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What Happened to Postmodernism?

Douglas Hoey

University of Auckland, New Zealand

Some things never made it into the 21st century. Postmodern social theory seems to be one of them. In this article we ask the all important questions: what was it and what happened to it? We argue that postmodernism existed in the plural and in many of its forms as proxy. Postmodernism was always a term of convenience for critics, and paradoxically it is they who elevated a disparate group of thinkers into a coherent intellectual project.That is not to deny the existence of either a postmodern moment or of useful theoretical legacies from this purported project. Irrespective of where the criticisms of postmodernism came from, its shared intention was the defence of perceived challenges to assured knowledge.

Key Words: assured knowledge • feminism • Marxism • postmodernism • Science Wars • social theory

Sociology, Vol. 40, No. 3, 529-547 (2006)
DOI: 10.1177/0038038506063673


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