Modernity, Ambivalence, and The Promise of a Better Life.

Our country was founded on the blood, sweat, and tears of previous generations, but it wasn’t until the 1950-60’s that the true meaning of ambivalence came to be known that is,the presence of two opposing ideas, attitudes, or emotions at the same time.

Postmodernism is applied to a wide range of disciplines including; Literature, art, economics, philosophy , architecture and so on. Postmodernism is in large part due to scientific efforts to explain reality.

Postmodernism postulates that reality is not reflected in human understanding, but is relatively constructed of the idea that the mind tries to understand its own personal realities of the world in which we live, hence people of the postmodern era are more skeptical of rationalizing assertions given to them. Our interpretation of reality stems from our own individual understanding and view of the world were we have opposing ideas, attitudes, and emotions at the same time no matter what station one may hold.

As you can see from the previous slide, the realities in which people live fluctuate by leaps and bounds, therefore leaving our individual futures undetermined, and the fact that our lives are merely constructs of what we conceive as real, and unfortunately are subject to change at any point in time.

Postmodernism felt to me as an abstract idealisms of the lives we want as opposed to the live we have. Peoples experiences in life are very different, we perceive them in different ways and deal with the repercussions based on the realities that are true to us. Whether you’re a princess, the worlds greatest actor, the most popular singer, working class, or poor there are no absolute guaranties in life. Life is what we perceive it to be and the ambivalence we feel toward our lives factors into just about every aspect of our lives. The fact that our lives are based on mere contingency is scary enough , but the fact that the everyday struggle of the common woman like my-self, with no family, a single parent, and a student; I personally wouldn't give a moment of my memories or the experiences with my child to come to the end of some of the most beloved. To be honest when I leave this world, the most important thing I’ll with me is the fact that son my son was my greatest accomplishment. Because sometimes the good life is just as it seems, a fantasy.

In loving memory of:

Whitney Houston

(August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012)

Michael Jackson

(August 29th, 1958 - June 25th, 2009)