THE INFLUENCE OF SURREALISM IN FILM AND LITERATURE

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN DE MODE

Article Published on: 24TH APR 2025 | www.demodemagazine.com

Surrealism, emerging from the Dada movement after World War I, profoundly influenced both film and literature. Inspired by Freudian psychoanalysis, it sought to unlock the unconscious mind, challenging rationalism and exploring the realm of dreams and the irrational.   

In literature, surrealism manifested through automatic writing, a technique aimed at bypassing conscious thought to express the subconscious freely. Writers combined unconnected images and ideas, playing with words and symbols to create enigmatic and surprising texts that defied logic.  

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Surrealist cinema broke from traditional narrative structures, employing dreamlike visuals, symbolic imagery, and fragmented narratives. Films like Un Chien Andalou by Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dalí, and The Seashell and the Clergyman by Germaine Dulac, are prime examples. These films prioritized the exploration of the subconscious over linear storytelling, using techniques like disjointed editing, juxtaposition, and symbolic imagery to evoke a sense of the dreamlike and challenge the viewer's perception of reality.   

The movement's impact extends beyond the early avant-garde films. the article points out, surrealism's influence can be seen in later works, including films by Alfred Hitchcock and David Lynch, demonstrating its lasting legacy on cinematic language and storytelling. Similarly, in literature, surrealism's emphasis on the irrational and the subconscious continues to inspire writers to explore the boundaries of language and narrative.