The Passing of Postmodernism: A Spectroanalysis of the Contemporary

213 Pages·2010·11.523 MB·English

by  Josh Toth

THE PASSING OF POSTMODERNISM
A
Spectroanalysis
of the
Contemporary
JOSH TOTH
The Passing of Postmodernism

The Passing of Postmodernism
A Spectroanalysis of the Contemporary
JOSH TOTH
Published by State University of New York Press, Albany
© 2010 State University of New York
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Toth, Josh.
The passing of postmodernism : a spectroanalysis of the contemporary / Josh
Toth.
p. cm. — (SUNY series in postmodern culture)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-4384-3035-5 (hardcover : alk. paper)
1. Postmodernism (Literature). 2. Semiotics and literature. 3. Criticism.
4. Poststructuralism. 5. Derrida, Jacques—Criticism and interpretation.
I. Title.
PN98.P67T68 2010
809'.9113—dc22 2009021169
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For those who haunt everything I do:
Dad, Mom, and (of course) Danica and Marlow
Thou art a scholar; speak to it, Horatio.
—Jacques Derrida, Specters of Marx
Contents
Acknowledgments ix
1. The Phantom Project Returning: The Passing (On) of the
Still Incomplete Project of Modernity 1
Introduction 1
Ruptures and Specters 7
Exorcisms Without End 18
The (Phantom) Project Still Incomplete 23
2. Spectral Circumventions (of the Specter):
Poststructuralism, Derrida, and the Project Renewed 37
Poststructuralism and/as Postmodernism 37
Private Irony All the Way Down? 45
The Force of Derrida’s Indecision 61
3. Writing of the Ghost (Again): The Failure of Postmodern
Metafi ction and the Narrative of Renewalism 75
Neither Logocentric nor Logo Centric 75
From an Ethics of Perversity to an Ethics of Indecision 89
Metafi ction’s Failure and the Rise of Neo-Realism 106
The Project of Renewalism 124
A Conclusion . . . Perhaps 137
Notes 147
Works Cited 183
Index 193
viii The Passing of Postmodernism
Introduction ix
Acknowledgments
There are a number of people without whom this project, too, would
be “still incomplete.” At the top of the list are Thomas Carmichael,
Tilottama Rajan, and my partner (in everything), Danica Rose. All
three provided invaluable and tireless guidance, guidance that defi ned
my thinking from start to end. Many thanks go, also, to Linda Hutch-
eon, Alison Lee, Martin Kreiswirth, and Daniel Vaillancourt (all of
whom kindly identifi ed errors and offered advice). Finally, I would like
to thank both Neil Brooks and Clay Dion; their support and friendship
helped me to endure any number of frustrations along the way.
Scattered portions of the following text have appeared in pre-
vious publications: “A Différance of Nothing: Sartre, Derrida and the
Problem of Negative Theology” (published in the Berghahn journal
Sartre Studies International) and “Introduction: A Wake and Renewed,”
which I co-authored with Neil Brooks as the Introduction to The Mourn-
ing After: Attending the Wake of Postmodernism. (The Mourning After was
published as part of Rodopi’s Postmodern Studies series, edited by
Theo D’haen and Hans Bertens.)
Front cover illustration: Alex Golden. “Untitled” (Front View),
2006. From “Waving and Clapping” series. Oil and inkjet on canvas,
44 (cid:2) 85 inches. Reproduced by kind permission of the artist.
Back cover illustration: Alex Golden. “Untitled” (Back View),
2006. From “Waving and Clapping” series. Oil and inkjet on canvas,
44 (cid:2) 85 inches. Reproduced by kind permission of the artist.
ix