Post-Modernism Hydra*- Real or Myth?

  Post-Modernism Hydra*- Real or Myth?

Dr Abe V Rotor

There is no straight definition, and acceptable at that, of Postmodernism, but Dr. Florentino H Hornedo a foremost Filipino sociologist came up with a terse statement of what the age we are living in today as "living tomorrow today in a free fall." Man is indeed losing his sense of reality in a fast changing world.  

What is Postmodernism really?

A general and wide-ranging term which is applied to literature, art, philosophy, architecture, fiction, and cultural and literary criticism, among others. Postmodernism is largely a reaction to the assumed certainty of scientific, or objective, efforts to explain reality. In essence, it stems from a recognition that reality is not simply mirrored in human understanding of it, but rather, is constructed as the mind tries to understand its own particular and personal reality. For this reason, postmodernism is highly skeptical of explanations which claim to be valid for all groups, cultures, traditions, or races, and instead focuses on the relative truths of each person. In the postmodern understanding, interpretation is everything; reality only comes into being through our interpretations of what the world means to us individually. Postmodernism relies on concrete experience over abstract principles, knowing always that the outcome of one's own experience will necessarily be fallible and relative, rather than certain and universal.

Postmodernism is "post" because it is denies the existence of any ultimate principles, and it lacks the optimism of there being a scientific, philosophical, or religious truth which will explain everything for everybody - a characteristic of the so-called "modern" mind. The paradox of the postmodern position is that, in placing all principles under the scrutiny of its skepticism, it must realize that even its own principles are not beyond questioning. As the philosopher Richard Tarnas states, postmodernism "cannot on its own principles ultimately justify itself any more than can the various metaphysical overviews against which the postmodern mind has defined itself." https://www.pbs.org/faithandreason/gengloss/postm-body.html

Postmodernism is likened to the mythical Hydra, among its ugly heads are  (References: Introducing Postmodernism; Internet)

Hyper-consumption refers to the consumption of goods for non-functional purposes and the associated significant pressure to consume those goods exerted by the modern, capitalist society, as those goods shape one's identity.

A simulacrum is a representation or imitation of a person or thing. a fake version of something real. A wax museum is full of simulacrums of famous people. The word was first recorded in the English language in the late 16th century, used to describe a representation, such as a statue or a painting, especially of a god. Wikipedia

Fundamentalism a form of a religion, especially Islam or Protestant Christianity, that upholds belief in the strict, literal interpretation of scripture. Fundamentalists believe that the statements in the Bible are literally true. They often argue against the theory of evolution.

Ultra-Right - The radical right is a term applied in the United States to sociopolitical movements and political factions and parties that develop in response to supposed threats against American values and interests. According to The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Politics, in liberal democracies, the political Right opposes socialism and social democracy. Right-wing parties include conservatives, Christian democrats, classical liberals, nationalists and, on the far Right, racists and fascists.

Post-Industrial Revolution is a development, expanding on the growth of the industrial revolution, which results in the creation and production of knowledge and information rather than durable goods. A post-industrial society is a stage in a society's development during which the economy transitions from one that primarily provides goods to one that primarily provides services.

Conservatism (or conservativism) is any political philosophy that favors tradition (in the sense of various religious, cultural, or nationally-defined beliefs and customs) in the face of external forces for change, and is critical of proposals for radical social change.

Mega media - The mass media regarded, collectively, as a large and powerful organization.
The name "Hearst" meant megamedia -- an empire of dozens of opinionated news-papers, magazines, broadcast properties, a movie studio and expansive real estate holdings as well as a great art collection.

Virtual Reality (VR) is a computer technology that uses Virtual Reality headsets, sometimes in combination with physical spaces or multi-projected environments, to generate realistic images, sounds and other sensations that simulate a user's physical presence in a virtual or imaginary environment. Wikipedia

Recession - a significant decline in economic activity spread across the economy, normally visible in real GDP, real income, employment, industrial production, and wholesale-retail sales.
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Greek Mythology
HYDRA LERNAIA (Lernaean Hydra) was a gigantic, nine-headed water-serpent, which haunted the swamps of Lerna. Herakles (Heracles) was sent to destroy her as one of his twelve labors, but for each of her heads that he decapitated, two more sprang forth. So with the help of Iolaos (Iolaus), he applied burning brands to the severed stumps, cauterizing the wounds and preventing the regeneration. In the battle he also crushed a giant crab beneath his heel which had come to assist the Hydra. The Hydra and the Crab were afterwards placed amongst the stars by Hera as the Constellations Hydra and Cancer.
The Hydra possessed many heads, the exact number of which varies according to the source. Later versions of the Hydra story add a regeneration feature to the monster: for every head chopped off, the Hydra would regrow a couple of heads. The Hydra had poisonous breath and blood so virulent that even its scent was deadly.