Shannon Love:
Lisa's unquestioned acceptance of Homer's right and responsibility to exercise his chance-won power reveals the post-modernist attitude towards authority and power. For the post-modernist, there is no greater good than the politics of the moment. Each individual is expected to make an assessment of what constitutes the greater good and then to act on that assessment using any means at his disposal. The post-modernists have rejected the idea of "roles" that people assume in order wield certain powers. People don't "wear different hats" and exercise power in accordance with the role defined by the respective hat. Instead, they view the hat and the role that comes with it as mere tools of power. The moral use of power depends wholly on the morality of the person wielding it. Failure to use any power one might obtain is the ultimate immorality.
When a post-modernist becomes a judge, journalist, academician or politician he does not view himself as limited by any traditional constraints on those roles. Instead he views the power granted to such individuals as a tool to be used as they, and only they, see fit. They are post-modernist leftists first and judges, journalists and academicians second (if at all). They think of themselves as secret agents adopting certain roles for power and camouflage while they pursue their own vision of what is right. They mock those that do work within traditional boundaries as either deluded or hypocrites.
Tuesday, May 24, 2005
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2 comments:
Yeah post-modern. It would be nice if people would bother to define that word before they use it. Shannon doesn't and is basically using it as a buzzword because nothing she describes is inherently post-modern. In fact the rejection of traditional roles and values is inherently modern not post-modern. But oh well.
But Jeff, anything that makes pop culture references and 50 cent words like 'post-modern' must be profound!
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