The other day someone called my writing style "postmodernist." I wasn't sure what to make of this. I hear the term "postmodern" tossed around every once in awhile, but I've never really understood what postmodern meant.
My research offered no real answers. According to Wikipedia, "Postmodern literature, like postmodernism as a whole, is hard to define and there is little agreement on the exact characteristics, scope, and importance of postmodern literature."
So I'm not sure whether being postmodernist, if I am indeed postmodern, is good or bad. This may have been intended as a scathing insult. Oh, well. I guess I've been called worse.
Phil: Oxford English Dictionary was a little more helpful than Wikipedia
ReplyDelete-- pause for gasp, pick 20-somethings up off floor--
"Typical features of late 20th cent. postmodernism include references to, or the use of, earlier styles and conventions..."
-- OK, Phil, we've all told you to tone down the Jane Austen references--
"... a deliberate mixing of different styles and media (often with self-referential or parodic intent)...
-- Phil, parody? What the heck?--
"...and the incorporation of images relating to consumerism, mass-communication, etc."
-- I'm going to crack open a nice, cold Pow! and tune into Hype!!! and have a good laugh about that one.
The real question is, will being named a 'postmodernist' affect your writings?
ReplyDeleteI think not. :)
You and Pynchon, buddy.
ReplyDelete