Postmodernism is a term used to describe a philosophical movement following the modernist movement. Postmodernist philosophy began as a critique of continental philosophy, and was influenced by existentialism, structuralism and phenomenology.
History
According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, the term postmodernism originated in 1979 with the publication of Jean Francois Lyotard's "The Postmodern Condition." Key influences include the writings of Friedrich Nietzsche, Jacques Lacan and Soren Kierkegaard.
Function
Postmodernists believe that all truth is approximate and in a constant state of evolution, and that no theory can ever be proved true.
Features
Postmodernism philosophy is described as a set of strategic, rhetorical and critical practices that utilize concepts such as repetition, difference and hyper reality to weaken other philosophical concepts.
Considerations
Postmodernism is notoriously difficult to describe or define, and critics of the movement argue that postmodernists use extensive jargon to hide the triviality of their writings.
Famous Ties
Well-known postmodern philosophers include Jean-Francois Lyotard, Jean Baudrillard, Richard Rorty, Michel Foucault and Jacques Derrida.
