Postmodernism
Postmodernism is a highly abused term in the public discourse, similar to socialism, communism, fascism, and -isms generally.
As with most philosophical systems, the popular understanding is significantly divergent from the theories of its original authors. Some common ideas attributed to postmodernism that have no basis in the writings of Derrida, Foucault, Lyotard, or any of the other philosophical writings that defined the movement.
- Extreme positions on moral relativism and cultural relativism
- Non-existence of objective reality
- Science is an ideology, no different from any other
- Postmodernism as a Trojan Horse for Marxism, or directly confused with it
- Associations with and blame for culture war issues they weren't alive to see
It also doesn't help that some calling themselves postmodernists actually advocate for these terrible takes, even if they aren't the ones taken seriously by academia.
When it comes to popular Internet philosophy (Jordan Peterson and other Secular Gurus), you can usually assume references to postmodernism refer to these popular misconceptions, not any serious analysis of postmodern theory.
Since the wiki targets a popular audience and not an academic one, speaking to the popular definitions and conceptions of terms is necessary to be understood correctly. The goal is to provide accessible summaries of academic theories, not to make new ones.
With that in mind, the metaculture wiki refers to postmodernism as the movement that provided the framework for examining ideas from the context of culture, language, and power dynamics, exposing the blind spots of modernism that enabled the racial and cultural superiority complexes that led to two world wars. It reflects a general mindset in the broader Zeitgeist that prioritizes egalitarianism and coexistence as its highest value.