Post Modernism v Modernism

MODERN SOCIETY (MODERNITY)

• Belief in science, rationality, and progress

• Society is ordered, structured, predictable

• Metanarratives (big theories) like Marxism and Functionalism aim to explain society

• Sociology tries to act like a science (positivism)

Theories rooted in modernity:

• Functionalism: society works like a system with interdependent parts

• Marxism: class struggle drives social change

POSTMODERN SOCIETY (POSTMODERNITY)

• Society is fragmented, chaotic, and always changing

• Science is questioned: it causes problems like climate change and can't solve everything

• No single truth — metanarratives are rejected

• People construct their own identities through consumerism, media, and choice

• Social structures break down (family, class, nation-state)

Metanarrative

A 'big theory' that tries to explain everything (e.g. Marxism, Functionalism)

Simulacra

Fake media images that don't represent real life (Baudrillard)

Hyperreality

Media becomes more real than reality itself

Disembedding

Social life no longer tied to one place or time (Giddens)

Liquid Modernity

Life is always changing and unpredictable (Bauman)

Pick 'n' Mix Identities

identities are chosen based on consumer culture

Media Saturation

Media dominates how we see and interpret the world

Bauman (1992, 1996)

Liquid modernity, life like a shopping mall — pick and choose your identity

Lyotard (1984)

Rejection of metanarratives — no single truth

Baudrillard (2001)

Simulacra, hyperreality — media distorts reality

Giddens (1990, 2006)

Disembedding — lives are no longer locally rooted; the media shapes how we see the world

Bradley (1996)

Globalization brings new identities and cultural mixing