- "Skepticism toward the 'grand narratives' of modernism; rejection of epistemic (scientific) certainty or the stability of meaning; and sensitivity to the role of ideology in maintaining political power."
The intellectual movement that emerged in the late 20th century, challenging traditional notions of objectivity, truth, and reality.
Modernism: Understanding the historical context and cultural movement that preceded post-modernism.
Deconstruction: The literary and philosophical theory that underpins post-modernism, which examines the relationship between text and meaning.
Structuralism: The theoretical framework that explores the underlying structures and systems that shape our understanding of the world.
Post-structuralism: A critique of structuralism that emphasizes the fluidity and instability of meaning and rejects the idea of universal truth.
Semiotics: The study of signs and symbols, which is central to post-modernism's questioning of language and representation.
Foucault: The influential philosopher whose work on power, knowledge, and discourse has been central to post-modernist thought.
Derrida: The French philosopher whose theory of deconstruction has been central to post-modernism.
Baudrillard: The French sociologist whose work on simulacra and hyperreality has been influential in post-modernist theory.
Cultural studies: An interdisciplinary field that explores the production and consumption of culture, which has been shaped by post-modernist ideas.
Post-colonialism: An intellectual and political movement that seeks to challenge the legacy of colonialism and imperialism, which has been influenced by post-modernist thought.
Globalization: The process of increasing interconnectedness between different parts of the world, which has challenged traditional notions of nation-states and cultural identity.
Feminism: A social and political movement that seeks to address issues of gender inequality, which has been influenced by post-modernist ideas.
Queer theory: A theoretical and political movement that challenges heteronormativity and normative conceptions of gender and sexuality.
Aesthetics: The philosophy of art and beauty, which has been shaped by post-modernist ideas.
Memory studies: The interdisciplinary field that examines how we remember and represent the past, which has been influenced by post-modernist ideas.
Deconstructionism: A critical approach that emphasizes the instability and ambiguity of language, symbols, and texts, and the ways in which meaning is contingent on context, power relations, and social construction. Deconstructionists argue that traditional binary oppositions and hierarchies (e.g. male/female, reason/emotion, nature/culture) are artificial and oppressive, and that language is always already implicated in power struggles and ideological conflicts. Some of the key figures associated with deconstructionism are Jacques Derrida, Michel Foucault, and Judith Butler.
Post-structuralism: A broader intellectual movement that challenges the assumptions of structuralism, a school of thought that emphasized the underlying patterns or systems that govern language, culture, and reality. Post-structuralists reject the idea of a stable or transcendental subject or identity, and instead emphasize the role of discourse, power, and contingency in shaping social relations, ideology, and knowledge. Some of the key figures associated with post-structuralism are Gilles Deleuze, Jacques Lacan, and Jean Baudrillard.
Cultural relativism: A perspective that rejects the notion of a universal or objective criterion for evaluating cultural practices or values, and instead emphasizes the diversity and complexity of human cultures and the need to respect differences and tolerate pluralism. Cultural relativists argue that ethical or aesthetic judgments are shaped by cultural norms and historical contingencies, and that there is no one right or wrong way of life or thought. Some critics of cultural relativism argue that it can lead to moral relativism or intellectual relativism, and that it neglects the role of reason and empirical evidence in assessing claims.
Postmodern art: A diverse range of art forms and styles that emerged in the late 20th century and that often challenged or mocked the conventions and norms of modernism, such as realism, abstraction, and formalism. Postmodern artists often used bricolage, parody, irony, or pastiche to play with or subvert cultural references and icons, and to blur the boundaries between high and low culture, authenticity and simulacrum, or originality and reproduction. Some of the key figures associated with postmodern art are Andy Warhol, Cindy Sherman, Jeff Koons, and Damien Hirst.
Postmodern architecture: A style of architecture that emerged in the 1960s and that rejected the traditional principles of classical or modernist architecture, such as symmetry, proportion, and functionality. Postmodern architects often used eclectic or playful elements, such as bright colors, historical references, and asymmetrical shapes, to create buildings that were aesthetically provocative and contextually responsive. Some of the key figures associated with postmodern architecture are Robert Venturi, Frank Gehry, and Zaha Hadid.
Postmodern politics: A set of political theories or movements that emerged in the 1970s and that challenged the assumptions and practices of modern liberalism or socialism. Postmodern politics often emphasized the role of identity, difference, and intersectionality in shaping social relations, and the need to decenter or pluralize power structures and categories. Some critics of postmodern politics argue that it can lead to fragmentation, relativism, or tribalism, and that it neglects the role of reforms or collective action in addressing systemic inequalities.
Postmodern philosophy of science: A branch of philosophy that questions the traditional view of science as a neutral or objective method of inquiry that discovers universal truths about the world. Postmodern philosophers of science argue that scientific knowledge is always provisional, situated, and value-laden, and that its claims and methods are influenced by social, cultural, and historical factors. Some of the key figures associated with postmodern philosophy of science are Thomas Kuhn, Paul Feyerabend, and Bruno Latour.
- "Claims to objectivity are dismissed as naïve realism, with attention drawn to the conditional nature of knowledge claims within particular historical, political, and cultural discourses."
- "Self-referentiality, epistemological relativism, moral relativism, pluralism, irony, irreverence, and eclecticism."
- "It rejects the 'universal validity' of binary oppositions, stable identity, hierarchy, and categorization."
- "Initially emerging from a mode of literary criticism, postmodernism developed in the mid-twentieth century as a rejection of modernism."
- "Postmodernism is associated with the disciplines deconstruction and post-structuralism."
- "Postmodernism has been observed across many disciplines."
- "Various authors have criticized postmodernism as promoting obscurantism, as abandoning Enlightenment, rationalism and scientific rigor, and as adding nothing to analytical or empirical knowledge."
- "Rejection of epistemic (scientific) certainty or the stability of meaning."
- "Sensitivity to the role of ideology in maintaining political power."
- "Claims to objectivity."
- "Moral relativism."
- "Stable identity."
- "In the mid-twentieth century."
- "The 'grand narratives' of modernism."
- "The stability of knowledge claims within particular historical, political, and cultural discourses."
- "Irony and irreverence."
- "Categorization."
- "Promoting obscurantism."
- "Hierarchy."