Postmodern Challenge Research Articles

Toward a postmodern bioethics.

In this article, postmodernism is presented as posing a challenge to the role of philosophy within bioethics. It is argued that any attempt to develop a postmodern bioethics must respond to arguments concerning power, relational responsibility, and violence. Contemporary work on the topic of relational autonomy and naturalized bioethics is interpreted as engaging with the postmodern challenge. This article proposes that the role of philosophy in bioethics should be not to provide moral guidance but rather to adopt a critical approach to the possible consequences of privileging any position or understanding over others.

Public health care in Europe: moral aspirations, ideological obsessions, and structural pitfalls in a post-enlightenment culture.

This essay focuses on the challenge European states have imposed on themselves, namely, to provide state-of-the-art health care equally to all and for less than market price. Continued endorsement of that challenge in these states hinges on their character as media democracies: the public is moved by a supposed morally warranted expectation that all should receive adequate health care at no significant personal cost. The structural and economic constraints that hamper such forms of healthcare delivery result in systems that are financially inefficient and fail to provide the quality of treatment patients are led to expect. This essay examines the tension between secular moral claims to social solidarity and the actual limits of accessibility to healthcare services. Its critical focus addresses both the difficulties that result from politicians invoking high moral ideals while framing their decisions around short-term political advantage, and the transformation of the Enlightenment's secular aspirations into a political ideology that distorts such moral ideals. This essay concludes that the commitments to very particular notions of equality and human dignity, which frame contemporary Europe's provision of publicly subsidized health care, have given rise to a governance that is morally incoherent and unsustainable. This failure of public health care in Europe can thus be read as one more belated manifestation of the epistemological and moral failure of the Enlightenment's secularizing project, a failure which should invite contemporary Europeans to honestly face the moral challenge of postmodernity.

Possible Worlds of Fiction and History: The Postmodern Stage

Possible Worlds of Fiction and History: The Postmodern Stage

Carl Olson, The Allure of Decadent Thinking: Religious Studies and the Challenge of Postmodernism

Carl Olson, <i>The Allure of Decadent Thinking: Religious Studies and the Challenge of Postmodernism</i>

Clinical Endocrinology in the near future: a post-modern challenge.

Clinical Endocrinology is nowadays the clinical specialty specifically linked to translational research. Until the 1960s, endocrine clinical work-ups were based, especially in Europe, on bed-side examinations and on phenotype inspection, which was the main diagnostic tool for the diagnosis of endocrine disorders with a clinical approach strongly based on reductionism. Phenotype-based diagnosis might involve a decision delay with the risk that the organ or system damage could more often than not become irreversible. Thanks to advanced technologies, endocrinologists can now formulate a diagnosis and confirm it when the disorder is identified at a preclinical, rather than subclinical stage, without the obvious phenotypic features. The possibility of measuring very low amount of circulating chemical signals prior to and after the performance of provocative tests by stimulatory or inhibitory substances has detached Clinical Endocrinology from internal medicine, and endocrinologists have paid the price of a typical reductionist approach, as opposed to a holistic approach presumptuously adopted by non-endocrinologist internal medicine academics.

Foetus-art-terrorism: Deciphering genre, intertextuality and noise in J. G. Thirlwell’s early musical corpus (1981–1988)

Abstract Postmodernism as a state of mind, as a state of art: the fall of the grand universal narratives, the conflation of high/academic and low/popular forms of art. The cultural sphere’s commodification explicitly changed the way in which we see, feel, listen or even speak after World War II. Postmodernism, which can be conceived either as a condition or a new theoretical paradigm, lacks all sense of historical continuity and memory. Initially, postmodernism challenges what is actually perceived as Modernism, signifying a process of conflicts between old and new cultural and economic ‘modes’, or the artistic neologisms of the 1950s and the 1960s, which adopted a critical attitude towards the commodities while trying to overcome them. Thus, facing the postmodern reality could be a constantly demanding interplay between the author and the reader, the composer and the listener, and finally, the nature of the production of the artistic texts and the work of art in the realm of late capitalism. Postmodernism appeared in many manifestations in art; particularly in music, it can be located in the rise of composers such as John Cage after World War II. This work underscores not only a reaction to Modernism in music, but also stands as a sign of liberation and progress against established musical forms. This tendency can be traced in the divergence of popular music and styles in the 1960s and the 1970s, as expected by the ‘effacement of some key boundaries or separations’, which instantly dissolves the former distinctions between mass culture and highly academic modes of expression. Notably, the end of the 1970s and the beginning of the 1980s marked a very interesting transgressive period: a stage for a constant battle between popular forms of artistic expression and their respective mature academic competitors. The purpose of this article is to examine and analyse in brief Australian composer J. G. Thirlwell’s early musical experiments from 1981 to 1988 within the context of postmodernism in popular music, his diversity in genres, sounds and techniques, and to present his contribution within the realm of experimental music. Furthermore, the article addresses aspects of musical innovation, examining originality in an era associated with experiments in the sonic field and intertextuality as a creative process.

Foreword: The Venice Charter at Fifty

Foreword:The Venice Charter at Fifty Frank G. Matero, Conference Co-Chair Keywords The Venice Charter, Historic Monuments, universal heritage, ICOMOS Click for larger view View full resolution Attendees of the congress held at the Fondazione Cini, May 1964. (Giuseppe Fiengo through Andrea Pane) [End Page 194] 2014 marks the fiftieth anniversary of the Second International Congress of Architects and Technicians of Historic Monuments and the adoption of the International Charter for the Conservation and Restoration of Monuments and Sites, known today as the Venice Charter. Thirty-three years earlier, the First International Congress met in 1931 in Athens to rescue the field of heritage conservation from the inherited polarities of nineteenth-century restoration and preservation to a mediated view of the past as series of discreet histories, distinct from the present. It was, however, in 1964 at the Second Congress that the concept of universal heritage was further refined as the totality of unique expressions within each country’s own cultural traditions. Such complexities were no doubt amplified in response to the wholesale destruction in postwar Europe and the increasing expansion of heritage classifications. Today, contemporary conservation still holds to the principles of the Venice Charter, while also arguing that value and significance are culturally determined, a point clearly stated in the preamble of the original Venice Charter. In recent decades a number of principles and assumptions in the Venice Charter have been challenged as our definitions of cultural heritage have changed and our relationship to that heritage has evolved. Social, economic, technological, and cultural changes demand that we critically examine the Venice Charter and its influences. In 2006 scholars and practitioners returned to Venice to redress the charter and its legacy on its fortieth anniversary. Now, ten years later, at its centenary, it is time again to reconsider the inherited tenets of heritage conservation as codified in the Venice Charter, especially given current postmodern challenges in not only defining what heritage is, but how it has been used (and abused), interpreted, and displayed. The papers presented in this special issue of Change Over Time are the final result of a two-day international symposium held on April 2–3, 2014 and cosponsored by US/ICOMOS and The Graduate Program in Historic Preservation, School of Design at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. [End Page 195] Frank G. Matero, Conference Co-Chair University of Pennsylvania Copyright © 2014 University of Pennsylvania Press

The Allure of Decadent Thinking: Religious Studies and the Challenge of Postmodernism. By Carl Olson

The Allure of Decadent Thinking: Religious Studies and the Challenge of Postmodernism. By Carl Olson

Analyzing the Value Types and Factors That Influence Military Cadets in Taiwan to Determine the Appropriate Candidate

Previous studies have unanimously agreed that despite the challenges of postmodernism, militaries should not and cannot be governed using an occupational model. However, what the notion of the value type of a postmodern army is should be clarified. This study investigates the changing values of postmodern militaries caused by external economic factors. For this research, a questionnaire and long-term investigation method were adopted to collect 262 cadet samples from the Taiwanese military, navy, and air force. The results of a cluster analysis showed that the cadets primarily comprised 3 types, that is, the devotion (DE) type, socially competent (SC) type, and the comfortable (CO) type. This study shows that the socially competent type best satisfies the value demands of the military. In addition, the enlistment motivations of this type of cadet are generally to alleviate family financial burdens, non-economic-related reasons, self-actualization, and patriotism.

Marxism after postmodernism: Rethinking the emancipatory political subject

The concept of a historical-social and political emancipatory subject, central in Marxism, has been rebuked by postmodern theories. In this article the authors examine the encounter between Marxist and postmodernist theories and ponder whether and how to conceive of an emancipatory political subject. The article identifies the questions posed by worldwide protests in the context of the global economic crisis and outlines a typology of the different responses of Marxist thinkers to the postmodernist challenge. The authors distinguish between ‘total rejection’ (anti-postmodern Marxism) and ‘total acceptance’ (post-Marxism), and between ‘rejection in part’ (Marxist postmodernism) and ‘acceptance in part’ (synthetic Marxist postmodernism). Based on this typology, the authors discuss the different approaches to the question of the emancipatory subject. Anti-postmodern Marxists have made relatively small adaptations to the contention that class constitutes the central explanatory concept. Marxist postmodernists retain the major Marxist categories, but they conceptualize also new struggles and new political subjectivities. Synthetic Marxist postmodernists view political subjectivity as a combination of classical Marxist categories and identity and cultural categories. Post-Marxists deconstruct the concept of class and propose new collective subjectivities. Finally, the article discusses the limitations of each of the approaches in addressing the identity of the emancipatory subject.

Transition beyond postmodernism: Pluralistic culture, incommensurable rationalities, and future objectivity

Modernist confidence in objective reason has given way to postmodern assumptions that rationality always reflects community-specific standards that can find no indisputable foundation in objectivity. Within postmodern cultural conditions, the church will need to transition beyond the potential relativism of incommensurable communal rationalities and toward a Christian post-postmodernism. Christian post-postmodernism will assume that relativism can be overcome through truthful narration rather than through truthful reason. Christian narratives will include scripts that guide church relationships across the private, communal, and public spaces that define the pluralism of contemporary social life. Reflective development of church rationality will be a centrally important task in meeting the challenges of postmodernism. A transition beyond postmodernism is filled with possibilities for enhancing the rationality and evangelical potential of the church.

Stres, przemiany tożsamości i konsumeryzm — wyzwania współczesnej młodzieży

Every day, contemporary youngsters face limitations and exploit the possibilities offered by the global reality. The conditions which characterise the beginning of the 21st century are vastly different from the times in which their parents and grandparents grew up. It would be futile to look for any kind of order in the world today, be it political, moral or economic one. The young, who experience temporariness and constant change, have to develop their own measures of coping with post-modern challenges. The principal issue presented in this paper is the occurrence of information and relational stress. The fast pace of local migration, the overload of information, the weakening of social bonds and the relationships lasting “here and now” are the shameful markers of the lifestyle of young people. These are also constitutive traits which distinguish contemporary teenagers from their predecessors. In the subsequent section, the author considers excessive consumption as a modern form of cult. Finally, attention is drawn to the incoherent and continually evolving identity of individuals, who seek to determine their place within the contemporary social structures.

Influence of Globalization on Social Work Educator’s Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Social Work Education

Globalization is a theme that is at the centre of debate by education policymakers, scholars, professionals and practitioners worldwide. It is a concept that provokes intense debate and examination. Therefore, globalization is described as „the flow of technology, economy, knowledge, people, values and ideas .... across borders. Globalization affects each country in a different way due to each nation‟s individual history, traditions, cultures, resources and priorities. A social work-based definition of globalization describes the concept as “a process of global integration in which diverse peoples, economies, cultures and political processes are increasingly subjected to international influences” (Midgley, 1997, p. xi). Additionally, Midgley suggested that globalization indicates “the emergence of an inclusive worldwide culture, a global economy, and above all, a shared awareness of the world as a single place” (1997, p. 21). In the 21st century, globalization leads to changes that challenge social work practice and education, and the idea of postmodernism challenges the validity of a universal knowledge base. This is because where societies are built on different cultural and social assumptions globalizations raises questions about the dominance of any particular set of ideas, both generally and in social work. The influence of globalization on Social Work educator‟s knowledge, attitude and practice of Social Work education has raised questions about whether Western models of social work education and organization are universal in their application. This research paper will provide a framework for understanding the impact of globalization in social work education in India.

Bio Farming Agrotechnologies: Inventive Challenges of Plant Sciences

This editorial seeks to address new developments in bio farming agrotechnolgies as innovative postmodern challenges in plant sciences. Plant-origin biopharmaceuticals (BPC) are in the developing phase as the upcoming commercial states-of-the-art plant-human-animal biotechnologies. These may have highly effective production scale and economics, global safety, storage capacity, and reasonably efficient distribution. These proteins offer promising opportunities to synthesize and supply cost-effective medicines and vaccines. However, disadvantages include doubtful regulatory grounds in platform-raised crops, and vacillating manufacturing practice regulations in fieldgrown plants. The novel products must undergo vigilant cooperation and compromises of academic and commercial property landscape to be widely useable. Authorized operation licenses must be ensured for successful application and utilization in specific countries and regions. These products will enable saving life for humans and animals where environmental challenges concur.

Introducing Islamic Critical Realism

This article makes the case for a contemporary philosophy of Islam to help Muslims surmount the challenges of postmodernity and to transcend the hiatuses and obstacles that Muslims face in their interaction and relationships with non-Muslims. It argues that the philosophy of critical realism so fittingly underlabours for the contemporary interpretation, clarification and conceptual deepening of Islamic doctrine and practice as to suggest and necessitate the development of a distinctive Islamic critical realist philosophy, social and educational theory and world-view, specifically suited for this purpose. This approach is called Islamic critical realism.

The natural moral law: the good after modernity

1. The postmodern challenge: from modernity to postmodernity 2. Traditional natural law: differences in Aristotle and Aquinas 3. Patterns in historical thinking about the good 4. The challenge of modernity: religious wars and the need for universal law 5. The challenges of naturalism: legal realism or natural law 6. Objectivity without a metaphysical foundation 7. Contemporary natural law: practical rationality and legal opinions 8. Natural law as a theory with metaphysical baggage: postmodern law 9. Natural law as the moral law 10. Natural moral law in a postmodern world.

History, a Literary Artifact? The Traveling Concept of Narrative in/on Historiographic Discourse

History, a Literary Artifact? The Traveling Concept of Narrative in/on Historiographic Discourse

Does Current Social Philosophy Develop Progressively?

AbstractThis article begins with clarification of the notion of progress. The author believes that it is possible to consider progress objectively, if by progress we understand a positive change in the effectiveness of something. He mentions two types of progress: progress of improvement and progress of augmentation. He then distinguishes evaluative from reflective philosophy. Evaluative philosophy gives answers to the second and third of Kant's famous three questions; reflective philosophy answers the first, dealing with the limits of human knowledge. Progress in evaluative philosophy takes the form of augmentation. But in reflective philosophy it could take the form of improvement. The author believes, however, that it is not an easy task to improve contemporary social philosophy. Three main obstacles are: the “anthropological turn” in philosophy, the challenge of postmodernism, and the turning of social philosophy into a kind of useful knowledge.

Modern Medicine and the Postmodernist Challenge: Examining the Issues

Modern Medicine and the Postmodernist Challenge: Examining the Issues

Robert Musil and the techne of Rewriting Modernity

This essay examines Robert Musil's intervention in the problematics of modernity by drawing out parallels between his theory and performance of Essayismus and Jean-François Lyotard's notion of “rewriting.” Lyotard proposes rewriting as an alternative to so-called postmodern challenges to the modern on the grounds that the postmodern tends to reinscribe what it seeks to rewrite, notably a teleology bound up with a critical overcoming of the modern. Lyotard assimilates rewriting to the work of Durcharbeitung in Freudian analysis and to the work of the imagination in the Kantian aesthetic. Both of these avoid “critique” in operating apart from “reasoning, argument, or mediation” and without any “empirical or cognitive interest.” My thesis is that the essayistic discursive technique that characterizes Musil's engagement with modernity operates as an instance of Lyotardian rewriting that, nevertheless, is capable of something like a critical cognition of modernity. Connecting Musil's Essayismus and Lyotard's rewriting allows us to both explore potentialities of Lyotard's practice of rewriting, as well as to begin reconceiving the working through of modernity carried out by The Man without Qualities.