From the 'early modern' period to the present moment, the United States
has consistently been associated with notions of modernization and
modernity. Nevertheless, ideas of what is considered modern change over
time, in accordance with a respective historical context's understanding
of the 'old' or 'ancient.' And although any period in US history is
(self-)stylized as modern, the discourse of modernity culminates
particularly at the beginning of the twentieth century, when fundamental
categories and concepts of spatial, temporal, and moral orientation were
redefined. This volume combines two lines of inquiry: it brings together
new assessments of turn-of-the-century modernity in diverse formats such
as literature, film, and stage performances and it offers investigations
of modernity and modernization in other eras and media, including
depression-era documentaries, the 1940 and 1964 World's Fairs,
twenty-first-century computer games, and augmented reality art projects.