Eli5: What is modernism and post-modernism?
In: 81
Modernism is being hopeful about the future and our prospects. Post modernism is being tired of all that shit.
Modernism is a broad set of beliefs that came about with industrialisation when technology and science were advancing rapidly and people were amazed and hopeful about the future. Post modernism came about later when people realised that all these advancements didn’t really create a utopia but instead it’s more or less the same but now there’s plastic in our blood.
Modernism is being hopeful about the future and our prospects. Post modernism is being tired of all that shit.
Modernism is a broad set of beliefs that came about with industrialisation when technology and science were advancing rapidly and people were amazed and hopeful about the future. Post modernism came about later when people realised that all these advancements didn’t really create a utopia but instead it’s more or less the same but now there’s plastic in our blood.
Shortest possible version:
Coming out of the Reformation, a bunch of guys got together in a philosophical and political movement called “The Enlightenment.” They looked at what Newton and Descartes had done in science and wanted to do the same in law and ethics. They said, “Just as we can drive universal mathematical truths and arrive at scientific laws, we can find universal moral truths to derive political laws!”
In response a bunch of artists, philosophers, and theologians collectively called “Romantics” said, “Hold on. This is great and all, but there are all kinds of things beyond your ability to just study in book. You can’t reduce the human experience to a set of equations!”
To which the Modernists replied, “Fuck you, watch us.” They came up with a whole bunch of ideas, not just in the hard sciences but in politics and social sciences, that were all based around “objectivity” and the idea that they were perfect, rational observers.
Eventually the Post-modernists show up. They look at the core of all Modernist thought and say that objectivity was always a comforting lie. “All these ‘laws’ of yours are just stories you tell to explain the world to yourself. They might be useful, but stories change depending on the person telling them and the audience.” They got very interested in the idea that *ideas* can tell you about the people who hold them.
Shortest possible version:
Coming out of the Reformation, a bunch of guys got together in a philosophical and political movement called “The Enlightenment.” They looked at what Newton and Descartes had done in science and wanted to do the same in law and ethics. They said, “Just as we can drive universal mathematical truths and arrive at scientific laws, we can find universal moral truths to derive political laws!”
In response a bunch of artists, philosophers, and theologians collectively called “Romantics” said, “Hold on. This is great and all, but there are all kinds of things beyond your ability to just study in book. You can’t reduce the human experience to a set of equations!”
To which the Modernists replied, “Fuck you, watch us.” They came up with a whole bunch of ideas, not just in the hard sciences but in politics and social sciences, that were all based around “objectivity” and the idea that they were perfect, rational observers.
Eventually the Post-modernists show up. They look at the core of all Modernist thought and say that objectivity was always a comforting lie. “All these ‘laws’ of yours are just stories you tell to explain the world to yourself. They might be useful, but stories change depending on the person telling them and the audience.” They got very interested in the idea that *ideas* can tell you about the people who hold them.
Modernism is an artistic and cultural movement that emerged in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, characterized by a focus on innovation, experimentation, and the rejection of traditional values and forms. Postmodernism is a cultural and intellectual movement that emerged in the mid- to late-20th century, characterized by a skepticism toward grand narratives, a blurring of the boundaries between high and low culture, and an emphasis on self-reflexivity and irony. In essence, modernism can be seen as a reaction against traditional values, while postmodernism can be seen as a reaction against modernism itself.
Modernism is an artistic and cultural movement that emerged in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, characterized by a focus on innovation, experimentation, and the rejection of traditional values and forms. Postmodernism is a cultural and intellectual movement that emerged in the mid- to late-20th century, characterized by a skepticism toward grand narratives, a blurring of the boundaries between high and low culture, and an emphasis on self-reflexivity and irony. In essence, modernism can be seen as a reaction against traditional values, while postmodernism can be seen as a reaction against modernism itself.
They’re both *edit: also* an art and literature style. It’s all meant to make you think about humanity, I guess.
Modernism: Dreary and sad art because everyone lives in industrial era cities and many are unhappily unfaithful in love. Sometimes it’s that and sometimes it’s just art that shows humans how they really are with their flaws and everything.
Modernism is easier to understand if you contrast it with previous eras of art where people would be depicted with honor, glory, romance, or when they cared about the golden ratio, a art theory where if you mathematically measure out where they put the painting’s focus in this pattern it will look really good.
Post-modernism: Art that is random, disturbing, weird, abstract, or subverts your expectations from the way previous eras would, for example make paintings of people but give them a glow-up or tell a coherent story with a hero, a villain, a climax, and everything.
A post-modernist painting might for example make the person look like a potato instead of focusing on trying to make them look pretty and a post-modernist writer might write you a story where there is no hero/villain/climax, everyone is grey, or everyone is crazy, and the story just suddenly ends on a dull note.
They’re both *edit: also* an art and literature style. It’s all meant to make you think about humanity, I guess.
Modernism: Dreary and sad art because everyone lives in industrial era cities and many are unhappily unfaithful in love. Sometimes it’s that and sometimes it’s just art that shows humans how they really are with their flaws and everything.
Modernism is easier to understand if you contrast it with previous eras of art where people would be depicted with honor, glory, romance, or when they cared about the golden ratio, a art theory where if you mathematically measure out where they put the painting’s focus in this pattern it will look really good.
Post-modernism: Art that is random, disturbing, weird, abstract, or subverts your expectations from the way previous eras would, for example make paintings of people but give them a glow-up or tell a coherent story with a hero, a villain, a climax, and everything.
A post-modernist painting might for example make the person look like a potato instead of focusing on trying to make them look pretty and a post-modernist writer might write you a story where there is no hero/villain/climax, everyone is grey, or everyone is crazy, and the story just suddenly ends on a dull note.
Modernism: By focusing efforts on science, reason, logic, and industry, we can solve problems, become a great society, and find the truth!
Postmodernism: There is no such thing as “truth”, only each person’s experience and understanding. Therefore there are societies which are great for some, but none can be great for everybody. Problems all depend on who is experiencing them – climate change will be devastating, particularly for humans, but there are also some species which will adapt and benefit from the change.
Modernism: By focusing efforts on science, reason, logic, and industry, we can solve problems, become a great society, and find the truth!
Postmodernism: There is no such thing as “truth”, only each person’s experience and understanding. Therefore there are societies which are great for some, but none can be great for everybody. Problems all depend on who is experiencing them – climate change will be devastating, particularly for humans, but there are also some species which will adapt and benefit from the change.
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