What is "postmodern" — a quarter of a century after?

Agnes Heller

pp. 37-50

in: Christine Magerski, Robert Savage, Christiane Weller (eds), Moderne begreifen, Wiesbaden, Deutscher Universitätsverlag, 2007

Abstract

At the time of my arrival in Australia in January 1978 I still stood — together with my late husband Ferenc Feher — under the spell of "cultural criticism". Cultural critics as diverse in their philosophical perspectives as our teachers Georg Lukács, Adorno or Heidegger unanimously agreed that contemporary art was decadent, fraudulent, apologetic, over-rationalized or irrational, to sum up, "bad art". Since I have no talent for speaking or writing about what I do not cherish, I did not join the chorus which at the time abused certain tendencies termed — among other things — "postmodern". In accordance with my taste, I simply neglected works created after the times of high modernism, avoiding them in exhibitions, concert halls and the theater.

Cited authors

Heidegger Martin

Adorno Theodor