Postmodern Fiction

1) My chosen site

The above chosen site exemplifies literary postmodern tendencies through the Norton Anthology outlook. Thus, its content predominantly centres upon the interpretation of postmodernism as understood by the compilation editors; Paula Geyh, Fred G. Leebron and Andrew Levy. In the introduction to their site they state the format of the anthology, noting that the ‘…section headings reflect six of the most significant trends that define the history and development of postmodern fiction in America since 1955’, that is ‘Breaking the Frame," "Fact Meets Fiction," "Popular Culture and High Culture Collide," "Revising Tradition," "Revisiting History," and "Technoculture."’ Thus, the text and therefore the site, concur that postmodernism can be sub-divided into six prominent categories which aim to highlight the difficulty of its definition, and thus the variety of its interpretation. This notion is re-instilled when considering that the Anthology features sixty-eight authors, each of which illustrate a variety of postmodern styles and narrative. The text’s inclusion of a variety of Postmodernist authors therefore, employs for a range of postmodern elucidation to occur that allows the reader to gain a comprehensive knowledge of the fictional postmodern discourse.

This knowledge is then furthered through the visuals offered by the site, which include a postmodern fiction timeline that illustrates different historical events and their postmodern effects. This as a consequence allows for a simplified understanding of the postmodern era and its relation to the historical past. In addition it pertains the main features of postmodern fiction through the notification of the literary responses to timed occurrences, from the cloning of sheep in 1997, to the dropping of atomic bombs in 1945.

It can be seen therefore that the site offers a range of postmodern fiction interpretation and details the events that lead to postmodernism entering the literary vein. As a result, postmodernism can be better understood in fictional terms, detailing its discourses and constructions.

2) Joanna Russ


As a connection from the above text, my chosen postmodernist fiction author is one that features in the Norton Anthology. Joanna Russ (b.1937), as stated by NNDB, was a ‘…major part of the feminist wave that swept science fiction in the 1970s’, thus her texts simulate the female disaffection felt throughout the post-war period, using postmodernism as her medium. Russ’ most successful book, The Female Man centers, as detailed by scifi.com, ‘…four women from alternative Earths that each have very different relations between the sexes’ . Thus, they each attempt to combat the gender stereotype of women as the inferior sex, using self-hood and the discovery of autonomy to propel their sexuality and thus control over the males in society. Russ’ feminist notions therefore, use postmodernism as a literary tool of escapism from gender conformity, creating new discourses that enlighten and stimulate the feminist movement.

Her work is a concentration upon the saliency of women and and their social roles, creating fantastical and futuristic worlds in which her gender ideals are placed. This however unfortuntely includes the disapperance or killing of men, highlighting both the social displacement felt by Russ, and also a justification of her lesbianism.

It can be seen therefore that postmodern fiction can be used as a literary tool to reveal disaffection felt by society through the author. The discourses it offers pivot on the concepts of escapism, yet also reflects Jameson's notion of the death of individuality, and therefore the displacement of society.