Postmodernism in literature

Résumé du document

Linda Hutcheon considers the term postmodernism as one of the 'most over and under-defined' in her poetics of postmodernism. Some consider the so-called postmodern movement as too heterogeneous to be even called a coherent system of thought, others define anything that is contemporary as post-modern. The difficulty to define postmodernism is due to three main features. First, the field of study of postmodernism is quite wide, ranging from sociological analysis to architecture and literary criticism. Second, postmodernism itself may be seen as the 'theorisation of the limits of theory' according to Gilbert Larochelle, it challenges theory and global explanations while putting an emphasis on pluralism, discontinuity, dislocation and antitotalisation. It is therefore delicate to summarise the postmodern ideas in one simple theory. Finally, it is quite hard to establish the postmodernist corpus itself, as most authors categorised as postmodernists do not consider themselves as affiliated to a specific movement of thought.

Extraits

[...] Unicity of theory, global explanation, absolute truths, are rejected, as our present society is too complex and plural to be put into one analytical frame. Postmodernists abandon the ideal of homogeneity and order, and accept plurality, differentiation and confusion as rational frameworks to understand society and its products. Most importantly, the central role of the subject in the postmodern era is integrated in a new method of understanding, which takes into account this idea of diversity, of plurality, of subjectivity. [...]

[...] Finally, the presentation focuses on the application of postmodernist theses to the study of language and fiction, and on the main traits of postmodernist literature. Postmodernist literary theory rejects boundaries between high and low forms of art, and rejects distinction of genres, art being always considered as an interesting testimony from the world. Concerning the study of language, the link between the signifier and the signified is much less explicit in postmodernism than in modernism, as the idea of any stable or permanent reality disappears, and with it, the idea of a signified which a signifier would directly point to. [...]

[...] The final victory of the party over Winston is to make him sincerely believe that two plus two may well equal five if the party decides it that way. Finally, Orwell makes use of postmodernist literary techniques, namely irony and breaking the narrative frame. Examples of irony can be found in the grotesque use of the theme of premonition and the multiplication of warnings throughout the novel. By doing this, Orwell voluntarily makes clear the use of narrative technique, and therefore redefines the contract between reader and writer. [...]

[...] Here again, history is completely separated from reality to become hyper real. Another postmodernist theme in the novel is the question of the redefinition of knowledge, of relativity of meaning and the existence or non-existence of a superior truth. The conflict between Winston and the party may be seen as a conflict between a modern mind that seeks rationality and a superior truth, and a postmodern mind, which claims that meaning is relative, subjective, and that truth lies in what people believe as being the truth. [...]

[...] The two main examples of this technique is the diary inside the novel, and Goldstein's book, of which the content is partially reproduced. This is also a way of reminding the reader he is reading a human creation, which is naturally artificial and not an account of reality. Postmodernists' writers will later on use this technique. HUTCHEON Linda, A poetics of postmodernism, History, Theory, Fiction, London : Routeledge page 3 Ref. : BOISVERT Yves, L'analyse postmodernistes, Une nouvelle grille d'analyse socio-politique, Paris : L'Harmattan page 68 Ref : AYLESWORTH Gary, "Postmodernism", in Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy http://plato.stanford.edu/ Ref. [...]