were often viewed as intellectual, elitist, and foreign," contradictory of the Nazi belief that pre-1933 Modernist art lacked insight and correct representation of reality (97-98).
Oops, the citations from pp.94-98 were from Stefanie Barron, not from Encyclopedia Britannica.
"Entartet" in German means "degenerate." - this word is essentially a biological term "defining a plant of animal that has so changed that it no longer belongs to its species."
What does "degenerate" mean? - "degenerate" "refers to art that is unclassifiable or so far beyond the confines of what is accepted that it is in essence non-art"
This means that the art that falls under the degenerate category has no place, and isn't needed in the overall perfect German aesthetic that the Nazi's impose
"ent-" is a prefix which negates the word-root that follows, so something like "without type or kind"
The German art association's goals included a "common action against the corruption of art" and the promotion of an "art that was pure German, with the German soul reflecting art." This is interesting because the Nazi's called all art that wasn't pure German - "degenerate"
“Degenerate” could mean something that is not considered art. In the Britannica Online Encyclopedia it states that degenerate art was a “term used by the Nazi Party in Germany to describe art that did not support the ideals of National Socialism”. “Degenerate art” could mean art that what does not support “German art”. And therefore can’t be part of it, so “degenerate art” is art without a group it can belong to. The Nazis could have called it “degenerate” because they don’t want it to belong it to anything.
The Nazis rejected all art created prior to 1933. “Artists who worked in abstract, Cubist, Expressionist, Surrealist, or other modern styles came under attack (CR 95)”. The National Socialists only approved necromantic and neoclassical whose art depicted “exemplified the Germanic race” (CR 120).
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, Degenerate means having lost normal and desirable qualities. According to the Germans between 1918 and 1945 it was anything that was not pure German. "Degenerate" art was generally thrown out or displayed to show what is not "true" art, and by "true" they meant "Aryan." Some examples of degenerate art would be paintings, sculptures etc... depicting Hitler negatively or involving Jewish culture or a Jewish creator. The ideal art would depict Hitler as a hero and Aryan culture would be idealized.
A Degenerate Art museum was set up "for the purpose of clarifying for the German public by defamation and derision exactly what type of modern art was unacceptable to the REich, and thus 'un-German.'"
Degenerate art was an "undesirable" art and these "undesirable" artists were laid off from where they taught. Art such as Cubism, Expressionism, Surrealism and other modern sytles were considered degenerate art. Degenerate art was pretty much anythign that the Nazis considered out of the norm for them and they wanted only certain types of art portrayed. Those that they didn't want portrayed was considered degenerate. Instead of burning the art that they considered to be degenerate, which would be a possible martyr of art, they just set aside of museum for it so it would be distinguished from other art.
Degeneracy and Nazi Ideology in 1920s and 1930s."
On page 97, in the article, " Degeneracy and Nazi Ideology in the 1920s and 1930s," describes degenerate art as corrupt and dangerous, which the Jews were responsible for introducing into society. It claims that "good German art" was replaced by degenerate art which was driven by the Expressionists, Cubists, Futurists, Dadaists, and anything that belonged to modern art. Natzis blamed the Jews for art that was out of the norm, and anything they produced was considered unacceptable.
The Natzi Party used degenerate art to portray the Jews as radicals who went against German tradition. A strategy they used to condemn these forms of modern, expressionist art was to hold exhibitions, in order to ensure that there is no possibility for an alternative art form to coexist with acceptable Natzi propaganda.
Page 110 of the reader says that "The directive went on to define works of 'degenerate' art as those that either 'insult German feeling, or destroy or confuse natural form, or simply reveal an absence of adequate manual and artistic skill."
I think the German use of the term 'not art', reflects Hitler's and the government's sentiments towards what constitutes art. As was said art has a different meaning than the English word art. German art's definition of type or kind may have something to do with a the expectation that art could be categorized and made to fit a certain criteria or mold. Anything that they deemed art was art everything else was "not art". I wish that were of the most outrageous sins of the Third Reich.
Degenerate, in my opinion, is a term used to describe something which does not follow normal or desirable levels. According to Hitler, "degenerate" art is art that is considered against Nazi beliefs/ideals. On page 121 of the HCC Reader, the article "Beauty without Sensuality: The Exhibition of Entarte Kunst," state that art should be in the realm of accepted images. George L. Mosse states that "those whom society treated as outsiders were now credited with all those characteristics that ran counter to society's image of itself. The mentally ill, Jews, homosexuals, and habitual criminals were all said to be physically unbalanced." So essentially, Hitler's ideas is on the basis that art which is done in a manner to portray these characteristics, or DONE by someone with these characteristics would be deemed degenerate art. Hitler controlled what was considered "Art" based on his own, ignorant, observation.
According to Britannica Online Encylcopedia the term degenerate refers to art which does not support the ideals of Nazi National Socialism. Any art not approved by the Nazi party was considered to be degenerate was advertised as “culture documents of the decadent work of Bolsheviks and Jews.”
The German word entartet means degenerate which refers to something which is so unclassifiable that it is a "non-art" since it doesnt agree with what is accepted at the time and what is considred to be correct, it is unclassifiable and the Nazi's forbade it and made it into a "non-art". Degenerate art is anything that goes against the Nazi's and their vision of a perfect soceity/people. The German people's utopia would not be ruined by any degenerate art and the only art allowed would be that which reflects the perfect ideals of the German people. (HCC pg. 97: Degeneracy and Nazi Ideologies in the 1920s and 1930s.
The HCC reader quotes, "degenerate...by extension, refers to an art that is unclassifiable or so far beyond the confines of what is excepted that is in essence "non-art."
When the Nazi regime took over, their goal was to eliminate the "Jewish problem." Along with this "cleansing" came the elimination of all that was unworthy or unpleasing to the eye. The Nazi's wished to epitomize "aesthetic realism" and create a world that sought the beautiful perfect, blue eyed-blond haired Aryan race.
To the Hitler and the Nazi regime, the photo montages and the realistic portrayal through dadaism was not his kind of aesthetic and was not excepted.
Therefore, we see a move away from the outburst of expression through radical means, and we see the "Hitler cleansing" starting to take place.
The entire name for Degenerate Art in German is Entartete Kunst. Which means this term can be translated as "without type or kind of art." When the Nazi gained total control, they politicized aesthetic issues also, determining what is "a type of art" and what is not. Basically, all of the art that contains any sort of ideology that is different from Nazi ideology would be considered Degenerate Art. According to Barron's article, "By extension it refers to art that is unclassifiable or so far beyond the confines of what is accepted that it is in essence "non-art". Since the Nazi had complete control of aesthetic issues through the Reichskammern, they can determine what is "accepted" and what is not. So ideals such as Expressionism, Cubism, Dada were all prohibited since they were so far from the Nazi ideals that there is no way they can be art.
the idea that "entartet" (degenerate) is about being, as elvin wrote beyond "normal or desirable levels" or as amanda wrote, "so unclassifiable," helps to get at the reasons why it might be something not only to object to, but also something that poses a threat to the "norms" of society. this seems to be the remaining question, that is, WHY would the Nazi's care so much about not only opposing but really denigrating certain forms of art? many of you point to this when you acknowledge the importance of exhibiting the art rather than simply burning it. as kyle mentions, it seems like it would have been a lot better if this was the nazi's only crime. so in a certain way, the question is about what happens when an aesthetic is politicized? a german critic, walter benjamin, who committed suicide rather than be turned over to the authorities right before the end of the war, in fact said that fascism was equal to the politicization of the aesthetic. insofar as the aesthetic is a principle or set of principles that govern the appearance of a piece of art, the aesthetic can also be seen to describe how we perceive not only art, but the world that art represents. in this sense, the aesthetic entails a fight over "reality," as dana mentions in her comment. that all of this comes down to a question of how "reality" is described or portrayed is a deceivingly simple way of looking at the problem. it also returns in the strict communist, soviet "aesthetic" of socialist realism. so there's more...
Degenerate:
1.to fall below a normal or desirable level in physical, mental, or moral qualities; deteriorate: The morale of the soldiers degenerated, and they were unable to fight.
2.to diminish in quality, esp. from a former state of coherence, balance, integrity, etc.: The debate degenerated into an exchange of insults.
3.Pathology. to lose functional activity, as a tissue or organ.
Degenerate art is art that speaks out against Nazi's, so Hitler labeled it as degenerate. So people will see it as being weaker lacking the ability to be at the same level as everything else. These pieces of art were hoped to be thrown out by society once given the label of "degenerate."
Degenerate art in context to the post world war I era in Germany referred to anything that showed and advertised a return to primitive times. Thus degenerate ultimately meant and included anything that did not reflect the forward progress that Hitler envisioned. Everything that went against Hitler's "progressive" vision is thus degenerate in this time period. Flawlessness is ultimately what Hitler and the National Socialists wanted during this time because perfection is a sign of forward evolution, while deformities and imperfection is symbolic of only degeneration and backwards movement. Therefore in context with Hitler's time, degenerate art was typically art that was promoting imperfections and flaws, rather than "good" art which promoted only perfection and flawlessness in the world and its people. It is this belief and manipulation of art that helped to pave the way for Hitler and the National Socialists to proceed with their process of "cleansing" the human race leaving only the stereotypical blonde hair and blue eyed aryan race to rule and inhabit the earth, because they were the perfect beings and were not degenerate like all other people. It seems that in Hitler's eyes, degenerate art and degenerate people are one and the same and all forms of degeneration are to be put away, much like the degenerate art of the time.
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