Postmodernism in The English Patient
Postmodernism is one of the most controversial and influential intellectual movements to appear in the last fifty years. In order to understand postmodernism, it would be wise to begin with a definition of modernism. Modernism is a philosophy based on the belief that through Enlightenment values of rationality and the absolute truth of science, the human race will evolve into a utopia. Modernists are Eurocentric, humanistic, and optimistic. Postmodernism is essentially a rejection of modernism and all Enlightenment values. More importantly, postmodernism looks upon the "modern" world with increased cynicism and disappointment. Key themes in postmodern thought include irony, arbitrary actions, intertexture, surface and superficiality, self-consciousness, skepticism, multiple perspectives, and relativism. In Anthony Minghella's film The English Patient, postmodernism is addressed using all of these themes in interrelated situations.
The film uses irony as a primary mode of expression, subverting conventions and negotiating contradictions. The ultimate use of irony is an expression is love. Almasy writes in the book of Herodotus that the heart is an "organ of fire," meaning it is consuming both of oneself and the past (Minghella, English). Later Hana reads the passage and agrees with his observation. She, too, has experienced such feelings having lost many who are dear to her during the war. While in the desert, Almasy questions Geoffrey's decision to leave Katharine with the group, citing the possible dangers involved for a woman (Minghella, English). Ironically, Geoffrey asks Almasy why he is so threatened by a woman, when truthfully he is af...
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... English Patient is a scrapbook of another world of romance, tragedy, and adventure all jumbled out of sequence. With this film, Anthony Minghella has crafted a film that is lyrical and complex-emotionally, morally-full of enduring images: a vivid yellow biplane against a blue sky, wrinkled dunes from the air melting into the crumpled sheet of a deathbed or sheets rumpled by lovemaking, a mountain described as "shaped like a woman's back' later echoed in Katharine's silhouette as she lies in bed (Minghella, English). At the end, The English Patient comes full circle, back to where it started, like the memories that torment Almasy, with the shadows of the plane flying over the desert, shot down by the Germans.
Works Cited
The English Patient. Dir. Anthony Minghella. Wri. Michael Ondaatje. Burbank: Buena Vista Home Entertainment, 1996.
Postmodernism can be defined as a rejection of the idea that there are certain unequivocal truths or grand narratives (such as capitalism, faith or science) and as a belief that there are multiple ways of understanding anything, whether it be it culture, philosophy, art, literature, films, etc, or even television... Television reflects the mass-produced society we live in and certain shows exhibit many of the archetypes of postmodernism that have become prevalent in other art forms. Postmodernism can be useful for understanding contemporary television it can help us to relate to the ever-changing world we live in. Television shows like ABC’s Lost (ABC, 2004-2010) dabble in matters of intertextuality, questioning of grand narratives and, amongst others, a manipulation of time through use of flashbacks, flash-forwards and, uniquely to Lost, the flash-sideways.
Postmodernism movement which began in the 1950’s and still prevails today, is the successor of Modernism. Postmodernism, in contrast to Modernism, seeks to challenge authority as a whole, refutes any belief in absolute truths, regards hierarchal power as distrustful and seeks to establish an approach in
Over the past thirty years, generations understand the world around us is made up of worldly views and patterns of thoughts that inform the culture. Postmodernism informs more of the current culture than of the past, and plays a major role in media, politics, and religion. Postmodernism relies more on experience rather than specific principles, knowing that the outcome of one’s experience will be relative than universal. Postmodernism implies a shattering of innocent confidence in the capacity of the self to control its own destiny. These are some characteristics that researchers find important?
William Paley and David Hume’s argument over God’s existence is known as the teleological argument, or the argument from design. Arguments from design are arguments concerning God or some type of creator’s existence based on the ideas of order or purpose in universe. Hume takes on the approach of arguing against the argument of design, while Paley argues for it. Although Hume and Paley both provide very strong arguments, a conclusion will be drawn at the end to distinguish which philosophiser holds a stronger position. Throughout this essay I will be examining arguments with reference to their work from Paley’s “The Watch and the Watchmaker” and Hume’s “The Critique of the Teleological Argument”.
From “Literature: The Human Experience” written by Abcarian and Klotz, “Irony is figurative language in which the intended meaning differs from the literal meaning” (1615). There is more than one level of irony at work in this story. Dramatic irony occurs when a reader or audience know things a character does not and, consequently, sees things differently (Abcarian & Klotz 1615). Gilman uses dramatic irony when the narrator states, “I’m feeling so much better” (Gilman 1005) as if the narrator believe that she is normal, but when she states “I think that woman gets out in the daytime! And I’ll tell you why-privately- I’ve seen her!” (Gilman 1006), the reader knows that she is actually going in sane. It is dramatic irony because the reader‘s understanding of the narrator’s speeches is different markedly from the narrator’s. Through this dramatic irony, Gilman has let the reader knows how complete seclusion can only add to the desolation and push people to the verge of insanity. The order of “rest cure” treatment may symbolize her husband’s love towards her, but ironically it makes her condition worse. This plot symbolizes how women were oppressed and dominated by their husbands and they had no place for self expression.
Irony is woven throughout the entire story. Gillman chooses to incorporate situational, dramatic, and verbal irony to give the story a twist and engage the reader. Situational irony is seen in the fact that although her husband is a doctor, his treatment does her more harm than good. Many would assume that a doctor’s prescribed treatment should cure the patient; John, her husband even says, “Can you not trust me as a ph...
Postmodernism movement started in the 1960’s, carrying on until present. James Morley defined the postmodernism movement as “a rejection of the sovereign autonomous individual with an emphasis upon anarchic collective anonymous experience.” In other words, postmodernism rejects what has been established and makes emphasis on combined revolutionary experiences. Postmodernism can be said it is the "derivate" of modernism; it follows most of the same ideas than modernism but resist the very idea of boundaries. According to our lecture notes “Dominant culture uses perception against others to maintain authority.”
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The notion of postmodernism has rapidly made its way to the front and center of our social discussion topics. The question that must be asked concerning this erroneous view from the premise is, ‘How does anyone think this logically and pragmatically could be an idea which they could hold firm to?’ The idea of postmodernism guarantees that there are no guarantees. In other terms, postmodernism boldly states that there is a solid truth that the earth is incapable of boldly producing statements of solidified truths. Straight from the premise of this fallacious idea we see a landslide of incoherence and an overwhelming sense of vacillation at the very foundation.
Clark, W. G. and Wright, W. Aldis , ed. The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. Vol. 1. New York: Nelson-Doubleday
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The term postmodernism is applied to several disciplines which include architecture, art, literature, music, film, sociology, cultural and media studies, visual arts, philosophy, history. Communications and technology. The beginning of postmodernism is quite unclear, however, it emerged as an area of academic study in mid- 1980s. "Postmodernism" is an outcome of the deep changes in social and political life style in post-industrialized societies with an attitude to question the truth and authority put forth by such conditions. Critics have constantly been debating about the treatment of the prefix “post” in "postmodernism". According to some critics, the "post" designates a process of historical succession. For them, "Postmodernism" is something that either follows or replaces what is known as "modernism". A consensus is yet to be reached about whether postmodernism is a break from modernism, a continuation of modernism or even both. Noorbakhsh Hooti offers three uses of the term “postmodernism”. “First, postmodernism represents a number of developments in the arts and culture in the latter half of the twentieth century. The reference point and point of departure for this type of postmodernism are the different forms of modernism that developed in the arts and culture in Europe in the first half of the century. Second, it designates the rise of new frameworks of social and economic organization, again approximately since the end of the 1939-45 war. As such, its reference point and point of departure is the tendency of modernization which specified the early years of the century, with the development of industry, the growth of the mass market, and the speed in automation, travel and mass communication. Third, it indicate...