Did somebody mention postmodernism?

[netmouse]

Here's more from Zeitgeist - the core idea, perhaps.

"You see: the deeper reality is made out of language."
Zeta said nothing.
"People don't understand this. And even if they say it, they sure as hell don't know what it means It means that there is on such thing as 'truth.' There's only language. There's no such thing as a 'fact.' There is no truth or falsehood, just dominant processes by which reality is socially constructed. In a world made out of language, nothing else is even possible."

(p 158)

which leads to a showdown on page 245 where starlitz wins an argument about who controls the narrative in a discussion because it's in his language, and his language controls the terms

very interesting stuff as the basis for a novel of metamorphosis (as the subtitle calls it).

Comments

[mishamish.livejournal.com]

Actually, I think *I* mentioned PostModernism. YAY! That critical theory class back in college finally paid off (for something besides a time to start at Robin).

You've also convinced me that I have GOT to read this book.

[mishamish.livejournal.com]

Wow! I finally got around to viewing your homepage... and I am SO stealing some style points from it. I thought about stealing it whole, but realized I'm not NEARLY good enough at bluffing to pull off even half of what you know and do. Now... how to transfer the style to my MUCH more limited experience... that's the question...

Hmmm....

[bjorng.livejournal.com]

I don't know if language is the ultimate reality. That strikes me as bogus. In principle, I can agree that every experience is mediated on some level, but I'm wary of that being a linguistic one. Maybe it is for some people. It certainly seems to be for deconstructionists. :)

This short of thing always makes me think of Through the Looking Glass:

"When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said, in a rather scornful tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean -- neither more nor less."

"The question is," said Alice, "whether you can make words mean so many different things."

"The question is," said Humpty Dumpty, "which is to be master -- that's all."
-- Lewis Carroll