Postmodernism for Beginners

Rating:
Summary: Wow! and Wow! Again
Review: I liked this book because it gives good summaries of the thought of many of the most important Postmodern theorists: Baudrillard, Derrida, Deleuze and Guitarri, Foucault, etc. Also, it is entertaining. If you are a humanities major or even a science major, I would recommend it--as postmodernism impacts the sciences as well.

Rating:
Summary: Very Interesting Book
Review: Jim Powell's entertaining book shows how much we Americans who distrust intellectuals and intellectualism ought to learn form French contemporary thinkers about our own culture. From Leyotard to Deleuse, Derrida, Foucault...and most recently Baudrillard, they each have a different view on our Postmodern Condition and Jim Powell explains their uniqueness in a simple, layman's, language with a style that is also in essence postmodern, that is, a mixture of contemporary Internet slang and

Postmodern-ease. The book is written with a quasi-proustian syntax of endless sentences, relentlessly poring out new meanings and snaking thorough the shores of postmodern though, in a style, which Walter Benjamin once qualified of the `Nile of Language.'

Rating:
Summary: PostmosernismS
Review: Really this book should be called PostmodernismS for beginners, because, as Powell points out--there is no single unified Postmodern movement. Rather it is a hodgepodge of influences from architecture, capitalism, technology, philosophy, and the arts that is changing our world. Powell delves into many of these Postmodernisms, in a readable and lucid way. Highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Engaging, accessible introduction.
Review: Since there's less difference between post-structuralism and post-modernism than between the two "comic books" this series devotes to the two terms, readers may wish to know which one to purchase. I found Powell's book on postmodernism considerably more readable than its cousin, partly because of the subject ("postmodern" entails an era as well as a theory and, moreover, is inextricably bound up with popular culture) but also because of Powell's style and approach: The book's narrative, map, and examples not only steer the reader through the potential clutter but keep him sufficiently interested and entertained to become informed. Moreover, Powell covers (with the exception of Jacques Lacan) the major thinkers dealt with in this same series' introduction to post-structuralism.

The author manages to maintain sufficient detachment from his subject to provide perspective and levity while at the same time taking it seriously enough to provide a substantial explanation of the causes and symptoms of postmodernism, a decoding of its formidable jargon, and a lucid explication of difficult writers such as Baudrillard and Jameson. He also addresses key questions such as the difference between modernism and postmodernism, post-structuralism and post-modernism (let me put it this way: the former "reads" the text of verbal signs, or words; the latter reads the text of visual signs, or images).

A couple of caveats: Deconstructionists, post-modernists, etc. tend to take themselves very seriously, ironically adopting reactionary positions and political ideologies no less rigid than the "logocentric" views they originally challenged. Also, in many respects the media culture changes so quickly and unexpectedly that even "pomo" gurus like Baudrillard can suddenly look quaintly old-fashioned and dated.

Finally, post-structuralism, deconstruction, postmodernism are primarily words of the academy; their value as currency, moreover, rapidly diminished after the 1980s. But because so many young academics, graduate students, and sophomoric philosopher-dilettantes invested so much of themselves in learning French theory (often at the expense of studying the objects of inquiry), they tend to overestimate its importance on the present-day scene, imposing it upon bewildered young students having difficulty weighing its actual importance. The author's plan does not include a critique of "postmodernism," but had he room for an additional chapter, he might well have considered providing one.

Rating:
Summary: The Best in its Genre
Review: So many introductions to postmodernism are boring, or even unreadable simply because they are written by people who cannot write. These "writers" simply parrot the same pomobabble that so many postmodern thinkers indulge in--as if they were all members of some wierd cult. Powell--who CAN actually write--frys them for this, but then goes on to present excellent overviews of several important writers. One would not expect to find such depth in a comic book. The summary of Baudrillard's work, for instance, is often more insightful than those found in much weightier and intentionally serious volumes. Powell, explains the evoultion of Baudrillard's thoughts from its Marxist roots. Powell is especially good when it comes to the enigmatic Derrida, and his 'deconstruction.' Although Postmodernism for Beginners does not tackle Derrida's major works--as does Powell's Derrida for Beginners--it does make Derrida less mercurial, so that readers can then go on to read Derrida's works forewarned and forearmed. Powell really brings postmodernism to light, however, in his presentation of postmodern artifacts: Madonna, Bladerunner, cyberpunk, etc. Joe Lee's illustrations often present subtle asides to Powell's Proustian prose. All-in-all, one of the best I've read in the For-Beginners series.

Rating:
Summary: The Best in its Genre
Review: So many introductions to postmodernism are boring, or even unreadable simply because they are written by people who cannot write. These "writers" simply parrot the same pomobabble that so many postmodern thinkers indulge in--as if they were all members of some wierd cult. Powell--who CAN actually write--frys them for this, but then goes on to present excellent overviews of several important writers. One would not expect to find such depth in a comic book. The summary of Baudrillard's work, for instance, is often more insightful than those found in much weightier and intentionally serious volumes. Powell, explains the evoultion of Baudrillard's thoughts from its Marxist roots. Powell is especially good when it comes to the enigmatic Derrida, and his 'deconstruction.' Although Postmodernism for Beginners does not tackle Derrida's major works--as does Powell's Derrida for Beginners--it does make Derrida less mercurial, so that readers can then go on to read Derrida's works forewarned and forearmed. Powell really brings postmodernism to light, however, in his presentation of postmodern artifacts: Madonna, Bladerunner, cyberpunk, etc. Joe Lee's illustrations often present subtle asides to Powell's Proustian prose. All-in-all, one of the best I've read in the For-Beginners series.

Rating:
Summary: not a great intro
Review: The back cover of this books say: "If you are like most people, you're not sure what Postmodernism is. And if this were like most books on the subject, it probably wouldn't tell you." I think this is like most books on the subject. You leave this book still unsure of what Postmodernism is. I suppose Postmodernism is too complex a subject to really get a grasp on in such a short format. The book takes a lot of different divergences, and in the end you know little more than what you started with. It is a good book to help you figure out what to read and look into for an explanation of Postmodernism. I'd say it is more of a guide as to where to go to learn about Postmodernism than an explanation of Postmodernism. It does get interesting at the end when it discusses Postmodern Artifacts (including cyberpunk, Madonna, and MTV). I'd say go ahead and pick it up. It won't teach you what Postmodernism is, but it'll give you an idea of where to go.

Rating:
Summary: I loved this book!
Review: This book got me through graduate school, and taught me a thing or two, besides. Also, its illustrations and tone made it all fun. The trouble with postmodern thought, which one MUST give the appearance of having learned, if one is to be successful in a graduate education in the humanities, is that it is so labyrinthine, so French, and so obscure. Thus, most of us end up reading French authors in translation. We must read Derrida, Baudrillard, Foucault, Cixous, etc, etc, depending upon the translations. The next problem is that Derrida's writings, for instance, are a series of readings of other writers: Plato, Nietzsche, Heidegger, etc. In order to really understand Derrida, we should be able to read him in the original, PLUS be able to read Plato, Heidegger, Nietzsche, etc, in the original. Such a task is daunting, if not impossible. And, in fact, very few people have the time or inclination to master Greek, Latin, German, French and all the important philosophers who have written in those languages. Thus, most people talk about Postmodernism without even having really learned one of its major authors. This boils down to grad students and professors making moves in a game. The game consists of using buzz words and phrases of PoMo-babble--without a real in-depth knowledge that one would need to discuss even one of these thinkers seriously. To do that would take a lifetime of study.

I loved Powell's book, because it gave me a quick understanding of many Postmodern writers--and advanced my ability to make moves in the game it seems that we all must play. Also, without Powell's overview, simply launching into a translation of Derrida or Foucault would have been almost useless. Having gained some insight into their thought, my initial readings of their work were much easier. For beginners and even skilled players in the game of the heady field of Postmodernism, such an overview is warmly welcome.

Rating:
Summary: Don't forget Foucault!
Review: This book is a good introduction to the introductions of various postmodern thinkers, and is as good only as far as that can go. My major problem, like the Nietzsche reader below, was a mis/nonrepresentation of the subject brought on by the ultimate brevity of the complete work. Foucault, for instance, is given a paragraph or two of treatment and then is immediately dismissed by a nonsensical (possibly just unexplained) assumption that because power/sexuality are everywhere they are also nowhere, and therefore Foucault's works are essentially meaningless in the postmodern landscape. And yet, that critique ultimately becomes a meaningless one as gender, race, sexual orientation and other cultural constructs could be subjected to the same analysis, but this wouldn't change the fact that these are all very powerful ways to separate and systematically oppress people in our culture.

For instance, Q: the critique holds that since sexuality is everywhere it is nowhere. But what kind of sexuality is everywhere? A: Heterosexual relations holding the constructed feminine gender subordinate to the constructed masculine gender; mostly what we call "white," rarely "interracial"; and mostly in the context of pre-marital (read committed) relationships. This form is everywhere and nowhere--pervasive but invisible. But what does this then do? As Foucault himself might say, this dynamic impresses itself onto the lives of everyone not within this hetero conception--it turns them into society's perverts; it touches their lives and bodies in the most intimate ways.

Of course, my comments here could be seen as a (feminist) critique of postmodernism itself, but my intent is only to show how difficult it is to handle such a large concept or thinker within a few lines. So this is not so much a failing of the book per se, but a failing of any introduction of this length to introduce such a gigantic concept as "Postmodernism." If you are really interested in the subject, I would recommend either reading the original thinkers or reading books (like Foucault's Power/Knowledge) which contain interviews and overviews of the thinker's major works. This gives you a much better feel for the subject than a 100 page cartoon is, simply, able to do.

Rating:
Summary: Great fun reading it.
Review: This is the first book on Postmodernism I've ever finished. It gives you not only Lyotard, Baudrillard, Foucault and Derrida, but also Blade Runner, Buddha, and Madonna. Always lucid and engaging, it meets you where you are by never presuming you have a background in the subject. Other books on Postmodernism begin by gleefully flooding you in terms such as "aborescence," "diegetic," "interpellation," and "simulacra." By the third page your head aches and you throw the book aside - if you're still awake. You might give up, concluding that Postmodernism is a kind of navel-gazing for college professors with too much time on their hands.

But Powell borrows Postmodernism from the ivory tower and makes it fun. Written in a lively "Q & A" dialogue style, Powell's book allows you to see, feel and think about our world the way the Postmodernist theorists have written about it. Talking about everything from T.S. Eliot to Beavis and Butt-Head, from college catalogues to MTV, Powell shows how almost everything in front of us evinces the postmodern condition.

Postmodernism is also easy to understand, the way Powell places it in historical context. He casts it as a way to understand the breakdown of the grandiose cultural schemes envisioned by the thinkers of the 18th and 19th centuries. God and Reason were going to conquer the world and make it safe for ... God and Reason. This did not happen. Instead, the last fifty years have brought us closer to minicultures and multicultures. This cultural flux has been spread by modern freeways, air travel, bookstore chains, movies, and MTV. Powell takes you through the reactions by thinkers such as Jean-Francois Lyotard, Fredric Jameson, Jean Baudrillard, Charles Jencks, Michel Foucault, Jacques Derrida, and David Harvey. He discusses art, architecture, the printed word, spirituality, TV and the Internet. With kindly democratic spirit, Powell sees Postmodernism as against the marginalization of anyone, and as embracing of the diversity of the world we live in.

Joe Lee's funny and irreverent illustrations carry forth Powell's well written presentation. The artwork includes cartoon characters, crusty philosophers, classical artwork, and the odd schematic diagram. Reading this book is like a friendly fireside chat with a well-informed friend. I immediately went off to look for Powell's DERRIDA FOR BEGINNERS.

...