Defamiliarization is an artistic technique that presents ordinary things in a strange or unfamiliar way, encouraging audiences to see them from a new perspective. This concept has influenced 20th-century art and theory, shaping movements like Dadaism, postmodernism, and epic theatre. The term “defamiliarization” was first introduced in 1917 by Russian formalist Viktor Shklovsky in his essay Art as Technique. Shklovsky used it to explain how poetic language differs from everyday language. He argued that poetic language is harder to understand because it is less straightforward, and this complexity is essential for creating art. According to Shklovsky, art helps us view the world in a fresh and meaningful way by making the ordinary seem unfamiliar. This process of slowing down and paying attention gives art its value; without it, we might experience the world in a dull, automatic manner.
In everyday life, we often do things automatically because we become so used to them. For instance, when we first use a pen or speak a new language, it takes a lot of effort. But over time, these actions become second nature, and we do them without thinking. This habit of automating our thoughts helps us process things quickly but can make us forget details, making life feel less real. Art exists to challenge this automatic way of perceiving things. Its purpose is to make us see and feel things more deeply and freshly. Art does this by making ordinary objects seem strange, encouraging us to slow down and pay attention to details. For example, in his work Shame, Tolstoy describes the act of flogging in a way that feels odd and uncomfortable, avoiding typical language to make it seem unfamiliar. This technique is called Defamiliarisation.
The technique of defamiliarization is evident in English Romantic poetry, particularly in the works of Wordsworth and Coleridge. Shklovsky illustrates this concept using an example from Leo Tolstoy’s story Kholstomer, where the narrator is a horse. Viewing the world from a horse’s perspective makes ordinary things appear strange and new to readers. Shklovsky also observed that Russian writers like Maxim Gorky were beginning to use everyday speech in their works instead of the traditional formal literary style. This shift gave literature a fresh and unfamiliar quality.
Defamiliarization also occurs when writers use foreign languages or unusual dialects in their work. In Shklovsky’s time, Russian literary language, once seen as foreign, had become commonplace. To bring back a sense of strangeness, writers began incorporating local dialects or foreign words into their literature. Some examples of Defamiliarisation in literature are:
- Franz Kafka’s Metamorphosis: the protagonist wakes up one morning transformed into a giant insect.
- Marquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude: it blurs the line between reality and fantasy.
- Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland: it presents an ordinary girl’s world turned magical.