Postmodernism Rightly Understood: The Return to Realism in American Thought(American Intellectual Culture)

About the Book

Postmodernism Rightly Understood is a dramatic return to realism - a poetic attempt to attain a true understanding of the capabilities and limitations of the postmodern predicament. Prominent political theorist Peter Augustine Lawler reflects on the flaws of postmodern thought, the futility of pragmatism, and the spiritual emptiness of existentialism.

About the Author :
Peter Augustine Lawler is professor of government at Berry College and associate editor of Perspectives on Political Science, is the author and editor of eight books and over 100 articles and chapters.

Review :
...admirably ambitious... But Lawler is a gadfly—of that distinctively southern sort, with an eviable combination of intelligence, learning and wit. Lawler's account far surpasses the leading scholarship on Percy..... Lawler challenges us to take Post-Modernism away from the academic left and give it to those who see the end of the modern Enlightenment as an opportunity for recovering the truth about God and man formerly known as "moral and metaphysical realism. His work inspires hope that our age of disillusionment can be followed a new age of faith. Postmodernism Rightly Understood is an admirable, and admirably ambitious, book. Not the least of its ambitions is to show what it is about the character of modern life—and postmodern thought— that renders it so difficult to address the twinproblems of love and death and why our humanity requires that we make the effort. Lawler employs an enviable mix of intelligence, learning and wit to make his case. For this reason alone, Postmodernism Rightly Understood deserves to be read widely and debated thoroughly, and not simply by academics. This is a remarkably insightful book. The understanding of 'modernity' and 'post-modernity' requires serious intellectual effort. Lawler has, in a sense, turned the tables on the usual understanding of 'postmodernity' to ask if there is in it anything that can be 'rightly understood'? This leads him to investigate the American discussion of this issue. He recalls the discussions of classical and medieval thought. The solution to the many modern and post-modern enigmas is a return to a systematically rejected, but unfounded realism. In this he follows the lead of Christopher Lasch and Walker Percy in examining the theses of Fukayama, Rorty, and Allan Bloom. It is an original, brilliant effort. Lawler's book on a number of contrasting writers on post-war society and politics of the West is an excellent one. I found Lawler's chapters on Fukuyama, Percy, and Lasch to be models of intellectually provocative commentary. Postmodernism Rightly Understood is a necessary panegyric for competent and dignified citizens for our times. Postmodernism Rightly Understood is an admirable, and admirably ambitious, book. Not the least of its ambitions is to show what it is about the character of modern life—and "postmodern" thought— that renders it so difficult to address the twin problems of love and death and why our humanity requires that we make the effort. Lawler employs an enviable mix of intelligence, learning and wit to make his case. For this reason alone, Postmodernism Rightly Understood deserves to be read widely and debated thoroughly, and not simply by academics.

...admirably ambitious...

But Lawler is a gadfly—of that distinctively southern sort, with an eviable combination of intelligence, learning and wit.

Lawler's account far surpasses the leading scholarship on Percy.

Lively and engaging . . . represents something of great importance to the authenticity and reality of modern realism. . . . Lawler has, I think, presented a very powerful argument about the real needs of postmodernity. Enlightening treatment of contemporary American intellectual thought in Postmodernism Rightly Understood. The work will be eminently interesting not only to specialists in political philosophy and specialists in political philosophy and students of postmodernism, but even to casual observers of American letters. Deeply serious and richly thought-provoking Since many conservatives might be intimidated by such a risky and ambitious project, they can be greatful that Peter Augustine Lawler has shown them the way in his new book. It challenges religious and cultural conservatives to take postmodernism away from the academic Left and to develop it themselves—"rightly understood," of course. Each essay is elegantly writtnen, the five esays hang together nicely because of the way Lawler frames the unifying isuue...