Postmodernity, Métaphore manquée, and the Myth of the Trans-avant-garde

The writings of Modernist and Postmodernist cultural theorists are evaluated in light of the existential, conceptual and technological shifts that have occurred in the art and literature of these two eras and thus serve to distinguish them. Many theorists emphasize Modernism’s optimism and predominantly metaphorical vision and characterize Postmodernism as the pessimistic era of the ‘failed metaphor’. The author argues that the more unfamiliar and creative aspects of Postmodernism have been largely overlooked and that Postmodernism can be viewed both as a substantial alternative to Modernism and as a significant movement in its own right.