Postmodernism
preceded by Modernism
Postmodernity Postchristianity Postmodern philosophy Postmodern architecture Postmodern art Postmodernist film Postmodern literature Postmodern music Postmodern theater Critical theory Globalization Consumerism

Postmodernism is a term originating in architecture, literally 'after the modern', denoting a style that is more ornamental than modernism, and which borrows from previous architectural styles, often in a playful or ironic fashion. Modernism describes an array of Cultural movements rooted in the changes in Western society in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century Postmodernity (also spelled post-modernity or the pejorative postmodern condition) is generally used to describe the economic and/or cultural state or condition Postchristianity, postChristendom or postChristianism are variants of a term used to describe a contemporary cultural attitude strictly linked to Postmodernism Postmodern philosophy' is a philosophical direction which is critical of the foundational assumptions and structures of philosophy Postmodern architecture was an international style whose first examples are generally cited as being from the 1950s and which continues to influence present-day Architecture Postmodern art is a term used to describe art which is thought to be in contradiction to some aspect of Modernism, or to have emerged or developed in its aftermath Postmodernist film describes the articulation of ideas of Postmodernism through the cinematic medium. The term Postmodern literature is used to describe certain tendencies in post- World War II literature Postmodern music is music which follows the postmodern ideology Postmodern theatre is a recent phenomenon in world Theatre, coming as it does out of the postmodern Philosophy that originated in Europe in the In the Humanities and Social sciences, critical theory is the examination and critique of Society and Literature, drawing from knowledge across Globalization (or globalisation) in its literal sense is the process of transformation of local or regional phenomena into global ones Consumerism is the equation of personal Happiness with the purchase of material possessions and consumption. Modernism describes an array of Cultural movements rooted in the changes in Western society in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century Irony is a literary or Rhetorical device, in which there is an incongruity or Discordance between what one says or does and what one means or Later, the term was used in painting, music and philosophy for any pluralistic style that reacts against high modernism^[1]. Painting (pān'tīng in Art, is the practice of applying Color to a Surface (support base such as e Music is an Art form in which the medium is Sound organized in Time. Philosophy is the study of general problems concerning matters such as existence knowledge truth beauty justice validity mind and language It is used in critical theory and has been the point of departure for works of literature, architecture, and design, as well as in marketing and business and the interpretation of history, law and culture in the late 20th century. In the Humanities and Social sciences, critical theory is the examination and critique of Society and Literature, drawing from knowledge across Literature is the Art of written works Literally translated the word means "acquaintance with letters" (from Latin littera letter The term architecture (from Greek αρχιτεκτονικήarchitektoniki) can be used to mean a process a profession or documentation Design is used both as a Noun and a Verb. The term is often tied to the various Applied arts and Engineering (See design disciplines History is the study of the past particularly the written record Those who study history as a Profession are called Historians Etymology Law is a system of rules enforced through a set of Institutions used as an instrument to underpin civil obedience politics economics and society Culture (from the Latin cultura stemming from colere, meaning "to cultivate" generally refers to patterns of human activity and the symbolic The twentieth century of the Common Era began on

Postmodernism was originally a reaction to modernism. Modernism describes an array of Cultural movements rooted in the changes in Western society in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century Largely influenced by the Western European disillusionment induced by World War II, postmodernism tends to refer to a cultural, intellectual, or artistic state lacking a clear central hierarchy or organizing principle and embodying extreme complexity, contradiction, ambiguity, diversity, and interconnectedness or interreferentiality. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including ^[2]

Postmodernity is a derivative referring to non-art aspects of history that were influenced by the new movement, namely developments in society, economy and culture since the 1960s. Postmodernity (also spelled post-modernity or the pejorative postmodern condition) is generally used to describe the economic and/or cultural state or condition ^[3] When the idea of a reaction or rejection of modernism was borrowed by other fields, it became synonymous in some contexts with postmodernity. Modernism describes an array of Cultural movements rooted in the changes in Western society in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century This article deals with the general meaning of the term "synonym" The term is closely linked with poststructuralism (cf. Post-structuralism encompasses the intellectual developments of continental philosophers and critical theorists who wrote with tendencies of twentieth-century Jacques Derrida) and with modernism, in terms of a rejection of its bourgeois, elitist culture. ^[4]

Contents 1 History 2 Influence and distinction from postmodernity 3 The usage and extent of the concept of ‘postmodernism’ 4 Overview 5 Development of postmodernism 5.1 Origins in architecture 5.2 Notable philosophical and literary contributors 5.2.1 Philosophical Movements and contributors 6 Deconstruction 6.1 Social construction, structuralism, poststructuralism 7 Criticism 7.1 As meaningless and disingenuous 7.2 As political 8 Quotations 9 See also 9.1 Theoretical postmodernism 9.2 Cultural and political postmodernism 9.3 Postmodernism in law 9.4 Postmodernism in theology 10 References 11 Further reading 12 External links

History

The term was used as early as 1914 in an article in The Hibbert Journal (a quarterly philosophical review) written by J. M. Thompson. In this context it was used to describe fundamental changes in attitudes and beliefs within Christian society of the time ('Post-Modernism, J. M. Thompson, The Hibbert Journal Vol XII No. 4 July 1914 p. 733). It was then recoined in 1949 to describe a dissatisfaction with modern architecture, leading to the postmodern architecture movement. This article is concerned with architectural aspects of Modernism; for the most recent developments in architecture see Contemporary architecture. Postmodern architecture was an international style whose first examples are generally cited as being from the 1950s and which continues to influence present-day Architecture ^[5] Postmodernism in architecture is marked by the re-emergence of surface ornament, reference to surrounding buildings in urban architecture, historical reference in decorative forms, and non-orthogonal angles. Postmodern architecture was an international style whose first examples are generally cited as being from the 1950s and which continues to influence present-day Architecture It may be a response to the modernist architectural movement known as the International Style. The International style was a major Architectural style of the 1920s and 1930s

Later, the term was applied to several movements, including in art, music, and literature, that reacted against modernism, and are typically marked by revival of traditional elements and techniques. ^[6] Walter Truett Anderson identifies postmodernism as one of four world views. Walter Truett Anderson (b in 1930 is a Political scientist, futurist and author of numerous books Ph These four worldviews are the postmodern-ironist, which sees truth as socially constructed, the scientific-rational in which truth is 'found' through methodical, disciplined inquiry, the social-traditional in which truth is found in the heritage of American and Western civilisation and the neo-romantic in which truth is found either through attaining harmony with nature and/or spiritual exploration of the inner self. ^[7]

Influence and distinction from postmodernity

Postmodernist ideas in philosophy and the analysis of culture and society expanded the importance of critical theory and has been the point of departure for works of literature, architecture, and design, as well as being visible in marketing/business and the interpretation of history, law and culture, starting in the late 20th century. Philosophy is the study of general problems concerning matters such as existence knowledge truth beauty justice validity mind and language Culture (from the Latin cultura stemming from colere, meaning "to cultivate" generally refers to patterns of human activity and the symbolic A society is a Population of Humans characterized by patterns of relationships between individuals that share a distinctive Culture and Institutions In the Humanities and Social sciences, critical theory is the examination and critique of Society and Literature, drawing from knowledge across Literature is the Art of written works Literally translated the word means "acquaintance with letters" (from Latin littera letter The term architecture (from Greek αρχιτεκτονικήarchitektoniki) can be used to mean a process a profession or documentation Design is used both as a Noun and a Verb. The term is often tied to the various Applied arts and Engineering (See design disciplines History is the study of the past particularly the written record Those who study history as a Profession are called Historians Etymology Law is a system of rules enforced through a set of Institutions used as an instrument to underpin civil obedience politics economics and society Culture (from the Latin cultura stemming from colere, meaning "to cultivate" generally refers to patterns of human activity and the symbolic The twentieth century of the Common Era began on These developments — re-evaluation of the entire Western value system (love, marriage, popular culture, shift from industrial to service economy) that took place since 1950's and 1960's, with a peak in the Social Revolution of 1968 — are described with the term postmodernity, as opposed to postmodernism, a term referring to an opinion or movement. Love is any of a number of Emotions and experiences related to a sense of strong Affection. NOTICE TO WOULD-BE ROMEOS ************** Popular culture (or pop culture) is the Culture — patterns of human activity and the symbolic structures that give such activities significance and importance — In Sociology, industrial society refers to a society with a modern societal structure Service economy can refer to one or both of two recent economic developments For other events in May 1968 see 1968. Postmodernity (also spelled post-modernity or the pejorative postmodern condition) is generally used to describe the economic and/or cultural state or condition Whereas something being "postmodernist" would make it part of the movement, its being "postmodern" would place it in the period of time since the 1950s, making it a part of contemporary history. The 1950s Decade refers to the years of 1950 to 1959 inclusive Contemporary history describes the term of Historical events that are immediately relevant to the present time

Notwithstanding the foregoing distinctions, both terms can be synonymous and interchangeable in common parlance, given the fluidity and ongoing evolution of their definitions.

The usage and extent of the concept of ‘postmodernism’

Whether ‘postmodernism’ is seen as a critical concept or merely a buzzword, one cannot deny its range. Dick Hebdige, in his ‘Hiding in the Light’ illustrates this:

When it becomes possible for people to describe as ‘postmodern’ the décor of a room, the design of a building, the diegesis of a film, the construction of a record, or a ‘scratch’ video, a television commercial, or an arts documentary, or the ‘intertextual’ relations between them, the layout of a page in a fashion magazine or critical journal, an anti-teleological tendency within epistemology, the attack on the ‘metaphysics of presence’ a general attenuation of feeling, the collective chagrin and morbid projections of a post-War generation of baby boomers confronting disillusioned middle-age, the ‘predicament of reflexitivity, a group of rhetorical tropes, a proliferation of surfaces, a new phase in commodity fetishism, a fascination for images, codes and styles, a process of cultural, political or existential fragmentation and/or crisis, the ‘de-centring’ of the subject, an ‘incredulity towards metanarratives’, the replacement of unitary power axes by a plurality of power/discourse formations, the ‘implosion of meaning’, the collapse of cultural hierarchies, the dread engendered by the threat of nuclear self-destruction, the decline of the university, the functioning and effects of the new miniaturised technologies, broad societal and economic shifts into a ‘media’, ‘consumer’ or ‘multinational’ phase, a sense (depending on who you read) of ‘placelessness’ or the abandonment of ‘placelessness’ (critical regionalism) or (even) a generalised substitution of spatial for temporal coordinates: when it becomes possible to describe all these things as ‘postmodern’ (or more simply using a current abbreviation as ‘post’ or ‘very post’) then it’s clear we are in the presence of a buzzword. ^[8]

Overview

The argument against the need for the concept is that the "modern" era has not yet arrived at its term; and that the most important social and political project of our age remains modernism's project of replacing counter-enlightenment and emotionalist tendencies, as well as combating widespread cultural ignorance, pervasive superstition, and mindless resistance to technological and social innovations. From this perspective, the realities of the modern era, and its philosophical underpinnings, are being challenged by a backlash from precisely that reactionary quarter against which modernism in fact began its initial late 19th-century crusade. On the other hand more nuanced non-postmodernist thinkers and writers (quoted below) hold that postmodernism is at best simply a period following upon modernism; a hybrid variety of it; or an extension of modernism into contemporary times; and therefore not a separate period or idea which represents a departure from the theories of art familiar to us from Stravinsky, Mann, Kandinsky, Mondrian and Baudelaire. Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (Игорь Фёдорович Стравинский) ( &ndash 6 April 1971 was a Russian born Composer, considered by many to Paul Thomas Mann ( June Wassily Kandinsky (Russian Василий Кандинский first name pronounced as) ( – 13 December 1944 was a Russian painter, Printmaker Pieter Cornelis (Piet Mondriaan, after 1912 Mondrian, (pronounced Dutch pit 'mɔndrian later pit 'mɔndɹiɔn ( March 7, 1872 &ndash February

As with all questions of division, there is a range of viewpoints between the hardened extremes of declaring that modernity has been completely replaced, and the other which sees postmodernism as a useless term that describes nothing. However, the term applies particularly well to revisionist and deconstructive literature and visual art. It is a contemporary evidence of what historians meant by Mannerism.

Postmodernist scholars argue that a global, decentralized society such as ours inevitably creates responses/perceptions that are described as postmodern, such as the rejection of what are seen as the false, imposed unities of meta-narrative and hegemony; the breaking of traditional frames of genre, structure and stylistic unity; and the overthrowing of categories that are the result of logocentrism and other forms of artificially imposed order. In Critical theory, and particularly Postmodernism, a metanarrative (from Meta - Narrative, sometimes also known as a master- or Hegemony (hɨˈdʒɛməni (Amer /hɨˈɡɛməni/ (Brit (ἡγεμονία hēgemonía) is a concept that has been used to describe and explain the dominance of one social In Critical theory and Deconstruction, logocentrism is a phrase coined by the German philosopher Ludwig Klages in the 1920s to refer to the perceived tendency Scholars who accept the division of postmodernity as a distinct period believe that society has collectively eschewed modern ideals and instead adopted ideas that are rooted in the reaction to the restrictions and limitations of those ideas, and that the present is therefore a new historical period. While the characteristics of postmodern life are sometimes difficult to grasp, most postmodern scholars point to concrete and visible technological and economic changes that they claim have brought about the new types of thinking.

There is a great deal of disagreement over whether or not recent technological and cultural changes represent a new historical period, or merely an extension of the modern one. Complicating matters further, others have argued that even the postmodern era has already ended, with some commentators asserting culture has entered a post-postmodern period. Post-postmodernism is a term applied to a wide-ranging set of developments in Critical theory, Philosophy, Architecture, Art, Literature In his essay "The Death of Postmodernism and Beyond", Alan Kirby has argued that we now inhabit an entirely new cultural landscape, which he calls "pseudo-modernism". ^[9] This idea has been extended by A. Carlill and S. Willis, with the latter describing postmodernism as "more the rough outline of a set of self-referential ideals than a genuine cultural movement". ^[10]

Development of postmodernism

Origins in architecture

Main article: Postmodern architecture

The movement of Postmodernism began with architecture, as a reactionary movement against the perceived blandness and hostility present in the Modern movement. The term architecture (from Greek αρχιτεκτονικήarchitektoniki) can be used to mean a process a profession or documentation Modern Architecture as established and developed by masters such as Walter Gropius and Philip Johnson was focused on the pursuit of an ideal perfection, harmony of form and function^[11] and dismissal of frivolous ornament^[12] Critics of modernism argued that the attributes of perfection and minimalism themselves were subjective, and pointed out anachronisms in modern thought and questioned the benefits of its philosophy. This article is concerned with architectural aspects of Modernism; for the most recent developments in architecture see Contemporary architecture. Walter Adolph Georg Gropius ( May 18, 1883 &ndash July 5, 1969) was a German Architect and founder of Bauhaus Philip Cortelyou Johnson (July 8 1906&ndash January 25 2005 was an influential American Architect. An anachronism (from the Greek "ana" " ανά " "against anti-" and "chronos" " χρόνος " ^[13] Definitive postmodern architecture such as the work of Michael Graves rejects the notion of a 'pure' form or 'perfect' architectonic detail, instead conspicuously drawing from all methods, materials, forms and colors available to architects. Michael Graves (born July 9, 1934) is an American Architect. Identified as one of The New York Five, Graves has become a household name Postmodern architecture began the reaction against the almost totalitarian qualities of Modernist thought, favoring personal preferences and variety over objective, ultimate truths or principles. It is this atmosphere of criticism, skepticism and subjectivity that defines the postmodern philosophy.

Notable philosophical and literary contributors

Main article: Postmodern literature

Søren Kierkegaard, Friedrich Nietzsche and other late 19th and early 20th century authors laid the groundwork for the existential movement of the 20th century; they did so through arguments against objectivity and an emphasis on skepticism, especially concerning social morals and societal norms. The term Postmodern literature is used to describe certain tendencies in post- World War II literature Søren Aabye Kierkegaard (ˈsœːɐn ˈkʰiɐ̯kəˌɡ̊ɒˀ in Danish Anglicized as;) Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (October 15 1844 August 25 1900 ( was a nineteenth-century German philosopher and classical philologist Other notable precursors of postmodernism include Laurence Sterne's novel Tristram Shandy, Alfred Jarry's 'Pataphysics, and the work of Lewis Carroll. Laurence Sterne ( November 24, 1713 &ndash March 18, 1768) was an Irish -born English Novelist and an Anglican The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy Gentleman (or more briefly Tristram Shandy) is a novel by Laurence Sterne. Alfred Jarry ( 8 September 1873 &ndash 1 November 1907) was a French Writer born in Laval, Mayenne 'Pataphysics ( French: 'Pataphysique) a term coined by French writer Alfred Jarry (1873 – 1907 is a Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (ˈdɒdsən (27 January 1832 &ndash 14 January 1898 better known by the Pen name Lewis Carroll (/ˈkærəl/ was an English

Art and literature of the early part of the 20th century play a significant part in shaping the character of postmodern culture. Dadaism attacked notions of high art in an attempt to break down the distinctions between high and low culture; Surrealism further developed concepts of Dadaism to celebrate the flow of the subconscious with influential techniques such as automatism and nonsensical juxtapositions (evidence of Surrealism's influence on postmodern thought can be seen in Foucault's and Derrida's references to Rene Magritte's experiments with signification). For other meanings see Dada (disambiguation DaDa is a Concept album by Alice Cooper, released Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early-1920s and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members Automatism has taken on many forms the Automatic writing and drawing initially (and still to this day practiced by surrealists can be compared to similar or perhaps René François Ghislain Magritte ( 21 November 1898 - 15 August 1967) was a Belgian Surrealist artist

Some other significant contributions to postmodern culture from literary figures include the following: Jorge Luis Borges experimented in metafiction and magical realism; William S. Burroughs wrote the prototypical postmodern novel Naked Lunch and developed the cut up method (similar to Tristan Tzara's "How to Make a Dadaist Poem") to create other novels such as Nova Express; Samuel Beckett attempted to escape the shadow of James Joyce by focusing on the failure of language and humanity's inability to overcome its condition, themes later to be explored in such works as Waiting for Godot. Metafiction is a literary term for a type of Fiction that systematically and self-consciously addresses the devices of fiction including the relationship between fiction and Magic realism, or magical realism, is an artistic Genre in which magical elements or illogical scenarios appear in an otherwise realistic or even "normal" William Seward Burroughs II ( – ˈbʌroʊz was an American Novelist, Essayist, Social critic, painter and Spoken word Tristan Tzara (born Samuel or Samy Rosenstock, also known as S Nova Express is a 1964 novel by William Burroughs, whose plot cannot easily be described Samuel Barclay Beckett (13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989 was an Irish Writer, Dramatist and poet James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (2 February 1882 &ndash 13 January 1941 was an Irish expatriate writer widely considered to be one of the most influential writers of the Waiting for Godot is a play by Samuel Beckett, in which two characters wait for someone named Godot who never arrives Writers such as Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus drew heavily from Kierkegaard and Nietzsche, and other previous thinkers, and brought about a new sense of subjectivity, and forlornness, which greatly influenced contemporary thinkers, writers, and artists. Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (21 June 1905 &ndash 15 April 1980 commonly known simply as Jean-Paul Sartre (ʒɑ̃ pol saʁtʁə was a French Albert Camus ( (7 November 1913 – 4 January 1960 was an Algerian born French Author, philosopher, and journalist who won the Nobel prize Karl Barth's fideist approach to theology and lifestyle, brought an irreverence for reason, and the rise of subjectivity. Karl Barth ( May 10, 1886 &ndash December 10, 1968) (pronounced "bart" a Swiss Reformed theologian was one Fideism is the view that Religious belief relies primarily on Faith or Special revelation, rather than rational inference or observation Reason involves the ability to think understand and draw Conclusions in an Abstract way as in Human thinking Subjectivity refers to a subject's perspective particularly feelings beliefs and desires

Postcolonialism after World War II contributed to the idea that one cannot have an objectively superior lifestyle or belief. Postcolonialism ( postcolonial theory, post-colonial theory) is an intellectual discourse that holds together a set of theories found among the texts and World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including This idea was taken further by the anti-foundationalist philosophers: Heidegger, then Ludwig Wittgenstein, then Derrida, who examined the fundamentals of knowledge; they argued that rationality was neither as sure nor as clear as modernists or rationalists assert. Anti-foundationalism (also called nonfoundationalism is a term applied to any philosophy which rejects a foundationalist approach i Martin Heidegger ( September 26, 1889 &ndash May 26, 1976) (ˈmaɐ̯tiːn ˈhaɪ̯dɛgɐ was an influential German philosopher Modernism describes an array of Cultural movements rooted in the changes in Western society in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century In Epistemology and in its broadest sense rationalism is "any view appealing to Reason as a source of knowledge or justification" (Lacey 286 Both World Wars contributed to postmodernism; it is with the end of the Second World War that recognizably postmodernist attitudes begin to emerge. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including

It is possible to identify the burgeoning anti-establishment movements of the 1960s as the constituting event of postmodernism. The 1960s decade refers to the years from the beginning of 1960 to the end of 1969 The theory gained some of its strongest ground early on in French academia. In 1971, the Arab-American Theorist Ihab Hassan was one of the first to use the term in its present form (though it had been used by many others before him, Charles Olson for example, to refer to other literary trends) in his book: The Dismemberment of Orpheus: Toward a Postmodern Literature; in it, Hassan traces the development of what he called "literature of silence" through Marquis de Sade, Franz Kafka, Ernest Hemingway, Beckett, and many others, including developments such as the Theatre of the Absurd and the nouveau roman. Ihab Hassan (born 1925 is an Egyptian Literary theorist and writer Charles Olson ( 27 December 1910 &ndash 10 January 1970) was an important 2nd generation American modernist poet Donatien Alphonse François de Sade, Marquis de Sade ( June 2, 1740 – December 2, 1814) ( was a French aristocrat Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21 1899 — July 2 1961 was an American novelist short-story writer, and Journalist. The Theatre of the Absurd ( French: Théâtre de l'Absurde) is a designation for particular plays written by a number of primarily European Playwrights The nouveau roman ( French: "new novel" is a type of 1950s French Novel that diverged from classical literary genres In 1979 Jean-François Lyotard wrote a short but influential work The Postmodern Condition: A report on knowledge. Jean-François Lyotard (ʒɑ̃ fʀɑ̃swa ljɔˈtaʀ August 10 1924 April 21 1998) was a French philosopher and literary The Postmodern Condition A Report on Knowledge (1979 is a short but influential Philosophy book by Jean-François Lyotard in which he analyses the Richard Rorty wrote Philosophy and the Mirror of Nature (1979). Richard McKay Rorty (October 4 1931 - June 8 2007 was an American Philosopher. Philosophy and the Mirror of Nature ( 1979) is a famous and controversial work by American philosopher Richard Rorty. Jean Baudrillard, Michel Foucault, and Roland Barthes are also influential in 1970s postmodern theory. Jean Baudrillard ( July 29, 1929   – March 6, 2007) (ʒɑ̃ bo Michel Foucault ( (15 October 1926 – 25 June 1984 was a French philosopher, Historian, Intellectual, Critic and Sociologist. Roland Barthes ( November 12, 1915 &ndash March 25, 1980) (ʀɔlɑ̃ baʀt was a French Literary critic, literary Authors such as Graham Swift adopted postmodern techniques it their literary work to create an ambiguous style of writing.

Philosophical Movements and contributors

Influencer	Year	Influence
Karl Barth	c. Karl Barth ( May 10, 1886 &ndash December 10, 1968) (pronounced "bart" a Swiss Reformed theologian was one 1925	fideist approach to theology brought a rise in subjectivity
Martin Heidegger	c. Fideism is the view that Religious belief relies primarily on Faith or Special revelation, rather than rational inference or observation Martin Heidegger ( September 26, 1889 &ndash May 26, 1976) (ˈmaɐ̯tiːn ˈhaɪ̯dɛgɐ was an influential German philosopher 1927	rejected the philosophical grounding of the concepts of "subjectivity" and "objectivity"
W.V.O. Quine	c. Willard Van Orman Quine (June 25 1908 Akron, Ohio &ndash December 25 2000 (known to intimates as "Van" 1951	developed the theses of indeterminacy of translation and ontological relativity, and argued against the possibility of a priori knowledge. "A priori" redirects here For other uses see A priori. Argued that we can never satisfactorily know what a word "means. "
Ludwig Wittgenstein	c. 1953	anti-foundationalism, on certainty, a philosophy of language
Thomas Samuel Kuhn	c. Anti-foundationalism (also called nonfoundationalism is a term applied to any philosophy which rejects a foundationalist approach i A related article is titled Uncertainty. For statistical certainty see Probability. Philosophy of language is the reasoned inquiry into the nature origins and usage of Language. Thomas Samuel Kuhn (surname ˈkuːn July 18, 1922  &ndash June 17, 1996) was an American intellectual who wrote extensively 1962	posited the rapid change of the basis of scientific knowledge to a provisional consensus of scientists, popularized the term "paradigm shift"
Jacques Derrida	c. Paradigm shift, sometimes known as extraordinary science or revolutionary science, is the term first used by Thomas Kuhn in his influential 1967	re-examined the fundamentals of writing and its consequences on philosophy in general; sought to undermine the language of western metaphysics (deconstruction)
Michel Foucault	c. Metaphysics is the branch of Philosophy investigating principles of reality transcending those of any particular science Deconstruction is a term used in Philosophy, Literary criticism, and the Social sciences, popularised through its usage by Jacques Derrida in Michel Foucault ( (15 October 1926 – 25 June 1984 was a French philosopher, Historian, Intellectual, Critic and Sociologist. 1975	examined discursive power in Discipline and Punish, with Bentham's panopticon as his model, and also known for saying "language is oppression" (Meaning that language was developed to allow only those who spoke the language not to be oppressed. Discipline and Punish The Birth of the Prison is a book written by the philosopher Michel Foucault. All other people that don't speak the language would then be oppressed. )
Jean-François Lyotard	c. Jean-François Lyotard (ʒɑ̃ fʀɑ̃swa ljɔˈtaʀ August 10 1924 April 21 1998) was a French philosopher and literary 1979	opposed universality, meta-narratives, and generality
Richard Rorty	c. Richard McKay Rorty (October 4 1931 - June 8 2007 was an American Philosopher. 1979	argues philosophy mistakenly imitates scientific methods; advocates dissolving traditional philosophical problems; anti-foundationalism and anti-essentialism
Jean Baudrillard	c. Anti-foundationalism (also called nonfoundationalism is a term applied to any philosophy which rejects a foundationalist approach i Jean Baudrillard ( July 29, 1929   – March 6, 2007) (ʒɑ̃ bo 1981	Simulacra and Simulation - reality disappears underneath the interchangeability of signs

Deconstruction

Main article: Deconstruction

Deconstruction is a term which is used to denote the application of postmodern ideas of criticism, or theory, to a "text" or "artifact", based on architectural deconstructivism. Simulacra and Simulation ( Simulacres et Simulation in French) is a philosophical Treatise by Jean Baudrillard Deconstruction is a term used in Philosophy, Literary criticism, and the Social sciences, popularised through its usage by Jacques Derrida in Deconstructivism in architecture also called deconstruction, is a development of Postmodern architecture that began in the late 1980s A deconstruction is meant to undermine the frame of reference and assumptions that underpin the text or the artifact.

The term "deconstruction" comes from Martin Heidegger, who calls for the destruction or deconstruction (the German "Destruktion" connotates both English words) of the history of ontology. In Philosophy, ontology (from the Greek, genitive: of being (part The point, for Heidegger, was to describe Being prior to its being covered over by Plato and subsequent philosophy. Thus, Heidegger himself engaged in "deconstruction" through a critique of post-Socratic thought (which had forgotten the question of Being) and the study of the pre-Socratics (where Being was still an open question).

In later usage, a "deconstruction" is an important textual "occurrence" described and analyzed by many postmodern authors and philosophers. Philosophy is the study of general problems concerning matters such as existence knowledge truth beauty justice validity mind and language They argue that aspects in the text itself would undermine its own authority or assumptions and that internal contradictions would erase boundaries or categories which the work relied on or asserted. Poststructuralists beginning with Jacques Derrida, who coined the term, argued that the existence of deconstructions implied that there was no intrinsic essence to a text, merely the contrast of difference. This is analogous to the scientific idea that only the variations are real, that there is no established norm to a genetic population, or the idea that the difference in perception between black and white is the context. A deconstruction is created when the "deeper" substance of text opposes the text's more "superficial" form. This idea is not isolated to poststructuralists but is related to the idea of hermeneutics in literature; intellectuals as early as Plato asserted it and so did modern thinkers such as Leo Strauss. Hermeneutics may be described as the development and study of Theories of the interpretation and understanding of texts Biography Early life Birth and family Plato was born in Athens Greece Leo Strauss (September 20 1899 &ndash October 18 1973 was a German -born Jewish-American political philosopher who specialized in the study of classical Derrida's argument is that deconstruction proves that texts have multiple meanings and the "violence" between the different meanings of text may be elucidated by close textual analysis.

Popularly, close textual analyses describing deconstruction within a text are often themselves called deconstructions. Derrida argued, however, that deconstruction is not a method or a tool but an occurrence within the text itself. Writings about deconstruction are therefore referred to in academic circles as deconstructive readings.

Deconstruction is far more important to postmodernism than its seemingly narrow focus on text might imply. According to Derrida, one consequence of deconstruction is that the text may be defined so broadly as to encompass not just written words but the entire spectrum of symbols and phenomena within Western thought. The musical instrument is spelled Cymbal. A symbol is something --- such as an object, Picture, written word a sound a piece A phenomenon (from Greek φαινόμενoν, pl φαινόμενα - phenomena) is any observable occurrence To Derrida, a result of deconstruction is that no Western philosopher has been able to escape successfully from this large web of text and reach that which is "signified", which they imagined to exist "just beyond" the text.

The more common use of the term is the more general process of pointing to contradictions between the intent and surface of a work and the assumptions about it. A work then "deconstructs" assumptions when it places them in context. For example, someone who can pass as the opposite sex may be said to "deconstruct" gender identity, because there is a conflict between the superficial appearance and the reality of the person's gender.

Social construction, structuralism, poststructuralism

Further information: Manifestations of Postmodernism

Often opposed to deconstruction are social constructionists, labelled as such within the analytic tradition, but not usually in the case of the continental tradition. Postmodernism in visual art See also Postmodern art Where modernists hoped to unearth universals or the fundamentals of art postmodernism aims to unseat them The term was first used in sociologists Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann's book The Social Construction of Reality. Peter Ludwig Berger (born March 17, 1929) is an American sociologist and Lutheran theologian well known for his work The Thomas Luckmann (born October 14 1927) is a German sociologist of Slovene origin The Social Construction of Reality is a Book about the Sociology of knowledge written by Peter L

Usually in the continental tradition, the terms structuralism or poststructuralism are used. Maurice Merleau-Ponty is seen as the biggest contributor to structuralism, which is epitomized in the philosophy of Claude Levi-Strauss. Maurice Merleau-Ponty (mɔʁis mɛʁlopɔ̃ti in French March 14, 1908 – May 3, 1961) was a French phenomenological Claude Lévi-Strauss (klod levi stʁos born 28 November 1908 is a French Anthropologist. Michel Foucault was also a structuralist but then turned to what would be termed poststructuralism, although he himself declined to call his work either poststructuralist or postmodern. Michel Foucault ( (15 October 1926 – 25 June 1984 was a French philosopher, Historian, Intellectual, Critic and Sociologist. Structuralism historically gave way to poststructuralism; often the role of postmodernism within the analytic tradition is played down, although works by major figures of the analytic tradition in the 20th century, including those of Thomas Kuhn and Willard Van Orman Quine, show a similarity with works in the continental tradition for their lack of belief in absolute truth as well as in the pliability of language. Thomas Samuel Kuhn (surname ˈkuːn July 18, 1922  &ndash June 17, 1996) was an American intellectual who wrote extensively Willard Van Orman Quine (June 25 1908 Akron, Ohio &ndash December 25 2000 (known to intimates as "Van" The meaning of the word truth extends from Honesty, Good faith, and Sincerity in general to agreement with Fact or Reality

In the continental tradition, most works argue that power dissimulates and that society constructs reality, while its individuals remain powerless or almost powerless. Often, both continental and analytic sources argue for a renewed subjectivity, borrowing heavily from Immanuel Kant, while they largely reject his a priori/a posteriori distinction. Immanuel Kant (ɪmanuəl kant 22 April 1724 12 February 1804 was an 18th-century German Philosopher from the Prussian city of Königsberg They both minimize discussions of practical ethics, instead borrowing heavily from post-Holocaust accounts of the need for an ethics of responsibility, which is very rarely practically defined.

One of the large differences between analytic postmodern sources and continental postmodern sources is that the analytic tradition by and large guards at least some of the tenets of liberalism, while many continental sources flirt with, or completely immerse themselves in, Marxism. Marxism is the political philosophy and practice derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels.

Recently, it is noticeable that some of the ideas found in poststructuralism and postmodernism, as the lack of belief in absolute truth or the idea of a reality constructed, is promoted in a new paradigm within constructivist epistemology. The meaning of the word truth extends from Honesty, Good faith, and Sincerity in general to agreement with Fact or Reality The word paradigm ( Greek:παράδειγμα (paradigmacomposite from para- and the verb δείχνυμι "to show" as a whole -roughly- meaning "example" Constructivist epistemology is an epistemological perspective in Philosophy about the nature of scientific knowledge held by many philosophers of science

Criticism

Formal, academic critiques of postmodernism can be found in Beyond the Hoax‎ and Fashionable Nonsense. Beyond the Hoax Science Philosophy and Culture is a book by Alan Sokal detailing the history of the Sokal affair in which he submitted an article Fashionable Nonsense Postmodern Intellectuals' Abuse of Science (ISBN 0-312-20407-8 French: Impostures Intellectuelles; published in the UK

The term postmodernism, when used pejoratively, describes tendencies perceived as relativist, counter-enlightenment or antimodern, particularly in relation to critiques of rationalism, universalism or science. Compare Moral relativism, Aesthetic relativism, Social constructionism, Cultural relativism, and Cognitive relativism. "Counter-Enlightenment" is a term used to refer to a movement that arose in the late-eighteenth and early-nineteenth centuries in opposition to the eighteenth century Development criticism refers to criticisms of modern Technology, Industrialization, Capitalism and economic Globalization. In Epistemology and in its broadest sense rationalism is "any view appealing to Reason as a source of knowledge or justification" (Lacey 286 In philosophy universalism is a doctrine or school claiming universal facts can be discovered and is therefore understood as being in opposition to Relativism. Science (from the Latin scientia, meaning " Knowledge " or "knowing" is the effort to discover, and increase human understanding It is also sometimes used to describe tendencies in a society that are held to be antithetical to traditional systems of morality. Morality (from the Latin la moralitas "manner character proper behavior" has three principal meanings Elements of the Christian Right, in particular, have interpreted postmodern society to be synonymous with moral relativism and contributing to deviant behavior. The Christian right is a term used predominantly in the United States to describe a spectrum of right-wing Christian political and social movements and This article attempts to confine itself to discussion of relativism in morals and ethics Deviance describes actions or behaviors that violate cultural norms including formally-enacted rules (e ^[14][15] See, Postmodernity, subsection "Anti-postmodernity critiques. Postmodernity (also spelled post-modernity or the pejorative postmodern condition) is generally used to describe the economic and/or cultural state or condition "

The criticisms of postmodernism are often complicated by the still-fluid nature of the term ^[16], and in many cases the criticisms are clearly directed at poststructuralism and the philosophical and academic movements that it has spawned rather than the broader term postmodernism. Post-structuralism encompasses the intellectual developments of continental philosophers and critical theorists who wrote with tendencies of twentieth-century

As meaningless and disingenuous

The criticism of postmodernism as ultimately meaningless rhetorical gymnastics was demonstrated in the Sokal Affair, where Alan Sokal, a physicist, proposed and delivered for publication an article purportedly about interpreting physics and mathematics in terms of postmodern theory, which he had deliberately written in a completely nonsensical fashion, including several in-jokes mocking postmodernism. The Sokal affair (also Sokal's hoax) was a Hoax by physicist Alan Sokal perpetrated on the editorial staff and readership of the Postmodern Alan David Sokal (born 1955) is a professor of Physics and faculty member of the physics department at New York University. A physicist is a Scientist who studies or practices Physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning It was nevertheless published by Social Text, a "cultural studies" journal active in the field of postmodernism, as a serious postmodernist work. Social Text is a postmodernist Cultural studies Journal published by Duke University Press. Sokal arranged for the simultaneous publication of another article describing the former as a successful experiment to see whether a postmodernist journal would publish any nonsensical article with big words that flattered the editors' political views, triggering an academic scandal. Sokal later published a book with Jean Bricmont called Intellectual Impostures, which expands upon his criticism of postmodernism. Jean Bricmont is a Belgian theoretical physicist, Philosopher of Science and a Professor at the Université catholique de Louvain. Fashionable Nonsense Postmodern Intellectuals' Abuse of Science (ISBN 0-312-20407-8 French: Impostures Intellectuelles; published in the UK

Biologist Richard Dawkins believes that postmodernists generally are intellectual charlatans who deliberately obscure weak or nonsensical ideas with ostentatious and difficult to understand verbiage. A biologist is a Scientist devoted to and producing results in Biology through the study of Organisms Typically biologists study organisms and their relationship Clinton Richard Dawkins, FRS, FRSL (born 26 March 1941 is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist, and Popular science [1][2]

The linguist Noam Chomsky has suggested that postmodernism is meaningless because it adds nothing to analytical or empirical knowledge. Avram Noam Chomsky (noʊm ˈtʃɑmski born December 7 1928 is an American linguist, Philosopher, cognitive scientist, Political He asks why postmodernist intellectuals won't respond as "people in physics, math, biology, linguistics, and other fields are happy to do when someone asks them, seriously, what are the principles of their theories, on what evidence are they based, what do they explain that wasn't already obvious, etc? These are fair requests for anyone to make. If they can't be met, then I'd suggest recourse to Hume's advice in similar circumstances: to the flames. "^[17]

“	There are lots of things I don't understand -- say, the latest debates over whether neutrinos have mass or the way that Fermat's last theorem was (apparently) proven recently. Fermat's Last Theorem is the name of the statement in Number theory that It is impossible to separate any power higher than the second into two like But from 50 years in this game, I have learned two things: (1) I can ask friends who work in these areas to explain it to me at a level that I can understand, and they can do so, without particular difficulty; (2) if I'm interested, I can proceed to learn more so that I will come to understand it. Now Derrida, Lacan, Lyotard, Kristeva, etc. --- even Foucault, whom I knew and liked, and who was somewhat different from the rest --- write things that I also don't understand, but (1) and (2) don't hold: no one who says they do understand can explain it to me and I haven't a clue as to how to proceed to overcome my failures. That leaves one of two possibilities: (a) some new advance in intellectual life has been made, perhaps some sudden genetic mutation, which has created a form of "theory" that is beyond quantum theory, topology, etc. , in depth and profundity; or (b) . . . I won't spell it out.	”
—Noam Chomsky

As political

Michel Foucault rejected the label of postmodernism explicitly in interviews but is seen by many to advocate a form of critique that is "postmodern" in that it breaks with the utopian and transcendental nature of "modern" critique by calling universal norms of the Enlightenment into question. Michel Foucault ( (15 October 1926 – 25 June 1984 was a French philosopher, Historian, Intellectual, Critic and Sociologist. Giddens (1990) rejects this characterisation of modern critique by pointing out that a critique of Enlightenment universals were central to philosophers of the modern period, most notably Nietzsche. Anthony Giddens Baron Giddens (born January 18, 1938) is a British sociologist who is renowned for his Theory of structuration What counts as "postmodern" is a stake in political struggles where the method of critique is at issue. The recurring themes of these debates are between essentialism and anti-foundationalism, universalism and relativism, where enlightenment thinking is seen to represent the former and postmodernism the latter. This is why theorists as diverse as Nietzsche, Lacan, Foucault, Derrida, and Butler have been labelled "postmodern", not because they formed a historical intellectual grouping but because they are seen by their critics to reject the possibility of universal, normative and ethical judgments. Jacques-Marie-Émile Lacan (French ʒak lakɑ̃ ( April 13, 1901 &ndash September 9, 1981) was a French Psychoanalyst With minimal exception (e. g. Jameson and Lyotard), many thinkers who are considered 'postmodern' or 'poststructuralist' see these characterizations merely as labels of convenience and reject them altogether.

Quotations

In 1994, Czech Republic President, Vaclav Havel gave a hopeful description of the postmodern world as one based on science, and yet paradoxically “where everything is possible and almost nothing is certain. Václav Havel, GCB, CC, ( (born October 5, 1936) is a Czech Playwright Writer and Politician ”^[18]

Josh McDowell & Bob Hostetler offer the following definition of postmodernism: “A worldview characterized by the belief that truth doesn’t exist in any objective sense but is created rather than discovered. Joslin "Josh" McDowell is a Christian apologist, evangelist, and Writer. ”… Truth is “created by the specific culture and exists only in that culture. Therefore, any system or statement that tries to communicate truth is a power play, an effort to dominate other cultures. ”^[19]

In the introduction to his Treatise on Twelve Lights, Robert Struble, Jr. states: "The postmodernist worldview dismisses all forms of absolutism from eras past, especially Judeo-Christian faith and morals; yet the postmodernists idolize absolutely their new secular trinity of tolerance–diversity–choice. "^[20]

See also

• Modernism
• Postmodernity, the period in history not identical to postmodernism
• Postmodern architecture
• Postmodern feminism
• Contemporary art
• Post-autonomous art
• Postmodern music
• Supermodernity
• Sokal affair
• Beyond the Hoax‎
• Fashionable Nonsense

Theoretical postmodernism

• List of postmodern critics
• Critical race theory
• Media studies
• Post-Postmodernism
• Recursionism

Cultural and political postmodernism

• Anti-racist math
• Decentralization
• Defamiliarization
• New Age
• Reinformation
• Syncretism
• Remodernism
• Continuity thesis

Postmodernism in law

• Critical legal studies

Postmodernism in theology

• Neopaganism
• Discordianism
• Postmodern Christianity
• Postmodern Religious Art
• Emerging church
• Church of the SubGenius

References

Further reading

• Alexie, Sherman (2000). "The Toughest Indian in the World" (ISBN 0-8021-3800-4)
• Anderson, Walter Truett. The Truth about the Truth (New Consciousness Reader). New York: Tarcher. (1995) (ISBN 0-87477-801-8)
• Ashley, Richard and Walker, R. B. J. (1990) “Speaking the Language of Exile. ” International Studies Quarterly v 34, no 3 259-68.
• Bauman, Zygmunt (2000) Liquid Modernity. Zygmunt Bauman (born 19 November 1925 in Poznań) is a Polish sociologist who since 1971 has resided in England after being Cambridge: Polity Press.
• Beck, Ulrich (1986) Risk Society: Towards a New Modernity. Dr Ulrich Beck (born May 15, 1944) is a German Sociologist who holds a professorship at Munich University and at the London
• Benhabib, Seyla (1995) 'Feminism and Postmodernism' in (ed. Nicholson) Feminism Contentions: A Philosophical Exchange. New York: Routledge.
• Berman, Marshall (1982) All That Is Solid Melts Into Air: The Experience of Modernity (ISBN 0-14-010962-5).
• Bertens, Hans (1995) The Idea of the Postmodern: A History. London: Routledge. (ISBN 0-145-06012-5).
• Bielskis, Andrius (2005) Towards a Postmodern Understanding of the Political: From Genealogy to Hermeneutics (Palgrave Macmillan, 2005).
• Brass, Tom, Peasants, Populism and Postmodernism (London: Cass, 2000).
• Butler, Judith (1995) 'Contingent Foundations' in (ed. Judith Butler (born February 24, 1956) is an American Post-structuralist philosopher who has contributed to the fields of Feminism Nicholson) Feminist Contentions: A Philosophical Exchange. New Yotk: Routledge.
• Callinicos, Alex, Against Postmodernism: A Marxist Critique (Cambridge: Polity, 1999).
• Castells, Manuel (1996) The Network Society.
• Coupland, Douglas (1991). "Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture" (ISBN 0-312-05436-X)
• Drabble, M. The Oxford Companion to English Literature, 6 ed. Dame Margaret Drabble (Margaret Lady Holroyd DBE, (born 5 June 1939) is an English Novelist, Biographer and , article "Postmodernism".
• Farrell, John. "Paranoia and Postmodernism," the epilogue to Paranoia and Modernity: Cervantes to
• Featherstone, M. (1991) Consumer culture and postmodernism, London ; Newbury Park, Calif. , Sage Publications.

Rousseau (Cornell UP, 2006), 309-327.

• Goulimari, Pelagia (ed. ) (2007) Postmodernism. What Moment? Manchester: Manchester University Press (ISBN 978-0-7190-7308-3)
• Giddens, Anthony (1991) Modernity and Self Identity, Cambridge: Polity Press. Anthony Giddens Baron Giddens (born January 18, 1938) is a British sociologist who is renowned for his Theory of structuration
• Grebowicz, Margaret (ed. ), Gender After Lyotard. NY: Suny Press, 2007. (ISBN 978-0-7914-6956-9)
• Greer, Robert C. Mapping Postmodernism. IL: Intervarsity Press, 2003. (ISBN 0-8308-2733-1)
• Groothuis, Douglas. Truth Decay. Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2000.
• Harvey, David (1989) The Condition of Postmodernity: An Enquiry into the Origins of Cultural Change (ISBN 0-631-16294-1)
• Hicks, Stephen R. C. (2004) Explaining Postmodernism: Skepticism and Socialism from Rousseau to Foucault (ISBN 1-59247-646-5)
• Honderich, T., The Oxford Companion to Philosophy, article "Postmodernism". Ted Honderich (born 1933 is a British philosopher Grote Professor Emeritus of the Philosophy of Mind and Logic University College London and Visiting Professor
• Jameson, Fredric (1991) Postmodernism, or, the Cultural Logic of Late Capitalism (ISBN 0-8223-1090-2)
• Lash, S. Postmodernism or the Cultural Logic of Late Capitalism is a 1991 book by Fredric Jameson offering a critique of Postmodernism from a marxist (1990) The sociology of postmodernism, London, Routledge.
• Lyotard, Jean-François (1984) The Postmodern Condition: A Report on Knowledge (ISBN 0-8166-1173-4)
• --- (1988). The Postmodern Condition A Report on Knowledge (1979 is a short but influential Philosophy book by Jean-François Lyotard in which he analyses the The Postmodern Explained: Correspondence 1982-1985. Ed. Julian Pefanis and Morgan Thomas. (ISBN 0-8166-2211-6)
• --- (1993), "Scriptures: Diffracted Traces. " In: Theory, Culture and Society, Vol. 21(1), 2004.
• --- (1995), "Anamnesis: Of the Visible. " In: Theory, Culture and Society, Vol. 21(1), 2004.
• MacIntyre, Alasdair, After Virtue: A Study in Moral Theory (University of Notre Dame Press, 1984, 2nd edn. After Virtue is a highly regarded book on moral philosophy by Alasdair MacIntyre. ).
• Manuel, Peter. "Music as Symbol, Music as Simulacrum: Pre-Modern, Modern, and Postmodern Aesthetics in Subcultural Musics," Popular Music 1/2, 1995, pp. 227-239.
• Murphy, Nancey, Anglo-American Postmodernity: Philosophical Perspectives on Science, Religion, and Ethics (Westview Press, 1997).
• Natoli, Joseph (1997) A Primer to Postmodernity (ISBN 1-57718-061-5)
• Norris, Christopher (1990) What's Wrong with Postmodernism: Critical Theory and the Ends of Philosophy (ISBN 0-8018-4137-2)
• Pangle, Thomas L. , The Ennobling of Democracy: The Challenge of the Postmodern Age, Baltimore, The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1991 ISBN 0-8018-4635-8
• Sokal, Alan and Jean Bricmont (1998) Fashionable Nonsense: Postmodern Intellectuals' Abuse of Science (ISBN 0-312-20407-8)
• Taylor, Alan (2005) We, the media. Fashionable Nonsense Postmodern Intellectuals' Abuse of Science (ISBN 0-312-20407-8 French: Impostures Intellectuelles; published in the UK Pedagogic Intrusions into US Film and Television News Broadcasting Rhetorics', Peter Lang, pp. 418 (ISBN 3-631-51852-8)
• Vattimo, Gianni (1989). The Transparent Society (ISBN 0-8018-4528-9)
• Veith Jr. , Gene Edward (1994) Postmodern Times: A Christian Guide to Contemporary Thought and Culture (ISBN 0-89107-768-5)
• Woods, Tim, Beginning Postmodernism, Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1999,(Reprinted 2002)(ISBN 0-7190-5210-6 Hardback,ISBN 0-7190-5211-4 Paperback) .

External links

• Postmodernism: What Is It?
• Postmodernism Guide from Toronto High School
• A simpler description of Postmodernism
• Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy's entry on postmodernism
• The Christian Cadre's Postmodernism Page
• Discourses of Postmodernism. Multilingual Bibliography (PDF file)
• Modernity, postmodernism and the tradition of dissent, by Lloyd Spencer (1998)
• Dueling Paradigms: Modernist V. Postmodernist Thought
• Keith DeRose (Philosophy, Yale): Characterizing a Fogbank: What Is Postmodernism, and Why Do I Take Such a Dim View of it?
• How to Deconstruct Almost Anything--My Postmodern Adventure
• Postmodernism and truth by philosopher Daniel Dennett
• Postmodernism is the new black: How the shape of modern retailing was both predicted and influenced by some unlikely seers (The Economist Dec 19th 2006)
• Modernism vs. Postmodernism

Daniel Clement Dennett (born March 28 1942 in Boston, Massachusetts) is a prominent American philosopher whose research

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