Introduction to Postmodernism

Introduction to Postmodernism Why Reality Isn’t What It Used to Be Deconstructing Mrs. Miller Questions 1. What is postmodernism? 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Why should we care about it? Have you received a modern or postmodern education? What does postmodernism have to say about your identity? What does postmodernism have to say about truth, beauty, and goodness? How postmodernism is impacting K-12 education, religion, the arts, and our daily lives. as Timeline Evolution of Western Thought Naturalistic Theocentric Economic Humanistic TRADITIONAL WESTERN “MODERN” THINKING Timeline Modernity RENAISSANCE TO ABOUT 1900 (+/- 30 years) Baudrillard:  Early modernity: Modernity: Postmodernity: Renaissance to Industrial Revolution Industrial Revolution Period of mass media    The world according to white Anglo-Saxon males from Europe TRADITIONAL WESTERN “MODERN” THINKING Timeline Your Place in History 14th C  1900  2000  Modern Modernism Postmodernism You are here TRADITIONAL WESTERN “MODERN” THINKING Timeline Your Place in History as 14th C  1900  2000  Modern Modernism Postmodernism Your teachers were / are here TRADITIONAL WESTERN “MODERN” THINKING Newtonian Order Modernity  God, reason and progress  There was a center to the universe. Progress is based upon knowledge, and man is capable of discerning objective absolute truths in science and the arts.   Modernism is linked to capitalism—progressive economic administration of world Modernization of 3rd world countries (imposition of modern Western values)  TRADITIONAL WESTERN “MODERN” THINKING What Is Language? Language & Truth as  People are the same everywhere  There are universal laws and truths Knowledge is objective, independent of culture, gender, etc. Language is a man-made tool that refers to real things / truths I, the subject, speak language I have a discernible self      The self is the center of existence TRADITIONAL WESTERN “MODERN” THINKING Purpose of Literature Liberal Humanism: View of Literature  Good literature is of timeless significance.  The text will reveal constants, universal truths, about human nature, because human nature itself is constant and unchanging. TRADITIONAL WESTERN “MODERN” THINKING Death of the Old Order Modernism  Early 1900s:  World War I Worldwide poverty & exploitation  PRECURSORS OF POSTMODERNISM Death of the Old Order Modernism  Early 1900s:  World War I Worldwide poverty & exploitation   Intellectual upheaval:  Freud: psychoanalysis Marx: class struggle Kierkegaard, Heidegger, Neitzsche    Picasso, Stravinsky, Kafka, Proust, Brecht, Joyce, Eliot PRECURSORS OF POSTMODERNISM The Bending of Time & Space Relativism  Einstein: relativity, quantum mechanics  Refutation of Newtonian science Time is relative Matter and energy are one    Light as both particle and wave Universe is strange E=mc2  PRECURSORS OF POSTMODERNISM Breaking the Rules Modernist Art  Cubism Surrealism Dadaism Expressionism    PRECURSORS OF POSTMODERNISM Breaking the Rules Modernist Art  Cubism Surrealism Dadaism Expressionism    PRECURSORS OF POSTMODERNISM Breaking the Rules Modernist Art  Cubism Surrealism Dadaism Expressionism    PRECURSORS OF POSTMODERNISM Breaking the Rules Modernist Art  Cubism Surrealism Dadaism Expressionism    PRECURSORS OF POSTMODERNISM A World with No Center Modernist Literature “Things fall apart, The centre cannot hold, Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.” --Yeats, “The Second Coming” PRECURSORS OF POSTMODERNISM Breaking the Rules Modernist Literature  Emphasis on impressionism and subjectivity Movement away from “objective” third-party narration Tendency toward reflexivity and selfconsciousness Obsession with the psychology of self Rejection of traditional aesthetic theories Experimentation with language      PRECURSORS OF POSTMODERNISM Acceptance of a New Age What is Postmodernism?  Continuation of modernist view  Does not mourn loss of history, self, religion, center A term applied to all human sciences — anthropology, psychology, architecture, history, etc. Reaction to modernism; systematic skepticism Anti-foundational    POSTMODERNISM Acceptance of a New Age What is Postmodernism?  The Enlightenment project is dead. POSTMODERNISM Culture & Capital Frederick Jameson  Modernism and postmodernism are cultural formations that accompany specific stages of capitalism 1. Market capitalism: 18th-19th C. Steam locomotive Realism 2. Monopoly capitalism: Late 19th C to WWII Electricity and automobile Modernism Multinational/consumer capitalism Nuclear and electronics 3. Postmodernism POSTMODERNISM The End of Master Narratives Postmodernism: Basic Concepts  Life just is  Rejection of all master narratives All “truths” are contingent cultural constructs Skepticism of progress; anti-technology bias    Sense of fragmentation and decentered self Multiple conflicting identities Mass-mediated reality   POSTMODERNISM The End of Master Narratives Postmodernism: Basic Concepts  All versions of reality are SOCIAL CONSTRUCTS  Concepts of good and evil Metaphors for God Language The self Gender EVERYTHING!      POSTMODERNISM Language As Social Construct Postmodernism: Basic Concepts  Language is a social construct that “speaks” & identifies the subject Knowledge is contingent, contextual and linked to POWER Truth is pluralistic, dependent upon the frame of reference of the observer Values are derived from ordinary social practices, which differ from culture to culture and change with time.     Values are determined by manipulation and domination POSTMODERNISM Relativism & Pluralism Richard Rorty (1931-)  A “pragmatic philosopher” Anti-foundationalist No reality independent of our minds Truth is the result of inter-subjective agreement between members of a community We must choose between self-defeating relativism or solidarity of thought within our group The goal of the “search for truth” is to help us carry out practical tasks and create a fairer and more democratic society POSTMODERNISM      The Observer is King Postmodern View of Language  Observer is a participant/part of what is observed  Receiver of message is a component of the message Information becomes information only when contextualized   The individual (the subject) is a cultural construct Consider role of own culture when examining others All interpretation is conditioned by cultural perspective and mediated by symbols and practice POSTMODERNISM   Play and Parody PostModern Literature  Extreme freedom of form and expression Repudiation of boundaries of narration & genre Intrusive, self-reflexive author Parodies of meta-narratives Deliberate violation of standards of sense and decency (which are viewed as methods of social control) Integration of everyday experience, pop culture      POSTMODERNISM Fragmented Identities PostModern Literature  Parody, play, black humor, pastiche Nonlinear, fragmented narratives Ambiguities and uncertainties Conspiracy and paranoia Ironic detachment Linguistic innovations Postcolonial, global-English literature       POSTMODERNISM Binary Oppositions Modernity  PostModern  History as fact Faith in social order Family as central unit Authenticity of originals Mass consumption Written by the victors Cultural pluralism Alternate families Hyper-reality (MTV) Niches; small group identity         POSTMODERNISM Modern or Postmodern? POSTMODERNISM Modern or Postmodern? POSTMODERNISM Modern or Postmodern? POSTMODERNISM Modern or Postmodern? POSTMODERNISM Modern or Postmodern? A gay Southern Baptist who practices Buddhist meditation and believes in the Big Bang theory. POSTMODERNISM Modern or Postmodern? POSTMODERNISM Modern or Postmodern? POSTMODERNISM Modern or Postmodern? POSTMODERNISM Modern or Postmodern? POSTMODERNISM Modern or Postmodern? POSTMODERNISM Modern or Postmodern? POSTMODERNISM Modern or Postmodern? POSTMODERNISM Modern or Postmodern? POSTMODERNISM Modern or Postmodern? POSTMODERNISM Modern or Postmodern? POSTMODERNISM An Epochal Shift in Thinking PostModernism  “The narrative is unravelled, the author is dead, the Enlightenment project is toast, and history is history.”  “An epochal shift in the basic condition in being.” --Geoffrey Nunberg POSTMODERNISM Battle of World Views PostModernism A Global Battle: THE OBJECTIVISTS vs. THE CONSTRUCTIVISTS POSTMODERNISM My Way PostModernism OBJECTIVISTS “When I said during my presidential bid that I would only bring Christians and Jews into the government, I hit a firestorm. How dare you maintain that those who believe in the JudeoChristian values are better qualified to govern America than Hindus and Muslims?' My simple answer is, `Yes, they are.'” -from Pat Robertson's "The New World Order" POSTMODERNISM Metaphors Kill PostModernism People were burned at the stake for believing there was more than one version of reality. POSTMODERNISM God is Not Dead PostModernism Our public schools have become a postmodern battleground. POSTMODERNISM God is Not Dead PostModernism You can be a Christian (or Buddhist, or Hindu, etc.) in the postmodern world. POSTMODERNISM We Live in the Middle PostModernism We all slip and slide between the objective and constructive views: 1. We live in a world of naïve realism. 2. But when we think about things, or have to explain our views, we become constructivists. POSTMODERNISM How Popular Culture Changes as RAYMOND WILLIAMS  Dominant ideology controls Human agency: people work together to bring about change Takes into account pluralism of a culture   POSTSTRUCTURALISM Acceptance of Pluralism How Popular Culture Changes Playboy Bunnies & June Cleaver Monica in “Friends” Carrie in “Sex & The City” Samantha in “Sex & The City” Courtney Love Celebrating Diversity PostModernism  THE HOPE OF POSTMODERNISTS: The deconstruction of foundational views will lead to a recognition and acceptance of a pluralistic worldview.   Create a truly global civilization. POSTMODERNISM Celebrating Diversity Literary & FilmTheory  Different constructs of reality “Lenses” through which we see the world  ? POSTMODERNISM