The Routledge Companion to Postmodernism

Having purchased the massive Routledge Companion to Aesthetics, I was expecting another book of that stature. To my pleasant surprise, this book is a wonderfully smaller introduction to the concept of Postmodernism. The structure of this book, with its history and cultural context forming the first part followed by the relevant people/terms/meanings in the second part is brilliant. I no longer have to sit in class with that glazed look that every student seems to get when trying to absorb 'stuff' that seems to whizz over everyone's head. This book has become my new best friend when I am uni. (the companion to Aesthetics is too heavy to carry-that stays by my bedside!)

This is the single most essential volume for anyone who wants to familiarize his or herself with the huge field of postmodern theory. Most people realize that postmodern theory is incredibly controversial with opinions ranging from the positive to the negative to some theorists who claim postmodernism doesn't even exist. Some of my professors have gone as far as to claim that the term "postmodern" itself is meaningless, that it cannot be defined. Anyone who reads this book will understand exactly why that is a ridiculous statement: there are plenty of answers available and even if there is a multiplicity of interpretations and understandings, there *are* definite, defensible positions and you'll discover them here. I must stress that this is excellent as an introduction: of course no one would use this as their only source on postmodern philosophy. The point is, this book introduces you to the influential theorists, their ideas, and their work. Following that, you can go and explore them on your own. The best thing about this book is that it gives you a manageable overview without reducing a rich field of discourse to a few key ideas and people. There are shorter guides to postmodernism, but they're typically the work of a single author from a single perspective. Stuart Sim does a great job compiling articles and dictionary entries here. The articles are largely descriptive so you don't need to worry about hidden agendas and biased information. The writing style is conducive to understanding and communication. Concepts learned here will help you tackle the more difficult primary sources later when you're ready for more specific readings. It's also a great reference. Even after studying postmodern philosophy for a few years, I still return to this book to remind myself of certain facts. I've recommended it to a number of friends who found it very useful as well. This is great for students and for those with a casual interest in continental philosophy, postmodern theory, or our contemporary world. I highly recommend this.

The Companion is a comprehensive collection of essays on this complex topic. The first part addresses different aspects of Postmodernist thought,creating a complete picture. I found especially useful the last part, a glossary of terms and key figures of the postmodern movement. A fully enjoyable amd instructive read!

When I first ordered Stuart Sim's `Routledge Companion to Postmodernism', I was expecting a narrative discourse on postmodernism, most from a philosophical standpoint. What I received was quite different, but quite wonderful, and an indispensable resource as I study theology and philosophy as they relate to postmodern ideas. The text, edited by Sim, who is a professor of English Studies at the University of Sunderland, has dozens of contributors drawn from the academy and professional ranks. They provide an insight in the broad and varied diversity of postmodernism, which is far from being a monolithic enterprise. There are two main sections to the book - first, a series of 14 essays on sources and developments in modernism, and the second, a critical dictionary of names and terms.The first section of essays includes essays such as Postmodernism and Philosophy, Postmodernism and Politics, etc. The topics deal with feminism, science and technology, art and architecture, many aspects of popular and current culture (cinema, television, literature, music, lifestyles), as well as the general idea of postmodernity vis-à-vis modernity and traditions of criticism and dissension. Each of the essays is interesting and engaging, brief enough to be read in one sitting, yet thorough enough to be the sort the interested reader will return to again. Postmodernism can be defined in various ways, but Sim gives the definition out of Lyotard as the rejection of `grand narratives' and universal theories -- the sort that science, metaphysics, mathematics, and other such disciplines have tried since the Enlightenment (or even further back) to support and impose. There is a strong antifoundational sense to postmodernism, that often makes it controversial. One of the really useful aspects of the essays is that the text includes words (names, terms) in boldface when they are included in the general dictionary in the second section. There are brief biographical sketches of key intellectual players in postmodernism (Derrida, Lyotard, Barthes, Baudrillard, Foucault, etc.) as well as creative and artistic types (Pound, Carter, Rushdie, Vonnegut, etc.) contained, as well as figures who, while not postmodern themselves (Kant, etc.) nonetheless provide necessary and significant pieces to the postmodern project. Rare is the book that will contain references to both Derrida and Heidegger's destruction/deconstruction as well as MTV and the rock band U2. This is truly postmodern! The cross-referencing makes this book a real pleasure to use; both the index and the bibliography make this of real value to scholars as well. The text is difficult at times (given the subject matter, there is no escaping that) but not needlessly so; the careful reader will find value regardless of the lack of previous critical and philosophical training. I began my interest in postmodernism as a piece of theological investigations arising out of narrative theology. This book goes much fur

This book is of great value to readers struggling to familiarize themselves with the postmodern. The first half of the book provides interesting explorations of how the postmodern is at work in culture. The latter half is of particular value to anyone unfamiliar with the multitude of artists and theorists whose work and thought is significant to the postmodern. The collection of entries in the dictionary serve anyone reading primary postmodern texts well by opening up otherwise opaque allusions.