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What does everyone think about 'Postmodernism'? What does it mean in practice? Is it just a fashionable term that leaves us unenlightened about our historical and cultural condition?
Posting details: Posted by Andrew | Posting Date - 8th June 2008 21:43
Well consider the word postmodern - I think people are just confused by the "post" prefixed to "modern". When I first heard this word, I thought it was something beyond the modern world - something futuristic...
Posting details: Posted by Raymond | Posting Date - 11th June 2008 9:13
Postmodernism simply resists or rejects Modernism. It refutes Enlightenment reason and structure.
Posting details: Posted by Nicholas | Posting Date - 15th June 2008 10:47
Nicholas, is it just limited to going against the ideas of Modernism? Personally, I think it is a cliché to say that we live in a postmodern world. In a general sense, I think the term is regarded as a rejection of many, if not most, of the cultural certainties of the Western world.
Posting details: Posted by Steven | Posting Date - 17th June 2008 13:27
Yes I believe with Nicholas. I believe the field of architecture was where Postmodernism first took off, with the distinct visual elements that resisted the conventions of Modernism. Through the borrowing of elements and references from the past and reintroducing colour and symbolism to architecture, many architects believed this added new levels of meaning, opening up interpretations.
Postmodernism, in my understanding, playfully challenges existing ideas, truths and certainties about reality, time and space. Between every composer, text and reader, the challenge of meaning and absolute truth can exist, breaking conventional modernist beliefs.
But we shouldn't forget - Postmodernism resists a definition!
Posting details: Posted by Bill | Posting Date - 20th June 2008 11:47
Good post Bill. But is Postmodernism any different from other ways of thinking that challenge conventional beliefs? We see many art styles emerge that look abstract. Aren't they also challenging conventional plain paintings?
Posting details: Posted by Raymond | Posting Date - 28th June 2008 20:07
Postmodernism isn't just about setting itself apart from conventional structures and forms. Many modernists did this! Postmodernism tends to employ self-conscious techniques to draw attention to the constructed nature of the text.
Posting details: Posted by Bill | Posting Date - 29th June 2008 12:20