Taylor Kurtz
Dr. Tatia Jacobson Jordan
AML 3311-05: Major Figures in American Literature
22 April 2010
Essay Topic 2
In order for one to understand the meaning of postmodernism, one must first have a reasonable understanding of modernism as a form of literature. Modernism is a form of writing that exposes the fragmented and disoriented nature of the world and mourns it. Modernism then pieces the world together through art. Based on this definition of modernism, postmodernism is essentially the same in comparison, in that it exposes the fragmented nature of the world, however rather than mourning it the way authors of modernism do, postmodernism revels and celebrates the fragmentation of the world, using it to the author’s advantage in order to captivate the audience in an unfamiliar way. For instance, for a contemporary example of postmodernism, the new film Batman: The Dark Knight, is a perfect example of postmodernism as batman is no longer fixed and stable as a hero and the good guy, but instead he is a dark individual with a deep and creepy voice.
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy offers the ideal explanation of literature written in the style of postmodernism: “[Postmodernism] can be described as a set of critical, strategic and rhetorical practices employing concepts such as difference, repetition, the trace, the simulacrum, and hyperreality to destabilize other concepts such as presence, identity, historical progress, epistemic certainty, and the univocity of meaning” (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, pg 1).
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy’s definition offers a perfect transition into the presence of postmodernism in the widely renowned novel White Noise by Don DeLillo. The definition itself describes postmodernism as something that uses “repetition” in its content, which is more than prevalent in White Noise, as throughout the story as Jack Gladney and his wife Babette Gladney are repeatedly scared of the concept of death and forced into situations where they must confront their mortality, such as a toxic spill that forces Jack to evacuate his hometown in order to protect his safety, as well as having his wife cheat on him for a drug to deal with her fear of death. Towards the beginning of the novel, the married couple often wonders who will die first: “Who will die first? This question comes up from time to time, like where are the car keys. It ends a sentence, prolongs a glance between us” (DeLillo, pg 15). The fact that De Lillo says that this question comes up often “like where are the car keys” indicates the postmodernist style of writing as the bleakness of death is repeatedly brought into the spotlight.
The story is broken into three parts, and in the third section of this terrific novel, the family’s situation is gets much worse and the fragmented view of earth and fear of death comes up again. Jack becomes aware that his wife Babette had been cheating on him with a scientist in order to gain access to a drug that will hopefully combat her fear and anxiety over death. First the issue of modernism in White Noise must be addressed, and modernism is clearly prevalent as the world is portrayed in a fragmented view, seeing as how death, adultery, and natural disaster are common themes that arise in the writing. This style of modernism then brings us to the presence of postmodernism in White Noise as, the theme of death and how the main character and his family are obsessed with death and the fear of their lives ending is constantly being brought up, using the “repetitive” postmodernist style as defined by the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
Thus, through the use of repetition of the main character’s families fear of death as well as the fragmented and broken down view of the world presented make White Noise a post modern novel that is definitely worth a read and the recognition it receives.
Works Cited
DeLillo, Don. White Noise. New York: Penguin Book Inc., 1998. Print. The Text Book
“Postmodernism.” Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Stanford University, 30 Sept. 2005. Web. 21 Apr. 2010.
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