Global Digital Postmodernity

Steven Best and Douglas Kellner provide a concise explanation of just what postmodernity is in the introduction of their book. This section, appropriately titled, "Between the Modern and the Postmodern," explains how our culture has transitioned between the two. Cultural definitions, structures, and ideals are being transformed in all aspects of life. These changes are due largely in part to the growth of technology and the way it is presented and used. "Bombardment" and "fragmentation" are two poignant and descriptive words that accurately summarize how postmodern society experiences day-to-day life. The title of the book also clues the reader in to the authors' opinion of postmodernity. It is an adventure. One that has many more advancements ahead of it.

The Group Improv Everywhere is postmodern because it takes theater out of the domain of a room with a stage and into the streets but that is not the only reason it is post modern, the performance itself (for the most part) is not staged but simply an idea. Another reason is that the people who participate in the missions find out about the event on the internet using a technology that is post modern because besides the internet there is no other way to find out about the missions or to see them unless someone captures it on a camera and then posts it on a website like Youtube. The main mission of the group was to bring performance art out of the theater and while that has always been around the general chaos (be it good or bad) and lack of plan that occurs in an event is what makes it post modern.

The MP3 Experiment is a mission designed by the group Improv Everywhere where participants all started in one location and listened to an MP3 track designed by the group. The participants were then told to perform tasks such as following around a german tourist or having a battle in the field of bats versus hammers. The idea of this mission created by Charlie Todd a graduate of the University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill, the creator of Improv Everywhere was to allow participants to have a unique and enjoyable experience. This video has ties to post modernity because it uses technology as a method of organization and communication, because the entire mission was set up online and there was no face-to-face individual interaction. Another aspect of this video that was postmodern was that the mission's art was in the creating of art and not the art itself like in modern works where only the viewers experienced it, but the participants experienced it as well.

Whether you think flash mobs are postmodern or not, and there is much debate over it, the different ways that flash mobs are used can also be post modern or modern. A company using the idea of a flashmob to sell their product is a typically modern idea used my advertising and marketing agencies. On the other hand, a company such as T-Mobile participating in the flash mobs phenomenon is more postmodern. Their flash mobs are large, quirky and people of all ages and sizes can participate. They don't leave a bad commercial-after taste in your mouth, but instead, make you want to share what you just observed. Just as the T Mobile commercial says: Life is for sharing, and like normal flashmob, they are creating something to share. Post modernity is sometimes referred to as a reply to modernity, and these T Mobile flash mobs could be a reply to the modern way of using flash mobs, saying "hey look, we can play too without tarnishing the essence of the original!"

The above exert gives an interesting theory on how the postmodern era and economy are parallel to that of the Middle Ages. One of the points made is the lack of authority and control. "The Middle Ages lacked the singular relationship between authority and territory characteristic of the modern era; geographic location did not determine identity and loyalty (Hirst and Thompson, 1995; Spruyt, 1994) . Overlapping and competing political authorities were the norm rather than the exception (Kobrin 12)." This is similar to the current economy existing on the internet. It is possible to buy basically anything from dvds to drugs on the internet and the government has no way of controlling it. In modern times, the only way to buy something was from a store. Now with the world wide web, it is possible to buy everything on the internet, even weekly groceries or a couch from India. The exert also discusses the idea of how "the clear separation between the private and public realms and the very idea of distinct private and public property may be tied to a specific, perhaps exceptional, historical era. The distinction was not relevant in pre-modern times and it may not be relevant in the postmodern future (Kobrin 25)." I think this applies well to global digital postmodernism if you consider the pictures on the web and all the information available to the masses.

There is a new show out this fall on abc called Modern Family. However, it should more correctly be called "Postmodern Family". The show is a sitcom that plays out as if it is a documentary about this family consisting of an older father and his very young second wife and her son, and then the older father's two children's families: one being a women and her pretty normal nuclear family, and the other being a homosexual son, his partner and their new adopted baby girl from Asia. Although it claims to be "modern", this family structure is more post modern because it does not match the typical equation "mom+dad=kids". Although the depiction of step parents and families has been on TV since the Brady Bunch, homosexuals (especially ones with children) are a relatively new occurrence on prime time. In the modern era, the nuclear family and heterosexual norms are predominate and more socially acceptable; postmodernity makes room for and accepts these new forms of families. Perhaps the abc network called it "Modern Family" because to the general public the word modern is usually associated with "new" and unique, (which the family structure portrayed on the show is) and were afraid that the title "Postmodern Family" would be to intimidating to potential viewers.

This "fail" video also displays characteristics of postmodernity. Most fail videos are of people falling down or hurting themselves, but this one shows a very private moment between a son and mother "discussing" god. Just as the video reaches a high point of intensity, and you think the mother is going to really get angry and maybe violent, the maker of the movie cuts away to a cat playing a peppy piano tune. This is very ironic and, as the Modern and Postmodern: Contrasting Tendencies chart would call it, a direct challenge "to official seriousness", or the discussion of "is there a god?". It could also be postmodern because the mother plays right into the idea of surface value over depth: she thinks telling her son that he can't get Christmas presents will some how change his mind. If you look below at the comments, this one video spurred a discussion between (one must assume) strangers who only know each other by there screen-names, but are having a calm discussion about religion themselves, compared to the heated discussion in the video.

"Gattaca" (1997) is a movie that, to me, exemplifies several postmodern features. The link is to the Wikipedia page about the movie and gives a detailed synopsis. The movie deals with the idea of genetic engineering. In "a not-too-distant future" all discrimination upon race, gender and religion will be forgotten, and thanks to scientific advances, people will only be judged upon their genes. This is a postmodern idea that depicts the importance of surface appearance, and not depth and meaning. In the movie, the main character goes for an interview, which surprisingly to him consisted only of a simple blood test. The company did not care about his personality or goals or past education like a normal interview, only about his genes and any risks of diseases. Since race is no longer an issue, "Gattaca" also contains the postmodern characteristic of disunity of nationalities and ethnicity. Instead, the only thing that decides who you associate with, work with, and even marry, are your genes and weather or not you were genetically engineered (which is more valued).

This is an article which defines seven different characteristics of postmodernity. The wording helps readers to be able to understand and not become frustrated, as postmodernity is a large and sometimes confusing topic. The characteristics are on a general basis not necessarily individual yet still capture the large, important, and most obvious components to this period of time that we are currently living in and trying to understand. The article also notes that many readers will only relate to some of the characteristics and not all and that is okay, making the article an even easier read knowing there is room for disagreement or change.

The article discusses how globalization is a word widely used today but it is used in SO many different contexts that it is hard to grasp a real meaning. The terms existence seems to mean "suggests that it is part of a reconfiguring and rethinking of contemporary social theory and politics that is caught up in some of the central debates and conflicts of the present age". This is how it directly relates to postmodernity because there is a definite change occurring in this era from the modern era. The site is a bit lengthy but it contains a huge amount of information and looks at both globalization and postmodernity from a few different perspectives to attempt to gain a full and working understanding of both terms. Globalization itself does seem to be postmodern and the article discusses why, giving both a better definition.

This site lets readers know that postmodernity is our current period of history and that it is hugely complex, partly because of the division of critics on what postmodern culture is. It then tells us that postmodernism consists of critics attempting to rethink concepts held in the Enlightenment or Modernist eras. The entire website is helpful but a bit long so in order to simply separate modernity and postmodernity readers can scroll down to the last two sections. Both sections list aspects of those time periods, though we are still currently in postmodernity. There is slight overlap among the two but the differences are brought out in the descriptions of the different aspects.

This site discusses literature, visual art, architecture, and music and dance in terms of how they have become postmodern through the changing times. The point of high and low art forms and how they almost seem to be one today is mentioned multiple times in the descriptions of works becoming postmodern in today's society. By reading the site a more concrete example of postmodernity comes to light in seeing the "then and now" aspects. The site describes each aspect and generally compares it to modernity so that the two can be separated and postmodernity understood.

This site is one that sparks the postmodernist debate on issues such as copyright, intellectual property, etc. It is a video sharing/upload site for the masses by the masses. (Note: I have only included the homepage, any other page should be allowed.)

The site is a postmodern form of communication. It charges nothing to use and its content is primarily user-generated. The site combines the best of e-mail, social networking, Instant Mesaging, video sharing etc. It is for the masses and largely controlled by the masses.

BBC: Religion [Postmodernism]. (2009, October 27). Retrieved December 7, 2009,from BBC website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/atheism/types/postmodernism.shtml An article on the BBC's Web site discusses how postmodernity "does away with many of the very things that religious people regard as essential." Although there is only a small portion of this article that really speaks to the connection between postmodernity and religion, the little that is said is quite thought provoking. This article is not something to use as a source for a project, but would be a great jumping off point when brainstorming where to go with the religion and postmodern connection. The article brings up the postmodern rejection of the "grand theory" of religion. It examines the idea that religion may become fragmented because the unity once inherent between social and cultural values during modernism is gradually being readjusted. The article goes on to explain that by reexamining religion in the postmodern era, people are beginning to question its validity more so than ever before. They are thus beginning to reject past beliefs and turning to "new age" religions.

Nagrant, M. (2006, October 3). Reflections in the Pond Back to "basics" with Bruce Sherman . Newcity Chicago. Retrieved from http://www.newcitychicago.com/chicago/5773.html A writer for Newcity Chicago discussed how postmodernity has changed the way food is made and presented in up-scale restaurants. He does not see the change as good by any means. He writes, "some of today's restaurant food feels a lot closer to industrial chewing gum than the farm." His belief is that the combination of postmodernism and culinary technique is threatening the association between food and comfort. The author makes his point in a sort of roundabout and slightly confusing way. However, what he is trying to say is that postmodernism and all of its fragmentation, conflicting identities and loss of order and control is destroying food. He explains that chefs are going the postmodern route and pairing things together that don't belong. This loss of control and rampant experimentation, where function (or taste) is not so much a concern, makes food lose its comfort factor. The wild and crazy experiments inherent in postmodern architecture and art do not create very good results in the kitchen.

R.E.M. (2009, July 24). R.E.M - Orange Crush (Official Music Video) [Video file]. Retrieved from YouTube.com database. In 1989 and 1990 MTV awarded an artist with a Video Music Award for Best Post-Modern Video. R.E.M. won the award in 1989 for its "Orange Crush" video. The video is a very striking example of postmodernity because it depicts fragmentation, conflicting identities and a decentered self. This is in sharp contrast to the modern ideas of a unified identity and unified, centered self. The video shows two characters, one is a young boy and the other a young adult. The faces of the two are not shown until nearly the end of the video. The video is black and white. The scenes flash from one character to the other and it is unclear if the two characters are the same person, brothers or not related at all. It is very indistinct what the message of the video is, if there is one. Again, this is a perfect example of the fragmentation often apparent in postmodern works of art and the lack of explanation that often follows suit.

Flashmob richtet Chaos in Supermarkt an [Video file]. (2009, October 1). Retrieved from YouTube.com database. This video depicts German supermarket workers staging a protest using a Flash Mob. In order to convey their wish to get free wages and better working conditions, the union members filled shopping carts full of products and left them in the aisles. They then passed out cards that stated what they desired from their employees. This is a great example of postmodernity because a group of people is taking something (Flash Mobs) and using it in a completely different way than it was intended. Flash Mobs were originally intended, or at least viewed as something fun and chaotic. They were by no means considered a serious form of expression when it came to real concerns. However, by turning a Flash Mob into a form of protest, the people involved are challenging official seriousness. There is no longer the modern solemnity of intention and purpose. These postmodern protests utilize unconventional means to get their messages across.

Armstrong, E. G. , 2005-08-12 "The Postmodern Drive: The Case of NASCAR" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association, Marriott Hotel, Loews Philadelphia Hotel, Philadelphia, PA Online . 2009-05-25 from http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p19150_index.html Edward Armstrong, a professor of sociology at Murray State University, presented a paper to the American Sociological Association that labeled NASCAR as a postmodern sport. In the paper he explains how the sport of NASCAR developed and how the conventional idea of simply having cars race around a track transformed into having these same cars become billboards on wheels. He also details a "postmodern remaking of the sacred" when he refers to how fans of the sport idolize drivers, turning them into gods, so to speak. The modern idea of having a specific social order does not include worshiping sports or athletes. In this vein, sports instead provide experience that is separate from the religious spheres. However, postmodern athletes have changed this relationship. Basically, in modernism athletes were seen as people playing games, but in postmodern culture, Armstrong believes that hero worship of NASCAR drivers, for example, as exceeded anything seen in modern sports. Armstrong presents an interesting case regarding something most would not take very seriously at face value. He connects the dots very well.