Futurism Essay Example

Futurism Essay The article discussed the establishment of Futurism. It narrates how the movement began and the rationale behind its foundation. Through the words of Marinetti himself, readers are able to understand how he and others came about the realization that a change in the mindset of people was needed. He tells the story of the events leading up to the establishment of movement. More importantly, the article lays down the manifesto of Futurism.The beginning of the article is the story of how Marinetti and his friends began to lay down the foundations of Futurism. The first few paragraphs discuss the near-death encounters of Marinetti and his friends. More importantly, Marinetti explains how such events did not deter them from their quest to announce to the world their intentions and the changes they want to make to the prevailing ideologies in society.The article then lists down the elements of the Manifesto of Futurism. The manifesto contains 11 statements that detail the beliefs that the m ovement has. These elements basically point to the ideology that people should avoid looking back at the past and instead, look ahead to the future. The manifesto states that Marinetti and his friends intend to tackle the dangers and uncertainty of the future head on with courage, audacity, and revolt. Furthermore, it calls for aggressiveness in facing the future events. Another important element in the manifesto is the call for glorification of war, militarism, and patriotism. Also, the manifesto calls for the destruction of museums, libraries, and academies. In the same statement, Marinetti and company indicate their intentions to battle movements that they feel are derogatory such as moralism and feminism. The futurists believe that these movements signify opportunistic or utilitarian cowardice.Having laid down the principles of Futurism, Marinetti moved on to justifying the rationale behind their beliefs. He states that the movement will be launched from Italy. He outlined the p urpose of the movement by saying, â€Å"We want to free this land from its smelly gangrene of professors, archeologists, ciceroni, and antiquarians.†Marinetti believed that museums and libraries only held back the courage of facing the future. He did not see the use of visiting libraries and museums for he believed that looking back at elements of the past will only lead people to be â€Å"exhausted, shrunken, and beaten down.† He then compared visits to museums to the prolonged supervision of parents of their children. He believed that just like the latter, visiting museums only hinders the growth and development of the talents and skills of the young. Marinetti then clearly stated that he, together with other Futurists, wants no part of the past. The latter part of the article calls for people to join the Futurists. Marinetti calls upon all others to join in flooding museums and in setting fire to library shelves.Marinetti believed that when he grows older, his succe ssors will have no use for him and his friends. He understands and accepts that the younger generation will, â€Å"Throw us in the wastebasket like useless manuscripts.† More importantly, he wants it to happen for he believes that at that point he has become an element of the past and will not be of any use to anyone.Marinetti ends his article with a statement against the movement’s critics and detractors. He states their refusal to be affected by the criticism for they do not care about what others says. He ends his writing with the statement, â€Å"Erect on the summit of the world, once again we hurl our defiance to the stars!†