Postmodernism

Class,

I am sitting in the VA hospital waiting room as I type this, but you should be in class with Ms. Juliano today. Our syllabus states that we would have covered postmodernism today, so I’m going to go over some of that briefly here instead of throwing that kind of work at Mrs. Jennifer. I will absolutely go over this in more detail in class next week because it’s a big concept to consider and most of our literature this year falls into this category. However, postmodernism is also a lens used in literary analysis. My hope this year is to introduce you to a few of the most commonly used critical theories used in literary analysis so that you learn to read a text in more ways than one. This means we could take the same piece of literature (which could be as simple as a song) and find multiple meanings. I’d say that is the whole point of literature, or its definition anyway. The difference between a regular text and literature is that literature can be read with multiple meanings. When posited this way, you can see our definition of literature applies to more texts than just great books. It can be film, music, art, and more. Our first lens that we are going to practice with is called postmodernism. 

            In literature, there are many different movements. There is the Calvinist/Puritan literature, which primarily focused on God and salvation. There are lots of religious sermons, like “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” Puritan poetry from Anne Bradstreet, and stories of trauma and redemption, like that of Mary Rowlandson. There’s not much beyond this category. They didn’t see much reason to write about anything else. Next, around the time of the Revolution, which is also near the time of a scientific revolution with Newton, Franklin, and others, our literature started to focus more on reason. We call this the Enlightenment era. Ben Franklin’s “13 Virtues,” “The Declaration of Independence,” and “Common Sense” are major works in this time. As time progressed and folks became weary of pure reason and science, we saw the ushering in of the Romantic era. Here we have folks desiring something beyond the explainable, fantasy, and of course, the longing for love. Think of Edgar Allan Poe here. The Romantic era also focused on freedom, including pieces that sought rights for African Americans and women. Next, we find Transcendentalism, which sought God in nature. Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau are great examples here. Then, we moved into Modern literature, which seemed to recognize man’s disillusionment with society. Its primary theme was alienation. The Great Gatsby is a famous example of this kind of literature, as is To Kill a Mockingbird, and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Right and wrong were examined in detail, with the author hoping to clearly define morality for us. But we have moved beyond Modernism. We are now in an era (some say we are moving out of this one, too), called Postmodernism. 

            Postmodernism rejects the clear definitions set before us in Modernism. It blurs lines, lives in the gray zone, and dwells in the complexity of life. For postmodernists, there are no easy answers. In fact, there may not even be answers. Postmodernism is the idea that reality is not mirrored in human understanding, but rather constructed as individuals find their own reality. It takes a micro rather than a macro approach in looking at the way individuals identify themselves, compared to the structuralism view, in which an entire society is looked at. Postmodernists believe that realities are subject to change, and that apparent realities are actually social constructs which limit individuals. Keep these definitions in mind. You’ll want to use them in your future papers. I will ask you to read our next text through a postmodernist view. Here’s the thing about literary analysis: you don’t have to agree with it; you just have to prove you know how to recognize and use the specific tools. This trains us to be able to see certain perspectives and certain literary traits. 

            I’ll discuss some of the “Founding Fathers” of Postmodernism next week, but some we will look at include Jacques Derrida, who focused on deconstruction, which looks at the language, Micheal Foucault, who focused on class systems, and Baudrillard, who famously stated, “We live in a world where there is more and more information, and less and less meaning.” Some of these guys lay the foundation for postmodern critical analysis and one very sophisticated trick we want to master this year is to apply a theory to a reading. I know I’ve told you that in English, you get to make things up. This is true. But what I want to teach you is to take a theory, like postmodernism, and prove that the text we are using fits this reading. Using these theorists establishes the credibility or ethos, we discussed last week. 

            So how has Postmodernism affected literature? It changes the ideas of what we even consider as literature. There used to be a very high regard for canonized works, those “Classics” in literature most universities and homeschooling curricula like to praise. But postmodernism doesn’t ignore the popular. It suggests that our modern literature, art, and culture are worth exploring and that they, too, can have literary merit. I’d agree with this. While some may snivel at Jaws as a film worthy of deep analysis, I’d argue that the shark is symbolic of our fears, something that lurks beneath the surface and something that most of us recognize. Why else would we be afraid of sharks in the middle of Texas sitting in a cool air-conditioned room literally hours from the nearest beach? It isn’t logical. But also consider that this film was released in 1975. The Vietnam war and communism pervaded every mind. It was the fear lurking beneath the water. Furthermore, the mayor’s refusal to recognize or warn his people reveal our own mistrust of public officials. Jaws is about everything but the shark. 

            Postmodernism also introduces to us blurred genres. Have you heard of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies? That’s postmodernism.  In literature, postmodernism uses intertextuality. That’s a fancy word that means one text refers to another. This is usually done with pastiche, parody, or irony. The Simpsons are a classic example of this. If you’ve been in my other classes, I’ve likely shown you The Simpsons' parody of “The Raven.” Other postmodern texts include Pulp Fiction, The Matrix, Bladerunner, X-Files, and Inception. Wolverine, Deadpool, and Maleficent would also fall under postmodernism.

            Often, postmodernism is fascinated with the styles of the past. However, these styles are used completely out of context. The remakes of Charlie’s Angels, Scooby Doo, and the Brady Bunch fit here. 

            Postmodernism also emphasizes the dominance of capitalism. Often there is a use of paranoia narratives that explore our fear of technological advances, surveillance, and such. The Terminator, Jurassic Park, and Robocopfit here. Anything with robots coming to take over the world and kill us is likely a commentary about how far we take our technology and the dangers those present. Tom Hanks’ The Circle explored our obsessive use of surveillance and social media. That’s also Postmodernism.

            Disorientation is also a common tool in postmodernism. The viewer is disoriented. They don’t understand what’s going on. The Sixth Sense, The Matrix, Fight Club, and Life of Pi fit here, as does Unbreakable. These stories with “truth” revelations at the end disrupt our previous knowledge and beliefs.

            So here are some questions you’ll want to consider as we move forward: 

1.    How is language thrown into free-play or questioned in the work?

2.    How does the author (or a character) omit, change, or reconstruct memory and identity?

3.    How does a work fulfill or move outside the established conventions of its genre? (e.g. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies)

4.    How does the work deal with separation (or lack thereof) between writer, work, and reader? 

5.    What ideology does the text seem to promote? (e.g. Feminism, Marxism, any type of religion or political belief)

6.    What is left out of the text that if included might undermine the goal of the work? (e.g “the madwoman in the attic” in Jane Eyre)

You can keep up with the rest of the syllabus for next week’s class, so make sure you are reading the assigned essays in the OWMC book. We will discuss them in class next week. Also, find a current event that matches one of the themes in the story. How do they relate? Be prepared to share your current event with the class and turn it into me to grade. Each current event is worth 5 points. 

I will start teaching classes for Temple College on Mondays and Wednesdays, but you can still email and text me if you have any questions. I am generally up late checking my email and grading papers, so I will respond as soon as I can. Please don’t wait until the last minute for help. I do teach two classes on Mondays and the last one is over at 9PM in Temple. I’m not usually home until after 10PM. 

Read over this post on postmodernism a couple of times. Print it out and put it into your binder. This is critical information that will need to be applied throughout the first several weeks and we will constantly refer to it. Write down questions on what confuses you. We will spend time in class next week really digging into this concept, so this isn’t the only time you’ll hear about this. Those of you moving on into careers in ministry, English, Liberal Arts, film, and History, this will re-appear over and over in your future classes at the university level. And for those of you that just really love to read and watch movies, this will help you to understand them on a whole new level. 

As far as the house point challenge this week, I’ve been thinking. This week, many folks have shown us kindness during my husband’s surgery, and it has made a tremendous difference. I’d like to challenge each of you to perform your own random act of kindness for someone outside of your family. Tell me about it here on the blog, and I’ll give you points accordingly for your team. Bonus points if you can get pictures. J