Postmodern Theory: Encompasses a New Historical Epoch, new cultural products and a new type of theorizing about the social world

Postmodern Theory: Encompasses a New Historical Epoch, new cultural products and a new type of theorizing about the social world

Understanding postmodern social theory, it is applicable to distinguish between postmodernity, postmodernism, and postmodern social theory. Postmodernity refers to a social and political epoch that is generally seen as following the modern era in a historical sense.  Postmodernism refers to cultural products (in art, movies, architecture, and so on) that are seen as different from modern cultural products, while postmodern social theory refers to a kind of social theory that is distinct from modern social theory.  Thus, the postmodern encompasses a new historical epoch, new cultural products and a new type of theorizing about the social world.

1. Postmodernity:

There is a widespread belief that the era of modernity is ending or has ended, and we have entered a new social epoch. In society, there are many ways to characterize the difference between the modern and the postmodern world, but as an illustration, one of the best is the difference in viewpoints on whether it is possible to find a rational solution to society’s problems. Firstly, most postmodernists are uneasy and even unwilling to discuss a historical transition from modernity to postmodernity. It constitutes the kind of grand narrative that we have already seen rejected. Secondly, it involves the kind of linear, chronological thinking that postmodernists associate with modernism and therefore also reject. To postmodernists, things rarely, if ever, progress in a simple, linear manner. Finally, it involves, in their view, far too neat and simplified a distinction between historical epochs.

Thus, while it is possible to think of a transition from modernity to postmodernity and much of this thinking has been given impetus by postmodern social theory, few, if any, postmodern theories accept such a simple, linear, and grand narrative. They do agree something has happened; something has changed, but it is not simple and it is not linear.

2. Postmodernism:

It relates to the cultural realm in which it is argued that postmodern products have tended to supplant modern products. In architecture, architect Philip Johnson’s AT&T building in New York is often cited as an example of postmodern architecture since it includes both modern and traditional elements. In music, Shusterman sees rap music as postmodern because, among other things, of the fact that it recycles extant styles rather than creating new ones, eclectically mixes styles, and is local rather than universal. In the movie, Blade Runner, showing a Los Angeles of the future combining highly futuristic and highly traditional elements and peopled by “replicants” who often seem more humane than the humans, may be seen as a postmodern work.

3. Postmodern social theory:

In the emergence of postmodern social theory, there are differences between modern theory. Modern social theory tends to be absolute, rational, and to accept the possibility of discovering the truth, whereas postmodern social theory tends to be relativistic and open to the possibility of irrationality. However, as in the case with modern social theory, not all postmodern social theory is of one piece.

Barry Smart has sought to bring some order to this area by articulating three fundamental positions taken by postmodern social theorists.

1. Extreme postmodernist: There has been a radical rupture, and modern society has been replaced by a postmodern society.

2. More moderate: A change has taken place, postmodernity grows out of, and is continuous with modernity.

3. In the third and final Smart himself rather than viewing them as epochs, we can see modernity and postmodernity as engaged in a long-running relationship with one another, with postmodernity continually pointing out the limitations of modernity.

All though it is useful, it would be noted that postmodern social theorists would likely dismiss Smart’s typology and would also reject the distinction among postmodernity, postmodernism and postmodern social theory, as greatly simplifying the enormous diversity of their ideas and distorting each individual’s work in the process.