Defining the
term "postmodern" is a problematic endeavor at best, given
that many theories falling under the broad rubrics "postmodern"
or "poststructuralist," most notably Derridean deconstruction,
have undermined the very project of definition by showing that meaning
is always deferred along an endless signifying chain. Moreover,
theories and theorists that have been labeled "postmodern"
often differ wildly from each other, further complicating attempts
to construct even the most provisional definition of the term by
way of a common group of practioners or shared theoretical tenets.
One useful way to begin thinking about postmodern theory, however,
may be to look at the ways that it differs from and indeed is highly
critical of some of the major philosophical assumptions of modernism.
clipped from: mingo.info-science.uiowa.edu