Recently, much attention has been directed toward women who were involved in the avant-garde art movement, particularly in the first half of the 20th century. Notably, the literary works of Emmy Hennings are being republished, mainly in Germany. The main concern of the female Dadaist is her scandalous and unparalleled life. She spent her tumultuous life walking from the northernmost German city of Flensburg to big cities of Cologne, Berlin, and Munich, eventually reaching Ascona of Switzerland via Zurich Dada movements̶Ruth Hemus described her as a living example of Dada. Many have focused on the lifestyle of the first half of her life; at the same time, the second half of her life, in which she published most of her literary works, remains unnoticed. Furthermore, the avant-garde nature of her works has also not been fully examined.
Beginning by elaborating on the history that has been added to her evaluation, this paper attempts to describe, as neutrally as possible, a full picture of Emmy Hennings as a female avant-gardist based on the facts of her work. Specifically, by focusing on the relationship between her vigorous literary activities and her actual dance, I intend to re-evaluate her role in the avant-garde movement. Literature and dance are important linkages that indicate the keyword of transnationalism in the avant-garde art movement of the time, and they are also important elements in unraveling Hennings's avant-garde thoughts. While the close relationship between Zurich Dada and Ausdruckstanz, led by Rudolf von Laban, has been revealed in recent studies, some studies have indicated a different direction in the relationship between Hennings's dance and Ausdruckstanz as well. Christa Baumberger asserts that Hennings's dance is grotesque dance and points out that it is largely different from Ausdruckstanz. However, Hennings's inconsistent and disparate dance expressions, interpreted as representations of the grotesqueness of war, were also a condemnation of the grotesqueness of a woman's body, an existence to be seen. Moreover, the gaze on a woman's body, an existence to be seen, was also presented as the motif in her literary works. The stance of passivity that gave Hennings a negative image, namely the abandoned subject, liberated the body known as a mental cage instead and portrayed the body image as an open possibility that could realize
transgenderism
as well. Therefore, this paper uncovers the solid existence and involvement of women’s literature works in avant-garde movements, something that has never been referenced.
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