Postmodernism

Modernity/The EnlightenmentModernity/The Enlightenment

Not to be confused with Not to be confused with ModernismModernism

usually traced back through the usually traced back through the Renaissance and the advent of Renaissance and the advent of Humanism, when Man (use of Humanism, when Man (use of gender-exclusive term deliberate) gender-exclusive term deliberate) becomes the defining term for all becomes the defining term for all things/knowledge.things/knowledge.

“Man is the measure of all things”

As noted previously . . . As noted previously . . .

major leap for Western Civ from a major leap for Western Civ from a world in which various forms of world in which various forms of god(s) had previously been the god(s) had previously been the central defining term, underpinning central defining term, underpinning monarchies, ways of understanding—monarchies, ways of understanding—think Galileo—and ways of situating think Galileo—and ways of situating human existence.human existence.

Here’s Immanuel Kant on the Here’s Immanuel Kant on the Subject . . .Subject . . .

Enlightenment is Man's emergence Enlightenment is Man's emergence from self-imposed tutelage, that is to from self-imposed tutelage, that is to say, from the inability to use the say, from the inability to use the intellect without guidance by intellect without guidance by another. another.

Sapere aude! Have the courage to Sapere aude! Have the courage to think! is therefore the motto of the think! is therefore the motto of the Enlightenment.Enlightenment. (I. Kant, (I. Kant, Was ist Was ist Aufklarung?)Aufklarung?)

Major Features of the Modern Major Features of the Modern WorldWorld

1. There is a stable, coherent, knowable self. This self is conscious, rational, autonomous, and universal--no physical conditions or differences substantially affect how this self operates.

2. This self knows itself and the world through reason, or rationality, posited as the highest form of mental functioning, and the only objective form.

3. The mode of knowing produced by the objective rational self is science, which can provide universal truths about the world, regardless of the individual status of the knower.

4. The knowledge/truth produced by science (by the rational objective knowing self) will always lead toward progress and perfection. All human institutions and practices can be analyzed by science (reason/objectivity) and improved.

5. Reason is the ultimate judge of what is true, and therefore of what is right, and what is good (what is legal and what is ethical). Freedom consists of obedience to the laws that conform to the knowledge discovered by reason.

6. In a world governed by reason, the true will always be the same as the good and the right (and the beautiful); there can be no conflict between what is true and what is right (etc.).

The production of knowledge . . .The production of knowledge . . .

was one of the major results of this was one of the major results of this movement. Suddenly there was an movement. Suddenly there was an eruption of analysis of the world eruption of analysis of the world through the objective lens of science.through the objective lens of science.

ProgressProgress

All this knowledge-production led to All this knowledge-production led to a belief in the inevitability of a belief in the inevitability of progressprogress• More rational thought could only lead to More rational thought could only lead to

better human existencebetter human existence• Hence such things as colonialism, a Hence such things as colonialism, a

project of both knowledge-production project of both knowledge-production and wealth accumulationand wealth accumulation

Modernity is fundamentally about order: about rationality and rationalization, creating order out of chaos intellectually.

creating more rationality is conducive to creating more order, and that the more ordered a society is, the better it will function (the more rationally it will function).

However . . . However . . .

myth of “progress” culminated most myth of “progress” culminated most viciously in the two world wars of the viciously in the two world wars of the 2020thth Century, in which the most Century, in which the most “advanced” nations in the world “advanced” nations in the world inflicted the most savage brutalities inflicted the most savage brutalities on each other.on each other.

Unsurprisingly . . . Unsurprisingly . . .

This led to a major reappraisal of the This led to a major reappraisal of the Enlightenment ideals . . . Enlightenment ideals . . .

What do you see in the following What do you see in the following picture?picture?

Ok, now count the black Ok, now count the black dots . . .dots . . .

Finally, what is this a picture of?Finally, what is this a picture of?

What does this suggest about your What does this suggest about your visual perception of phenomena?visual perception of phenomena?

ModernismModernism is a term used in is a term used in aesthetics, with a slightly different aesthetics, with a slightly different

meaning:meaning: the turn to an emphasis on individual the turn to an emphasis on individual

experience in the larger sense led experience in the larger sense led (inevitably) to an (inevitably) to an emphasis on impressionism and subjectivity in writing (and in visual arts as well);

an emphasis on HOW seeing (or reading or perception itself) takes place, rather than on WHAT is perceived. An example of this would be stream-of-consciousness writing.

As in this excerpt from James Joyce’s As in this excerpt from James Joyce’s Ulysses. Ulysses. Here Here Molly Bloom recounts her encounter with Leopold . . .Molly Bloom recounts her encounter with Leopold . . .

. . . I thought well as well him as . . . I thought well as well him as another and then I asked him with another and then I asked him with my eyes to ask again yes and then my eyes to ask again yes and then he asked me would I yes to say yes he asked me would I yes to say yes my mountain flower and first I put my mountain flower and first I put my arms around him yes and drew my arms around him yes and drew him down to me so he could feel my him down to me so he could feel my breasts all perfume yes and his heart breasts all perfume yes and his heart was going like mad and yes I said yes was going like mad and yes I said yes I will Yes. I will Yes.

the stream of consciousness the stream of consciousness technique seeks to mimic the technique seeks to mimic the fragmented flow of actual thought, fragmented flow of actual thought, and so the focus of writing becomes and so the focus of writing becomes as much who is thinking / as much who is thinking / encountering / experiencing as the encountering / experiencing as the actual event actual event quaqua event. event.

a movement away from the apparent objectivity provided by omniscient third-person narrators, fixed narrative points of view, and clear-cut moral positions. King’s multiply-narrated novel is an example of this aspect of modernism.

Modernism also places an emphasis on • fragmented forms, discontinuous

narratives, and random-seeming collages of different materials.

• this is primarily due to a disillusionment this is primarily due to a disillusionment with the “master narratives” that had with the “master narratives” that had characterized Western Civ since the characterized Western Civ since the Renaissance: chief among them were Renaissance: chief among them were the twinned myths of science and the twinned myths of science and progress. Why?progress. Why?

Every belief system or ideology has its grand narratives, according to Lyotard; for Marxism, for instance, the "grand narrative" is the idea that capitalism will collapse in on itself and a utopian socialist world will evolve. You might think of grand narratives as a kind of meta-theory, or meta-ideology, that is, an ideology that explains an ideology (as with Marxism); a story that is told to explain the belief systems that exist.

a tendency toward reflexivity, or self-consciousness, about the production of the work of art, so that each piece calls attention to its own status as a production, as something constructed and consumed in particular ways.

A rejection of the distinction between "high" and "low" or popular culture, both in choice of materials used to produce art and in methods of displaying, distributing, and consuming art.

Modernism also saw . . .Modernism also saw . . .

6.6. Modernist art and literature tends to Modernist art and literature tends to embrace paradox, as a refutation of embrace paradox, as a refutation of the binary logic embedded in the binary logic embedded in Western Enlightenment thought. Western Enlightenment thought. -- i.e. either/or, yes/no. -- i.e. either/or, yes/no.

-- things can be both-at-once-- things can be both-at-once

There is no Truth, but there are truths . . .There is no Truth, but there are truths . . .

More notes on ModernismMore notes on Modernism

fragmented view of human fragmented view of human subjectivity and history (think of “The subjectivity and history (think of “The Wasteland,” for instance, or of Wasteland,” for instance, or of Woolf's Woolf's To the LighthouseTo the Lighthouse), ),

The Modernists lament this The Modernists lament this fragmentation . . .fragmentation . . .

While the postmodernists celebrate it While the postmodernists celebrate it . . .. . .

Many modernist works try to uphold the idea that works of art can provide the unity, coherence, and meaning which has been lost in most of modern life; art will do what other human institutions fail to do.