Postmodern Ideology Research Articles

Capitalism as “the best of all possible worlds”: a marxist critique of Boaventura de Sousa Santos' postmodern political thought

The general aim of this work is to critically analyse certain conceptions and political positions of Boaventura de Sousa Santos on the problems of Western modernity and postmodernity. For the Portuguese sociologist, Western modernity is going through an unprecedented crisis of civilisation that can be identified through three fundamental dimensions: the epistemological dimension (the problem of Western scientific knowledge), the theoretical dimension (the problem of the Marxist theory of social emancipation) and the political dimension (the problems of the liberal social contract, social fascism and the disunity of left-wing forces). Postmodernity, however, represents the possibilities and opportunities for overcoming that crisis in view of the epistemological (the ecology of knowledge), theoretical (the new emancipatory political culture) and political (high-intensity democracy) renewals that are underway. The main hypothesis to be presented is that Boaventura Santos' political conceptions and positions – in parallel with his limited understanding of Marxism, the main interlocutor and target of his often mistaken criticism – correspond to the postmodern ideology, which can be characterised, according to Marxism, by epistemological scepticism, contempt for history and political defeatism. In this vein, the theoretical framework adopted here necessarily comes from Marxism, understood, according to Michael Löwy, as a social worldview, that is, an organic, articulated and structured set of values, representations, ideas and cognitive orientations about man in his relationship with nature, society and history, internally unified by a determined perspective and a certain socially conditioned point of view.

Virtual Reality and Alternate Realities in Neal Stephenson’s “Snow Crash”

Cyberpunk literature encapsulates the genre's essence by representing technology integration and human existence in a dark, impending future. It shows a society rife with disparities and introduces unconventional heroes who navigate a world where the boundaries between the virtual and tangible realms. The primary objective of this research is to examine the representations of Virtual Reality and Alternate Reality in cyberpunk literature, mainly focusing on Neal Stephenson's "Snow Crash." The focus lies on how this significant work illustrates the portrayal of virtual and alternate realities in American science fiction, viewed through Postmodernism Literary Theory. An extensive discussion revealed that "Snow Crash" is a platform for addressing societal issues through its sturdy framework, examination of human interactions, and ethical considerations. It allows writers to explore intricate ideas, particularly emphasizing the significance of technology and scientific advancement. This exploration delves into the transformative potential of technology on society, ethics, and human experience, allowing for insightful social commentary. Also, "Snow Crash" mirrors societal shifts in scientific, technological, social, and cultural aspects affected by economic systems like mass consumerism and multinational capitalism. It embodies a paradigm that vividly portrays postmodern ideology, challenging established notions, especially concerning identity, within postmodern societies. Finally, the study's implications and limitations are discussed.

Axiology of education: Ideals and unifying values in social education of modern student youth

Introduction. The problem of finding axiological grounds is associated with the need to solve the tasks of implementing the progressive mission of universities in the regions. The problem appeared with sufficient evidence as a result of obtaining analytical data from the first stage of the grant study devoted to the factors of formation of students’ identity in the multi-confessional environment of the university. The data obtained testified to a pronounced individualistic focus of educational activity, which presumably could have a negative impact on the development of academic communities and cooperative forms of work at universities.Aim. The present research aims to determine the axiological foundations of the actualised educational system that corresponds to the modern interests of Russians and to clarify the ideas about the barriers that prevent the formation of university value communities on the basis of the comparison of values of students and university teachers.Methodology and research methods. The empirical basis of the study is surveys of university students and teachers. The surveys were conducted by a research group at 13 Russian universities in 2021 and 2022. Based on the description of various conceptual approaches (sociocentric, anthropocentric and theocentric) to education, theoretical and practical argumentation presented in the article, the question of the advantages and disadvantages of each of the concepts is solved. The axiometric methods used in the study (content analysis and sociometry of group preferences) made it possible to reflect the results of the analysis of a significant sample (1,256 students and 87 teachers were interviewed). The analysis differs from the well-known studies of recent years also in temporal characteristics (specific time points were selected to trace to a certain extent the dynamics of value orientations due to the sociocultural specifics of the historical moment).Results. The nature of the modern postmodern ideology of education is clarified. It is revealed that its priorities are associated with individualistic orientations, coupled with egocentric interests, which represent the idea of eternal values and public benefit on the periphery. The ideology of postmodern pedagogy is contrasted with the value-semantic principles of the traditional culture of education, focused on the growth of the social personality, characterised by a formalised idea of the ideal. The sociocentric approach emphasises the need for subject-subject interaction taking into consideration the question of the idea of the ideal is significant for all participants in the educational process.Scientific novelty. The scientific novelty of the research lies in the analytical results obtained, indicating signs of agnosticism and spiritual passivity of students, hedonistic dominants and general confusion in determining the semantic priorities of modern students, on the one hand, and the insufficiently realised role of teachers as mentors, personally transmitting positive spiritual and value experience, on the other. Along with the problem of educating students and correcting their attitude tothe teacher, the question of the need for the formation of socially significant ideals-oriented thinking of teachers is raised.Practical significance. The observations and conclusions may be of interest in the development of managerial and coordinating recommendations in professional and higher education.

Positioning structural social work in Indian context

Postmodern ideologies and human rights movements in the last quarter of the 20th century contributed to the development of a critical, radical approach in social work practice and education in North America. This ‘structural social work’ approach argues that social problems are largely the result of oppressive social structures, not individual deficiencies. Social workers are ethically obligated to change oppressive structures rather than simply helping clients to adjust to them. Structural social work, a transformative approach, can benefit Indian society. This article discusses introducing ‘structural social work’ into an Indian social work context and proposes a framework for its practice.

«THE UNSIMPLE» BY Т. PROKHASKO: A QUASI-HISTORICAL NOVEL

A historical novel is a work that is based on a historical plot, built on the reproduction in the artistic form of a certain historical epoch, a certain period of the people's or the country's past. In view of this, in a historical novel, historical truth must be combined with artistic truth, historical facts with artistic fiction, real historical figures with fictional characters.The postmodern ideology of the multiplicity of meanings, the hesitation in determining the differences between the false and the true, justify today's increase in interest in history and the historical novel as a modern textual reflection of the past. The study considers the artistic interpretation of the genre of quasi-historical postmodern novel on the material of the text “The UnSimple” by T. Prokhasko. The genre features of the text are determined, in particular inscribing a variant of an event to a certain historical epoch, defining national features with the help of a pseudo-historical plot, creating a geographical utopia and avoiding linearity, rooting a person in a new geographical landscape as a strategy ofhistorical discourse reconstruction.

Trends in the Development of University Education in the Postmodern Period

The purpose of the research was to study the changes in the ranking of professional skills of students, which determine trends in university education in the postmodern era. The presented results of the experiment allowed to determine the level of perception of new professional skills by university students under the influence of the ideology of postmodernism. The general hypothesis of the study was that postmodern ideology influences the model of university education, contributes to the creation of the foundations for the formation of new professional skills of students. This study is part of a broader study that explores ways to improve the quality of university education based on the substantive professional priorities of students in the context of postmodernism. The results of the experiment allowed us to draw conclusions about the relationship between the quality of education and professional priorities of students, a properly organized system of university education in the postmodern period.

Jacques Derrida et la question de l’identité

"Postmodern ideologies have one and the same objective: grasping man in his elusiveness and in his everyday happenings. A thinker like Jacques Derrida, who is one of the leaders of deconstruction, considers that our epoch signals the end of rationality. Deconstruction is defined as the ensemble of techniques and strategies used by Derrida to demonstrate, split and shift any universal logic. By the mechanism of différance, the human being gets out of any originating border (big, founding narratives), and only traces remain. Deconstruction is incapable of thinking the world otherwise than as crumbling, this image resulting from the dissolution of the universal, of reason and the subject himself. Such an approach to identity is in accordance with contemporary globalization, which requires human mobility and flexibility."

Alternative Histories in Youssef Ziedan's Azazeel : Historiographic Metafiction in the Contemporary Arabic Historical Novel)

Alternative Histories in Youssef Ziedan's Azazeel: Historiographic Metafiction in the Contemporary Arabic Historical Novel Drawing on Linda Hutcheon's theory, this article reads Azazeel as a historiographic metafiction. It argues that the novel not only denounces the so-called religious, or religiously-motivated, violence but also has an additional epistemological import, articulated in the novel's historiographic metafictional narrative which, in accordance with Hutcheon's theory, provides an alternative history that foregrounds the 'narrativity' of historical narratives and represents the past from a 'marginal' perspective to question the absolute authority of metanarratives, undermine monolithic notions of knowledge, and develop a balanced production and dissemination of knowledge. The article examines the novel's use of historiographic metafictional techniques which reflect its thematic content and its espousal of the postmodern ideology of diversity and plurality. The article demonstrates that, without denying its heritage, Azazeel engages with the global postmodern condition, locates the Arabic historical novel within the wider context of world historical fiction, and opens up new avenues for research on historiographic metafiction.

Postmodern worldview and problematic context of personality’s psychological cognition

The semantic characteristics of the postmodern worldview and its mostly destructive influence on the state of solving the existing problems of psychological science are analyzed at the methodological level. In this worldview, the image of the world is seen as a multidimensional, heterogeneous, mosaic formation, and culture is seen as a sphere of manifestation of the ecstasy of communication; emphasis is placed on the dynamics of processes and no attention is paid to stable modes; the order is sought in chaos, which somehow helps to maintain a sense of stability of the system in a deficit of order, the opposite processes of structuring and chaos are reflected and the idea of multiplicity of beauty is developed. In the bosom of this worldview, life is seen as a text, and communication (dialogue) as a key moment in the personality’s social existence, the contextuality (dependence on socio-cultural influences) of human’s everyday life is proclaimed, procedures of controlling the discourses are characterized, which is caused by “linguistic turn”, concentration of considerations on the texts. It is noted that postmodern ideology actually declares a taboo on science, objectivity in the world cognition, because imitation is attributed to reality itself, the possibility of constructing a systematized theory and philosophy is denied, the network principle of knowledge organization is proposed, and to ensure its “objectivity” it is proposed to abandon the category of subject in order to get rid of the subjectivity of cognition, which seems to be manifested in the adherence to values and meanings of cognitive activity, and to define the structure of cognition the concept of “epistem” is operated, which characterizes the structure of historically variable cognition. In general, in the postmodern worldview it is promoted to achieve objectivity through dialogue, communication, and convention, when intersubjectivity is a criterion of truth, and methodological progress is associated with interdisciplinarity and transdisciplinarity. In this worldview dimension, against the background of nihilism, the personality is considered as dynamic, flowing, changeable, polyphonic, not rigidly determined, emancipated structurally, and without a stabilizing core (spiritual Self, gender, Self-concept), individually unique is exaggeratedly interpreted, that one which is not combined with universal and neutral in relation to objective values (for example, amoralism). Freedom is misinterpreted as permissiveness, even in the field of self-realization and self-creation. The postmodernist idea of narrative as a textual interpretation of the world, one’s personality and one’s life is analyzed. It is argued that there can be different relationships between the processes of real life and narration, because a person is able to live fully without resorting to narration. It is noted that postmodernism neglects the stabilizing phenomena of the human’s inner world, the eternal meanings of life (creation of faith, love, good and the fight against evil, the spread of authentic freedom and responsibility, hope, happy moments, healing states of humility and repentance for unworthy deeds, spiritual understanding of suffering). It is argued that due to the focus on the spiritual in his inner world and life, personality constructively overcomes chaos, organizes worries, thoughts, intentions, she has great hope, realizes great life goals, finds authentic meanings of being and then she really feels happy. The spiritual Self makes us stronger, allows us to act intelligently in conditions of uncertainty, the pressure of complex problems allows us to overcome stressful situations, to benefit from our own spiritual suffering.

Shakespeare’s Vivid Presence in the Age of Postmodernity

This paper aims to address the complex interrelations between William Shakespeare’s theatrical work and Postmodernism, substantiating the idea that the Bard has not become obsolete in contemporary culture. The playwright’s timelessness and transcendence do not require acknowledgement as the postmodern world continues to embrace his aesthetics ardently. Many social issues of Shakespeare’s plays have determined ideas that we consider universally true: ideas about human character, ethics, leadership, love and betrayal, gender and race. These topics have been reimagined in postmodern literature, film and in the fields of psychology, sociology, business, political theory and law. In wrestling with the provocative questions and scenarios Shakespeare created, we question our own assumptions and beliefs, clarify our own thoughts, and become better thinkers. Although Shakespeare’s plays may not always anticipate postmodern ideologies, they definitely generate a wide array of discussions relevant to the age of Postmodernity due to the universality of the themes, tendencies and attitudes, ranging from history to politics, from tragedy to comedy. Considering Shakespeare’s popularity as the most quoted and appropriated author, it is hardly surprising to discover that contemporary critics have been concerned with re-examining his plays in order to strengthen or defy certain postmodern discourses. Far from exhausting all possibilities, the present article seeks to produce generalizable knowledge and encourage further transdisciplinary research.

Science Wars II: The insidious influence of postmodern ideology on clinical psychology (Commentary on “Implications of ideological bias in social psychology on clinical practice”).

Science Wars II: The insidious influence of postmodern ideology on clinical psychology (Commentary on “Implications of ideological bias in social psychology on clinical practice”).

Relativita sociálnej spravodlivosti ako základného princípu sociálnej politiky štátu

Each state of Western civilization, which is identified by the boundaries of three basic subsystem – the system approach and value legacy of ancient Greece, Christianity, Christian social teaching, modern and postmodern political ideologies, implements a certain model of social policy. Social justice is one of the main principles of social policy. It is a natural requirement of society, which aims to ensure the good of society on behalf of individuals and various social groups. Social justice is the subjects of research by scientists and theorists in the fields of philosophy, sociology, law, economics, and political science. Its essence is relative and change in the time and space. The main goal of the paper is to identify common intersections of individual scientific disciplines with a view to social justice. Presented contribution is a part of solution of Project VEGA 1/0290/20 – Sociálna spravodlivosť a starobné dôchodkové sporenie v Slovenskej republike

Ontología del lenguaje, ¿un nuevo dispositivo para la construcción del sujeto neoliberal?

El propósito de este trabajo consiste en analizar críticamente las implicancias de la ontología del lenguaje y el aprendizaje transformacional para la educación y la reproducción del orden social. Se sustenta la hipótesis de que estas formulaciones pueden ser entendidas como un nuevo dispositivo de subjetivación neoliberal que interioriza la noción de rendimiento a partir del reduccionismo lingüístico. Se inscribe esta crítica en el debate sobre los procesos de construcción de la subjetividad neoliberal y la acción colectiva. Se contrastan las premisas fundantes de la ontología del lenguaje con experiencias de aprendizajes críticos de universitarias y universitarios militantes chilenos y con experiencias educativas desarrolladas por el movimiento de Trabajadores Rurales sin Tierra de Brasil. Los resultados muestran que vivimos un proceso de intensificación de una nueva racionalidad dominante, la cual es necesaria para justificar las transformaciones del capitalismo contemporáneo en todos los órdenes de la existencia humana. Se observa que la nueva interpretación del ser humano y del mundo pregonada por la ontología del lenguaje, niega el propio mundo sobre el cual se sustenta esta noción, al considerar al individuo como valor central de la sociedad y al lenguaje como fuente de su transformación. De esta manera, se promueve una ideología relativista posmoderna que encuentra en lo subjetivo —y su potencial de transformación— una nueva tecnología del yo para consolidar la noción del individuo-empresa. Se concluye que la ontología del lenguaje significa, en definitiva, la interiorización de la lógica del mercado en la constitución del ser-en-competición, con lo cual se busca reproducir la ideología neoliberal.

The Subversion of Gender Stereotypes in Donald Barthelme’s Snow White

Donald Barthelme’s Snow White redefines gender roles in the 20th century. Barthelme retells the original fairy tale, subverting its presentation of stereotypical gender roles to depict postmodern ideologies, particularly feminism. The male voice and its controlling power, embodied within the original narrative, becomes the lost, weak, and subordinate side of his story. The female voice, repressed by social and cultural principles, is reshaped to represent the free, powerful, and dominant figure in his narrative. This novel’s presentation of Snow White’s characters reflects feminist battles, such as the fight for gender equality and women’s freedom from patriarchal restrictions or sexual objectification. Adopting a feminist perspective, this study investigates Barthelme’s demythologizing approach in Snow White to present his new identification of gender roles. Specifically, this study examines the novel as a subversive reworking of Grimm’s Snow White [the original fairy tale] by analyzing Barthelme’s reframing of Snow White, the seven dwarfs, and Prince Paul. The findings of the study will show how Barthelme’s text offers a feminist critique of patriarchal dominance to the original Grimm’s fairy tale Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Through a close reading of the text, this study also seeks to highlight the novel’s subversive representation of socially constructed stereotypical male and female roles in the fairy tale to challenge the long-standing gender ideologies conceived by the patriarchal society.

A Catholic Approach to Adolescent Medicine

Adolescence is an important yet vulnerable period of transition from childhood to adulthood. An increasing number of studies support the traditional Catholic view, which sees teens as prone to making poor decisions when influ­enced by emotions or peer pressure but capable of thriving when guided by parents and religion. However, newer policies of medical societies undermine the traditional supports of family and faith with a permissive approach toward sexual exploration. To counter this unhealthy trend, which seems to be based more on postmodern ideology than robust science, Catholic physicians should become experts in adolescent behavior and sexual health. Physicians should be sensitive to opposing viewpoints but participate only in treatments which are ethical and beneficial for their patients. Specifically, Catholic physicians must avoid contraceptives, abortion, and “gender-affirming” therapies. By using good science and emulating the models of service, Socratic dialogue, and accompaniment, physicians can guide adolescents toward a virtuous, healthy adulthood.

The Formats Required for Strategic Spatial Planning of Post-modernism in Iraq

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Folklore in China: Past, Present, and Challenges

This article first outlines the long history of folklore collection in China, and then describes the disciplinary development in the 20th century. In Section 3, it presents the current situation in terms of disciplinary infrastructure, development, contribution, and challenge, with a focus on the recent practice of safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage. These accounts are largely based on the views of the Chinese folklorists. In the final section, this article discusses the issues of cultural continuity, integration, and self-healing mechanisms in Chinese culture by putting Chinese folkloristics in a historical and world perspective. This paper suggests that, to understand Chinese folklore and culture, one must be aware of the most basic differences between Chinese fundamental beliefs and values and those of theWest, and that Chinese folklore and folkloristics present new challenges to the current paradigms put forward in the post-colonial, post-modern, and imperial ideologies.

BASIS OF METhODOLOGY FOR FORMING OF ThE INFORMATION SOCIETY IDEOLOGY

The article shows that the investigated problem is highly relevant in the modern era, which requires formation of ideology of information society, which should play a constructivecatalytic role, to move from violence to motivation and purchase of subjectivity for all. The subject of the research in this article is the ideology of the information society as a complex social phenomenon and a dynamic process. Research methods – informational and synergistic approaches that allowed us to deeply analyze this complex phenomenon.It is shown that the ideology of the information society is a system of concepts-the ideas of paradigms in which discoursing conceptualized the relationship of individuals to the information society, which should be explicitate as a multifunctional model of social organization and interaction of individuals. The ideology of the information society positions the interests of social groups, including their values, ideals, norms, rules, guidance and development of this type of society and reflects organizational activity for extrapolation in social and individual consciousness of norms and values a culture of information intended for the development of social, political, and spiritual processes in the state.The ideology of the information society reveals certain aspects and problems of information society, aimed at overcoming dogmatically-rigged and imaginary socio- existential forms of human existence in a virtual world. It is the process of evolution of ideas in the development of information society and the development of human consciousness, the formulation of common interests-needs in the state and programs of development of information society, the recognition of ideology as a set of principles and beliefs, which is based on information world-view as a social and cultural reality.The information ideology is invited to consider how the concept of social development that guides individual, the image of the model in the unity of the social and spiritual processes. Based on the ideology of information society idea of information or informatization as the main principle conceptosphere companies, which reflects the social, philosophical, political, scientific aspects of the matrix development of the society, as well as the ideological and theoretical foundations.It is proved that the search ideas of the information society taking place in Ukraine, industrial and technological backwardness from which the world’s economic leaders is growing extremely fast. Quite complicated form is the search for ideas as identity in Ukraine. The idea of the information society as the highest form of development of society can unite people, especially young people, because informatization is involved in the majority of the population. The basis of the ideologies of the information society in many developed countries had measures in solving the tasks aimed at the initiation of faith in their own strength and creativity, moral, cultural and spiritual meanings of the life of the nation and people.A separate space is devoted to the ideology of the information society, post-modern discourse, which includes the concept of «simulacrum». Postmodern methodology reveals the inner essence of stereotypes and simulacra stereopathy as a primitive matrices, based on the comprehension of the virtual-reality irrational. It simulacra is one of concepts of the postmodern ideology of the information society, representing the way the virtual- irrational reality, which reflects only some of the believability of the original, but is not a valid reflection of the essence of the actual image of the information society. Simulacra is irrational transcendental form of the model, which also coexists with individual, butthey represent an empty matrix of destructive reality, blurring the distinction between valid and irrational (surrogate) essence of knowledge intended for mass culture and consumerism.It is concluded that the formation of the ideology of the information society can contribute to the exit from the crisis in Ukraine, to unite the nation and promote the innovative development of companies. The necessity of establishing the ideology of the information society is not only the possibility of solving certain problems of social life, but the possibility of further successful strengthening of social institutions and functions. The ideology of the information society should be subject to cultural, ethical and humanistic transformations based on the actual processes of implementation of positive (humanistic) model of transformation of modern society, which in the future will be able to lead our society on the path of innovative development, using the ideology of the information society, based on anti-crisis strategy, high the role of intellectual resource in science and education, building of information and innovation infrastructure, modernization of society and the use of it education.

Realismo, táctica y espectáculo. Crítica de lo cotidiano en la suburbia de Venturi y Scott Brown

The main purpose of this text is to address the ideas that Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown proposed in defense of the American Suburb throughout the 1970s, from a new critical perspective that can make them relevant for a contemporary reader. To achieve this particular approach, I would like to shift the area of reflection from the notion of the “ symbolic”, which Venturi and Scott Brown placed at the center of their theoretical project, to the ideas of the “ quotidian” and “ everyday life” as they were theorized by thinkers like Henri Lefebvre or Michel De Certeau during the second half of the Twentieth century. Within the general theory of the everyday, the article concentrates on how the complementary notions of tactics and strategies, proposed in Michel De Certeau’s ‘ The Practice of Everyday Life”, apply to the ideas about suburbia proposed by Venturi and Scott Brown. On one hand, it seems clear that within the urban and architectural narratives of ‘ Learning from Las Vegas’, there is an implicit admission of the economic and social logic of modern American capitalism. However, on the other hand, despite the fact the book defends the aesthetic viability of the great privatization drive of the mid-century American city, it also shows a consistent positioning against the status quo and in favor of the less favored classes. This interpretative tension reproduces the two opposing notion of strategy and tactic proposed by De Certeau. The acquiescence with the spatial results of capitalism as a dominant economic and cultural system, makes the ideas proposed by Venturi and Scott Brown parts of a wider strategy. However, those same ideas appear as tactics insofar as they claim the architectures of capitalism to be unexpected residues that oppose to the spaces of the culturally dominant paradigm of the modern utopia. If we acknowledge these residues as fragments without a totalizing ideology, hence the byproduct of everyday practices in suburban America, then the defense of their legitimacy becomes a a form of resistance. In this article I question whether such taste of resistance, which was undoubtedly premeditated by Venturi and Scott Brown and became essential for the critical success of postmodern ideology in architecture, responds to an honest analysis of Las Vegas and its social context, or if it was only the result of a rather partial –and reactionary– interpretation.

Ben Quilty: the fog of war

ABSTRACTThis essay looks at the war paintings of Ben Quilty, who in October 2011 was stationed with Australian troops fighting against the Taliban in Afghanistan as part of Australia’s Official War Art Scheme. Quilty’s portraits, in fact made back at home in his studio after he returned, show soldiers naked, in pain, reliving traumatic episodes from their war experiences. They have been almost universally praised as providing a new and compelling image of war for those who have not experienced it themselves. We examine these portraits closely, arguing that they express a new post-modern ideology of “interpassivity”, allowing the spectator to exhibit signs of concern for soldiers, without actually doing anything to change their situation. In this we suggest that Quilty’s paintings contain a meaning that goes against the intentions of the artist and the understanding of their audience. Contrary to their dominant reading, they express something about our culture that our culture is unable to admit about itself.