Finding
Identity in the Extended Present
In
the article, Time and Postmodernism, Dickens
and Fontana argue that the perception of time and space is reflective of the
social and cultural conditions of a given era.
They divide human history into separate periods (European Feudalism,
Renaissance, Enlightenment, etc.) and attribute technological advances and
scientific breakthroughs as the catalysts for broadening perspectives in
regards to time and space. Dickens and
Fontana are most interested in the break from the ideologies of the
Enlightenment (objective, uninterrupted flow of time) and the postmodern
representation of time, a change brought about by the expanding capabilities of
transportation and communication technologies.
From
this period, new depictions of time were put forth by Charles Baudelaire, Henri
Bergson, and Georg Simmel. Together,
they emphasized a fleeting and subjective view of time. They “highlighted the radical disjuncture
between objective culture and subjective experience, where individuals resorted
to a variety of coping strategies to make sense of the accelerated experiences
of modern urban life” (391). Simmel used
the term ‘neurasthenia’ to identify “a condition in which the individual’s
inner security is replaced by a faint sense of tension and vague longing, by restlessness,
by a helpless urgency which originates in the bustle and excitement of modern
life” (391). He believed this blasé attitude
stemmed from the individual’s desire to protect oneself from the constant
evolution of modern life. “In short,
extraordinary changes in the experience of space and time in modern life
demanded extraordinary psychological adjustments on the part of individuals to maintain
some sense of personal autonomy and identity” (391). This essay will examine the ways in which man
has attempted to claim identity in the continuously shifting landscape of the
modern world.
Advances
in technology have always been intrinsically linked with our perception of the
world. Radiocarbon dating is one such
technology that changed the way mankind perceived time. Compared to the age of the universe, the
history of mankind is an infinitely small, non-perceptible segment of
time. Videos all over the internet
attempt to visualize this fact to an audience.
There is another line of
videos that focuses on space rather than time.
However, the effect is a similar one; our place in space and time is
insignificant compared to the boundless nature of the Universe.
These videos can redefine
ones perception of their place in space and time. Recently, scientists have discovered
gravitational waves, the last of Einstein’s theories to be proven. The potential of this breakthrough is
immeasurable. Some scientists believe
that this discovery will open avenues to look even further into the timeline of
the universe, as far as the big-bang.
Once again, we might be forced to reexamine our time and place in the
universe. On a psychological level, how
does one account for these continuous perspective shifts?
David Harvey argues that our perception of time and space
can be directly influenced by our economic system and consumer driven culture. “According
to Harvey, these technologically driven economic shifts led to an increased
volatility and ephemerality throughout contemporary social life, including not
only an emphasis on instantaneity and disposability of products, but also on
values, behavior, and relationships to other people and places” (392). In other words, our ability to satiate our
desires on a whim have impacted the way we perceive time. This comes at an expense. “Harvey detects two divergent sociological
effects of these developments in contemporary life. In the first, individuals simply “go with the
flow,” mimicking the logic of flexible accumulation in the way they live their
lives, going from one escape fantasy to the next in search of constant
stimulation and novelty. The second
option entails the opposite of the first, wherein individuals engage in a
variety of searches for some sense of personal or collective identity in a
constantly shifting world” (392). This
attitude is reflected in various forms of art.
The Desaparacidos, a band from Omaha, frequently engage in social
criticism. In their debut album, on a
track titled, “Manana,” the bandmates openly discuss the positives and
negatives of Starbucks taking over a local coffee shop.
One member of the band
exhibits a ‘go with the flow’ attitude, adjusting his life to account for
Starbucks. The other member disagrees
with the first and believes that Starbucks coming into town will destroy the
identity of Omaha. They take two separate
attitudes but both adjust psychologically to the inevitable.
I
think postmodern art reflects the idea of an inevitable and unchangeable
future. However, Ursula Heise, in her
article Chronoschisms, illustrates
how postmodern literature takes more agency in the present. She points to the work of Helga Nowotny who
claims that the “‘future’ has been replaced in the second half of the twentieth
century by that of the ‘extended present’” (29). This ‘extended present’ can be seen in the
work of Stuart Dybek. In his short story,
“We Didn’t,” the narrator leaves his girlfriend’s house and imagines all the
times he has taken the same walk to the El train.
It
must have been that night when I recalled all the other times of walking home
after seeing you, so that it seemed as if I was falling into step behind a
parade of my former selves—myself walking home on the night we first kissed,
myself on the night when I unbuttoned your blouse and kissed your breasts,
myself on the night when I lifted your skirt above your thighs and dropped to
my knees—each succeeding self another step closer to that irrevocable moment
for which our lives seemed poised (232).
In this way, Dybek
effectively expands the ‘present’ to encompass several periods of time.
The postmodern world has increasingly demanded perceptual
shifts in relation to space and time.
This continually shifting landscape has made it problematic to create
and sustain an identity. In order to
combat this, artists have drawn more meaning from the ‘present’ and less from
the ‘past’ and ‘future’.
Great examples for the "two divergent sociological effects" on people through the song and the "extended present" through the short story. I'd been so focused on Heise's work about novels, so seeing other forms of postmodern art was refreshing.
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