Can someone explain the definition of "post modern" to me?

[BumperliciousIsOneHotMother]

I often hear or read it and haven't a clue what it means?

It depends on the context - it can refer to culture, art, history, literature, architecture. It's a movement that was a reaction to 'modernism' - and came 'after'.

In art and culture it is basically about moving away from originality and authenticity and questioning whether this has ever really existed. It's moving towards multiplicity of meanings, towards quotation, referencing - imagine a collage of lots of things brought together. In art and culture it's seen as subversive and often humorous - although it has a whole different set of values when talking about post modern philosophy, ethics or epistemology - so really does depend on context.

In TV, those shows like the 100 greatest blah blah - that's postmodern.

In architecture something like the Pompidou Centre would be postmodern because traditionally architecture was about taking something functional and trying to make it attractive, whereas with the postmodern it's exposing the bits that are usually hidden, or sticking greek columns on a sky scraper. It's about jokes in a way.

I'm rambling and probably making no sense.

ye olde post

modern post innit

The definition of post modernism is that there is no definition.

lol
that clears it up then, bobsmum

Thanks for the detailed post boco, so it's kind of like "anti-fashion of the time"? I'm still not sure I get it...

Gary Larson is post modern.

basically throughout the ages there have been different ideas about what is right/wrong/fashionable/unfashionable. These can be ideas of ways of living eg victorian industrialisation and imperialism, or movements in art /architecture eg things like Baroque roccoco etc. Then after the first world war there was a movemtn called Modernism. Basically the idea that war was so horrific and bad that actually we must find the right way to think. There must be something that was pure. People looked to nature for examples like exact symmentry in snowflakes and used these kind of principles to address all aspects of life - mathmatical form in music, architecture, aesthetics, philosphy. There must be a right way and other ways must be wrong. THEN... in the fifties or sixties (prolly cos the 2nd world war happened) someone said 'why should there be just one way of things being correct? This could be correct AND that could be correct too.' Both AND rather than Either/or.

That was called post modern - basically 'anything goes' anyone could be right, who is to say. So from then on everything is post modern, cos anything could be turned on its head.

Any questions class?

I haven't explained it very well. It says that there's no author or original objects - so can take and borrow from anywhere. Dance music with bits sampled and borrowed from anywhere else is postmodern, with no sense of one composer or creator - and the same applies for fashion and art and etc.

if you google 'Modernism' that might be a better starting point, then post modern says 'I don't see why, not necessarily,'

Um...things I remember from uni...

Derrida? Lyotard? Something about there being no absolutes? We make our own meaning and it's as valid an opinion/definition as the next person's.

But then again, saying that there are no absolutes is surely an absolute in itself....

Look up Foucault and post modernism for a good description.

One characteristic is that it is often self-referential. In literature, for example, a play may have a play within it, blah blah.

Argh - intertextuality!!!

Like when Ursula from Mad About You appeared in Friends as Phoebe's twin - now that was postmodern

and piggin' ugly, in architectural terms.

Apols for absolute.

Clear as mud.

supermasrkets with clock towers on top and references to market stalls in the presentation of fruit and veg

the disney hotels in disneyworld

epcot in general the country sections..

It's a bloomin' minefield, this postmodernism, but I think:

architecture: comedy Grecian pillars on sky-scrapers, as above, or anything which incongruously 'refers' to previous architectural styles

literature and culture: something which refers self-consciously to its own creation, or 'winks' at its audience and reminds them that it is a creation.

OR something which is intrinsically about the unreliability of itself - eg. plays with one's idea of what an author should be..

OR something which is all about the things which it isn't.

OR when you see the word 'postmodern', try substituting the word 'shit' - it often clarifies textual difficulties.

it implies irony or cynicism sometimes wit

oh god yes bobsmum, intertextuality is unbelievably crap, and illegal in some states, I believe.

My film studies lecturers would have wet themselves or worse if the Mighty Boosh had existed during my degree.

It's an excuse to be naff & obvious.

Cuz you're taking the Piss really.

Aren't you?????

If you are - that's post modern.

If you're not - that's a bit naff and obvious - come up with an excuse anon!!!!!

Am I a complete numpty to not have understood this before?

Good lord no.