Re: virus: Simulacrum

Ken Pantheists (kenpan@axionet.com)
Fri, 17 May 1996 01:38:57 +0000


Bill Godby wrote:

> Hopefully this clarifies to some extent the workings and relationship of
> semeiotics and deconstruction to postmodernism, and I hope that a defintion
> of postmodern has emerged from this, combined with the previous post
> regarding simulacrum.
>

WOW! excellent work Bill. I have never met anyone who could whip off a
definition of postmodernism as succinctly and as eloquently as the one
you posted.

For most people it's either a slippery slope leading to an abstract,
a-lingual trance or it's an arguement in a box.

I agree with your definition and would add the following. Discourses not
only include works of art, literature and historical texts, but also the
conditions, environment under which they are read *and* the people who
are reading them. This takes into account the re-telling of a text and
the re-reading of a text.

Discourse can also refer to any conversation, series of gestures, series
of images.....uh-oh.....slipping....down....the......slope........*

Richard Shechner calls this re-remembering. (kind of a silly word,
really) in his book "Between Theatre and Anthropology"

-- 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"We are all here on earth to help each other, 
but what the others are here for, God only knows."

- W.H. Auden ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ken Pantheists http://www.geocities.com/Broadway/2446 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~