André Breton’s 1924 Surrealist Manifesto is a document that outlines the key principles of surrealism and its revolutionary vision for society. The manifesto is considered one of the most important documents in 20th-century art and literature, and it marked a turning point in the history of modernism.
The Manifesto begins by asserting that “pure psychic automatism” can be used as a means to liberate the mind from “the bonds of reason” and achieve what Breton calls “absolute reality.” This is achieved through a process called “surrealism,” which Breton describes as “pure psychic automatism by which one proposes to express—verbally, by means of the written word, or in any other manner—the actual functioning of thought.”
The manifesto goes on to outline various key principles: firstly, that there are no limits on what can be expressed; secondly, that all forms of art are equal; thirdly, that chance is an acceptable element of creation; fourthly, that all forms of writing can be valid; fifthly, that there should be no rules governing what is or isn’t considered acceptable subject matter for artistic expression; sixthly, that there should be no boundaries between high culture and low culture.
