Bumble: Lyotard

Post Modern, Oh my goodness what is it!?

Jean-Francois Lyotard is one confusing man,

It seems to be that there is no reality, there is no set meaning to anything, and so does it make life better or worse? In many ways it seems a given that there is no way to categorize everything, and that there is no such thing as reality. In another way, as humans we are inclined to want to categorize things and place things into their proper places. What I understood about the meaning of postmodernism is that there is this phenomenon that every thing created can be considered legitimately literature or art or a rule. However, instead of trying to place the works or texts into established rules, you make the rules revolve around the work. If there are no set rules that you need to try to squeeze your life into, then what happens to the meaning of AUTHORITY? We are constantly in the process of inventing and reinventing rules so what is the meaning of the old ones. In many ways we live dual lives in which some aspects are modern and others are postmodern. In the discipline of art, creativity, and leisure most definitely we are living a postmodern life, practically everything can be accepted into a proper form of work. “the work he produces are not in principle governed by pre-established rules, and they cannot be judged according to a determining judgment…” (Lyotard 46). It is beautiful that suddenly everything under the sun or within the scope of an individual’s creativity or imagination can be credible. On the other hand, I often look at texts and say, “who decided that the work is art or talent?” There is no authority or comparable standards anymore. We live a more modern approach to government though. If everything were postmodern than we would all be running around like wild apes.

I hope to clarify this topic more in class!