Lyotard The Postmodern Condition Incredulity towards Meta-narratives Narrative losing Function Heterogeneity of science Modernism legitimates power with knowledge and reality Reality and truth, however are contextual

Lyotard Heterogeneity evidenced by language games Legitimation as modern language game Concept of discourse Postmodern discourse delegitimates No one speaks all the languages so discourse must be local

Lyotard We thus cannot have universal knowledge and must resort to the local and the diverse to make sense of our own worlds Science itself is not value free so the Enlightenment idea cannot ever come true Functionalism and paradigms are “terrorist” techniques of domination

Lyotard To reach common truth—consensus– requires that discourse assume the result Computerization of society is a perfect example of postmodern principles

Baudrillard A sociologist by training Radical Began as a Marxist Rejected Marxism by saying that economic exchange in the contemporary world is replaced by symbolic exchange Gift and countergift

Baudrillard Symbolic exchange is a political process led by the New Left not the proletariat Modern society dominated by Media, cybernetics, information and knowledge industries not product production An explosion of signs, that used to stand for real objects, now have imploded and stand for nothing

Baudrillard The distinction between sign and object has imploded—simulation Reproduction of simulations are simulacra Real has become the hyper-real No reality exists

Baudrillard The masses are a black hole that sucks up information and images—absorbs all meaning, information, and communication—thus rendering them meaningless Binary society—death versus life Death = discrimination

Jameson Postmodernism is an outgrowth of modernism—continuities exist Late capitalism has spawned a new cultural logic called postmodernism Three stages of capitalism— market,imperial and late(service) Liberation and exploitation

Jameson Four elements of postmodern culture Lack of depth Waning of emotion Loss of historicity—Pastiche not story Reproductive technologies not productive— TV not widgets

Harvey Postmodernism is a new way of viewing, using time and space Concern for difference and marginals Detail not consensus Not permanent institutions but temporary contracts Mimes social, economic and political practices to “see” inequality

Harvey Aim is to overcome the ills of modernist society BUT modernism organizes—builds space Modernism proceeds –is not chaotic Postmodernism divides, is nihilistic, lacks coherence Postmodern sees voices open up but denies their validity

Harvey Modern ideas are thesis to postmoderns’ anti-thesis See chart on page 181 of article Postmodernism has organizing principles that are positive-- flexibility, creativity,charisma and a commitment to being and place

Harvey Really a synthesis of the dialectic of the modern world Creative predictability Improvisation based on experience\ Postmodernism makes the novel predictable