Abstract
M ODERNITY can only be glimpsed. There are phrases that try to capture its essence: global village, one-dimensional man, the affluent society, the technetronic society, the postindustrial society, the post-civilized society, post-historic man, One World man, the space age. The phrases succeed each other, each with a bit of the truth, but surely with not more than a bit. How could it be otherwise? We are caught up in changes the nature of which we are not yet ready to understand fully. Nevertheless the sense is strong -the cited phrases are symptoms-that the world is now just into some new era that will be radically discontinuous with much of previous human experience. The phrases come from analyses of the human condition in the present and near future, made by social scientists and social philosophers. We may add to their sustained work some moments of intense perception in the poets. The writer, in each case, has caught a hint of the coming of something radically new, some condition, or some possible human predicament and response in the not-distant future. Among the most stark are these: From Rilke's first Duino Elegy, written more than sixty years ago:
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
