Postmodernism is as tricky a movement as modernism. It is a movement or theory which is found in almost all branches of knowledge in the present times. Postmodern theory has been discussed in politics, sociology, economics, science, philosophy, history as well as art, architecture, literature and so on. Though postmodernism is considered as a continuation of modernism in some respects, it is also seen as going against the previous norms and beliefs of modernism. Tony Cliff rightly avers:
“Postmodernism is a theory
of rejecting theories.”
UNDERSTANDING ‘POSTMODERNISM’:
The term “POST-MODERNISM” (with a hyphen) is written to specify the historical time line whereas the term “POSTMODERNISM” (without a hyphen) is used to name a critical theory or ideology in different fields.
The term ‘Postmodernism’ was first used by Arnold Toynbee, a historian, in 1939 or 1947. But postmodernism as a theory or literary movement acquired importance only during the 1960s.
The period from 1914 (World War I) to 1945 (World War II) is generally considered as the period of modernism in literature. But the period from 1960s onwards is entitled as the period of postmodernism in art and literature. The problems of the contemporary social world, the rapid change, and the new forms of media and culture are all reference points for the postmodern critique and analysis.
WHAT IS POSTMODERNISM?
Postmodernism is a literary theory which discusses the features of present day art and literature. Both modernism and postmodernism discuss destruction and loss of faith of modern man. But there is a difference. Modern literature present the modern life as fragmented, alienated and distorted. (T. S. Eliot’s ‘The Wasteland’). On the other hand, postmodern literature presents the same distorted and fragmented modern man, but with no grief and agony. In postmodern literature, there is no attempt to find out the solution of the frustration of modern man.
A. LOSS OF FAITH IN GOD: Charles Darwin propounded a revolutionary scientific theory of evolution in ‘The Origin of Species’ in 1959. This proved that man is not made by God and man is the result of slow and steady process of evolution from amoeba to monkey and then man. As a result, modern man lost faith from God.
B. LOSS OF FAITH IN KING: Karl Marx came with his theory in the mid-19th century which rejected Feudalism and Kingship. He advocated for the economic and social equality of modern man. Hence, modern man lost faith from Kings too.
C. LOSS OF FAITH IN INDIVIDUAL: Sigmund Freud published his book ‘Interpretation of Dreams’ in 1899 which proved that human mind is just like an iceberg. (Only 10% visible). Reality lies within the subconscious mind. So the importance of individual external personality also lost its importance in the modern world.
D. LOSS OF FAITH FROM DEMOCRACY: Two World Wars during the 20th century brought terrific results, bloodshed, massacres and destruction. The modern man lost faith from the present day concept of democracy too.
E. LOSS OF FAITH IN SCIENCE: The destructive powers of science did much harm to the modern world. The atomic and nuclear powers used during the two World Wars made us rethink on the usefulness of science in our life.
In short, this loss of faith in all respects, destruction, alienation, frustration and meaninglessness of life are the major traits of modern and postmodern literature.
FEATURES OF POSTMODERN LITERATURE:
A. MULTIPLE MEANINGS OR LACK OF MEANING: Postmodern literature either conveys multiple meanings or it has no meaning at all. Modern human mind interprets life individually and so there are different meanings from a reader to reader. ‘Waiting for Godot’ and ‘The Birthday Party’ are examples of the modern and postmodern texts which deal with meaninglessness.
B. PASTICHE: In postmodern literature several portions are taken from different other works. It is a hotchpotch of other traditional and modern works. Copying and pasting has been a trait of postmodern literature.
C. MINIMALISM: Krishnaswami rightly opines, “In postmodernism, there are no epic noble heroes, no grand narratives that elevate our thoughts … there are more self help books on how to win and how to empower oneself on the bookshelves in our railway stations.”
In postmodern literature, the focus is not on high elevated stories and characters. Here we find the stories and characters from very mean and low layers of society. Beggars, workers, or unemployed youth or common men struggling to earn his livelihood and struggling to fight against the hectic globalized and industrial world are found in postmodern literature.
D. MAGIC REALISM: Postmodern texts are the mixture of reality and unreality. Unrealistic and unbelievable scenes and characters are presented. Harry Potter is a nice example of magic realism. ‘Midnight’s Children’ by Salman Rushdie, ‘One Hundred Years of Solitude’ by Gabriel García are some more examples of magic realism in literature.
E. INTER-TEXUALITY: Postmodern literature is not pure and original by nature. We come across many references to other modern and traditional texts while reading postmodern works. The authors present references and allusions to different previous works in post-modern times.
F. TEMPORAL DISTORTION: Here, non-linear time is presented. The story moves from present to past, then to present and then to future and present again. There are too many shifts and flashbacks of time in postmodern works.
G. META-FICTION: Present day literature is known as meta-fiction. Here, we find that the story is about how to tell the story. The characters talk about the development of plot and story within the story. That is why postmodern works are called meta-fiction. For example, ‘The Canterbury Tales’ by Geoffrey Chaucer, ‘Tim O'Brien's 1990 short story cycle ‘The Things They Carried’, Italo Calvino's 1979 novel ‘If on a Winter's Night’ is about a reader attempting to read a novel.
CONCLUSION:
Miguel Syjuco rightly summarizes the difference between modernism and postmodernism in these words:
“Postmodernism was a reaction against modernism. Where modernism was about objectivity, postmodernism was about subjectivity. Where modernism sought a singular truth, postmodernism sought the multiplicity of truths.”
At the end we may say that Postmodernism was a movement which began after 1960s and it rejected the norms of previous modernism. Frustration and alienation of modern life is presented here but there is no attempt to find the solution to these problems. Mixing of various texts, mixing of reality and unreality, copying and pasting, focus on the life and conflict of the common characters are some of the major features of postmodern literature.
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