Postmodernism
13.1 Postmodern Philosophy
13.2 Difference between Modernism & Postmodernism
13.3 Major characteristics of Postmodernism
13.4 Critique of postmodernism; Jurgen Habermas
Key Points
• Postmodernism
• Difference between modernism and postmodernism
• Characteristics of postmodernism
• Effects of postmodernism
13.1 Eras of Western Philosophy
Traditionally History of Western Philosophy is divided into four main eras.
1. The ANCIENT ERA begins around 585 BCE in ancient Greece, and ends with the
spread of Christianity.
2. The MEDIEVAL PERIOD is the time in which philosophy’s focus turned towards
supporting religious teachings, especially the existence and nature of God.
Eras of Western Philosophy (Cont..)
3. After this, the MODERN PERIOD starts at a time in which natural
science was maturing and new philosophical questions began to
appear, sometimes challenging religious beliefs. The modern p
eriod was, in a sense, a rebirth of philosophy.
4. POSTMODERNISM followed by Modernity
Postmodern/pomo Philosophy
Tends to conceptualize the world as being
impossible to strictly define or
understand
13.2 Postmodernism???
• The term has been around since the 1980s
• It is a lose term, hard to define because of vagueness about the MODERN era, there
is no definite start or point of change when society suddenly became postmodern
• It is used in a very wide range of different subject areas such as Art, technology,
sociology, literature, religion as well as Media and Film Studies
• In general it is a reaction against the ‘Modernist’ movement which focused on order,
rational thinking and science.
“Pomo rejects rational thinking and likes chaos!”
Modernism???
So in order to understand the POSTMODERNISM we first have to develop an
understanding of the development of the MODERNISM
• The term ‘modern philosophy’ is often uncertain.
• "Modernism" usually refers to Neo-Classical, Enlightenment assumptions
concerning the role of reason, or rationality, or scientific reasoning, that play in
guiding our understanding of the human condition.
Modernism???
• Modernism believed that the lives of people would improve thanks to science and a
world based on logic.
• It was a time of optimism and carried over from Victorian Era, through the
Edwardian and right up to 1914
Modern Philosophy/Modernism
• René Descartes (1596–1650) is often considered to be the founder of modern
philosophy, breaking away from the ways of the middle ages.
• Descartes departs from the philosophy of scholasticism with a concept of universal
doubt. He put much faith in the scientific method as a source of knowledge.
"Cogito, ergo sum“ (I think therefore I am)
What changed the thought of Rationalism?
• The terrible event of WWII disseminated sources of uncertainty as to whether
the world was becoming a better place?
• The notion that science was used to create WMDs (weapons of mass destruction)
and killing on an industrial scale as a trademark of the war, a wave of pessimism
washed across Europe.
Postmodernism
• Pomo is typically defined by an attitude of skepticism or distrust toward grand
narratives, ideologies, and various tenets of Enlightenment rationality.
• Instead it asserts that knowledge and truth are the product of unique systems of
social, historical, or political discourse.
• It is a culture that emphasizes that ‘there is a better world than the modern one.’
Jean Francois Lyotard
POSTMODERN VIEW
• REALITY is a kind of APPEARANCE
• Truth is CONTENT ,a kind of TEXT
• Knowledge is used to control
• Axiology dominates have endless variations.
Postmodernism… cont…
• The history of pomo dates back to the mid of 20th century when it actually started t
o develop.
• The two decades, particularly, 1970s and 80s marked the development of pomo
forms in literature, poetry, painting and architecture.
• It was a reaction to aesthetic modernism which emerged just after WW2.
• The strength of unification and dying thought of objectivity brought this era.
13.3 Characteristics of Pomo
• RELATIVISM
• NO GRAND NARRATIVE
• REJECTION OF THE ULTIMATE FAITH IN SCIENCE
• GLOBALIZATION OR MULTICULTURALISM
“In a multicultural, diverse society there are countless ways in which people negotiate
the everyday lived experience of reality and diversity.”
Effects of Postmodernism
• The birth of pomo, put a contemptuous edge on reality.
• Science and technology create annihilation than improvement.
• Pomo likes to criticize other media texts so that it can be renovated through use
of parody and Skits using intertextuality.
• No absolute truth and belief in social construction could be used to end negativi
sm and contempt, which can help humans to progress
• Pomo has given us many ideas which are important.
Effects…cont…
• A virtual world is being created in our subconscious because of the influence of
activities of media, and hence we are living in the real as well as the virtual world
simultaneously.
• Pluralism/Multiculturalism is becoming a common matter.
• The analysis of such a multidimensional society comprising of multidimensional
people with vast differences in their choices is difficult.
• Conclusion…???
Jurgen Habermas(1929-)
“SOCIETY IS
DEPENDENT UPON
A CRITICISM OF ITS
OWN TRADITIONS
Key Terms
• Scholasticism was a medieval school of philosophy, It started when people wanted to bring
together what is called classical philosophy with the teachings of Christian theology, that e
mployed a critical method of philosophical analysis predicated upon a Latin Catholic theistic c
urriculum which dominated teaching in the medieval universities in Europe from about 1100 t
o 1700.
•
Grand Narrative/Meta Narrative: in postmodernism—is a narrative about narratives of h
istorical meaning, experience, or knowledge, which offers a society legitimation through the a
nticipated completion of a (as yet unrealized) master idea.
References
• https://www.philosophy-index.com/traditions/western/modern/
• https://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/engl_258/Lecture%20Notes/moder
nism_vs_postmodernism.htm
• https://guides.gccaz.edu/philosophy-guide/movements#s-lg-box-1439
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