Postmodernism Essay Re-Write

Postmodernism is quintessentially the rejection of modernist beliefs. Postmodernism tackles the notion of absolute truth claims and shows a scepticism of all things considered as art, believing that anything can indeed be considered as art. Postmodernists believe that irrational thought is key because perception is the answer to all; referencing Roland Barthes thesis of the author being dead. Ultimately this further entails the idea that definitive truth claims cannot be feasible, as each person has a different perception as to what the truth is. Postmodernism is primarily expressed in text through the use of pastiche, bricolage, inter-textual referencing, simulacra, incredulity towards meta-narratives, hyper- and relativism to which could all be considered as the typical conventions of Postmodernist texts.. It is pertinent to note that Postmodernism is often presented in text with a certain degree of playfulness, as this would in itself oppose certain modernist traits.




Modernism on the other hand very much believes in specificity and categorisation of all things considered art or other mediated forms. Modernists often dispel postmodernism as it is suggested that it is an ironic if not hypocritical belief because in order to decipher as to whether a text can be postmodernist it will need to be categorised; a notion strongly opposed by postmodernists. As aforementioned Roland Barthes thesis of the author being dead, would be considered irrelevant to modernists because art is specific and therefore the 'author' holds the greater power.




Both my case studies exhibit the notion of postmodernity in many key ways. Party Like Tomorrow Is The End Of The World deals heavily in Jameson's theory of pastiche, and also constantly references biblical characters and seems to contest the purity of GOD in particular. Bad Neighbours (Stoller, 2014) also exhibits pastiche, but not only this throughout the text inter textual references are clear to see and the idea of simulacra is also prevalent, notably in the scene where the main protagonist is referred to as being a good actor.




My case study; Steel Panther’s ‘Party Like Tomorrow Is The End Of The World’ exhibits Baudrillards theory of Simulacra expertly, with the notion of ‘Performance over product’ being the most influential reason. This is because in the video, the band are picture around a pool, equipment to bode, performing the song whilst the mayhem and havoc surrounds them. Furthermore, as has been aforementioned, Baudrillards suggested that it is no longer a question of imitation, nor duplication nor even parody but substituting the signs of real for the real. To me this transpires perfectly into my case study as, although it may be conceived that as a band they are mocking the hair metal scene of the 1980’s but instead they are a protest band, fighting to keep a genre they love going strong within the current industry.




Additionally Bad Neighbours (Stoller, 2014) further exhibits examples of Baudrillards theory. The film expresses the notion of hyper reality throughout the film, however it is most prevalent in two main scenes. The first of which is a fancy dress party scene to which known celebrities and characters are imitated to which suggests an understanding or acknowledgement that these characters exist and that therefore seeing as said characters are acknowledged as being fictional that the events occurring within this film are in fact real. The second is in a dialogue between two key protagonists (Dave Franco & Zac Effron) to which Pete (Franco) tells Teddy (Effron) that he is a ‘really good actor’ with a fained look towards the camera, therefore conforming to stage 3 of Baudrillards order of simulacra thesis as this blurs the distinction between reality and its representation.


Postmodernism is also relatable to other media platforms including video games and television. Grand Theft Auto V is a prime example of a postmodern game. Inevitably being a game simulacra and the idea of simulation is the most prominent postmodern feature of this particular text. This also conforms to Castells notion of real virtuality because the lines and boundaries of life and virtuality have become seemingly blurred. Although this is relatable to the whole franchise it is particularly notable in the latest instalment, GTA V because of the inclusion of the online feature to which allows players to create their own character and fight against other players characters in an entirely virtual world. Incredulity towards the meta narrative (Lyotard) is also key in this case study because the game is entirely dependent on the way the player plays the game and so there is no chronology to the way the game is played. The rejection of binary opposites would also suggest this is a postmodern text because this opposes the general norms of story based texts such as games and films that often have a generic hero, villain and damsel in distress based narrative however in GTA the villain is represented as the hero. As such the lack of a distinction between good and bad conforms to postmodern conventions. There are strong intertextual references and parodies through out the 5th instalment, with reference to social media site ‘Bleeter’ depicting an animal logo as a clear parody of twitter; an entire wheel of radio stations playing a wide variety of real songs (also blurring the lines between virtuality and reality) as well as the name of certain boats and jet ski’s being ‘Speedophile’ a clear mocking of the aqua brand ‘Speedo’. Other means of postmodernity include Roland Barthes notion of the author being dead, presented in the way that the outcome of the game is entirely in the hands of the player most notably at the end of GTA V where the player is given the option of killing 1 of the 3 main characters or killing government officials in order to save the players virtual allies. This may also be an example of immersion therefore to which is a key theme throughout the game because the game is set up to maker the player of the game the most important component compared to other games which are seemingly out of the players control such as the Call Of Duty franchise for example to which the outcome is pre-planned.

Community on the other hand is a great example of how a television show can be postmodern.  It could easily be argued that the sitcom as a TV genre is inherently postmodern; there are many common conventions which constantly remind the audience that what they are watching isn’t ‘real’. There are the obvious cues to this in many ‘normal’ sitcom texts; unrealistic sets, ‘canned’ audience laughter and the use of non-diegetic music are only the most obvious breaks in ‘reality’. Friends is not a documentary about life among white middle-class New Yorkers on the Upper East Side, but a simulacrum of that life, presented using the codes and signifiers which we as an audience have come to accept. Community does something similar with life at ‘Greendale Community College’, set in a typical Mid-American city. This epitomises one of the key ideas defining postmodernism – that contemporary media texts are no longer original, but simply ‘copies’ of texts that came before them; many of which were copies of something else to begin with.
Amongst the most common forms of postmodernism in contemporary media are parody and pastiche – using imitation of existing texts, a form of intertextuality, as a way of communicating ideas with audiences. In its use of pastiche and homage, Community shares a fair amount of DNA with Spaced, a British sitcom broadcast around the start of the Noughties. The shows both use an abundance of pop-cultural referencing to suggest that their characters' (and by proxy their audience's) experience and view the world through a lens in which all events are presented as if they were in films and on television. Community is not the first US sitcom to explore the artifice within its own narrative. 30 Rock uses postmodern techniques such as direct address, non-continuity editing systems and meta-textual referencing, while How I Met Your Mother invites viewers to engage in different levels of interaction with the show’s world by engaging with paratexts (websites, blogs, viral videos) originated within the diegesis. In this way, viewers of the show are encouraged both to ‘interact’ with the narrative and similarly to question the ‘reality’ of their own surroundings, and the extent to which their own consumption is of ‘simulacra’ rather than of reality.The Community College Chronicles exists within the diegesis, shot and edited by one of the characters. Presenting a ‘fictionalised’ version of the show, each of the characters in the show is played by a different, minor character from within the world of Greendale. Furthermore, several scenes of the episode actually show the filming of scenes from the web series, direct reconstructions of scenes the audience have already seen. The series can also be watched online as part of ‘Greendale’s Official Website’ – a paratext which also functions within the diegesis of the show.