Percy-L: Literary, Religious, Scientific, and Philosophical Discussion of Walker Percy

["RHONDA MCDONNELL" <rhonda_mcdonnell AT msn.com>]

To say Percy was unimpressed with deconstructionism seems to be an understatement, based on his writings.  And, while I imagine that there are good post-modernist readings of Percy, a great deal of post-modernist art, it seems to me, denies meaning and asserts a sliding scale of values and truths. But maybe post-modernism isn't the worst of atheistic existentialism, nihilism, deconstruction, and positivism dressed in glitzy wrappings.  While I made my earlier point in a bit of a smart-assed fashion, just a consideration of LITC shows that he has moved beyond post-modernism (having never succumbed to the posturing that much of it--Baz Luhrman films, for example--is).  The point is that the bomb hasn't dropped, immediate total annihilation isn't imminent (still to this day) so we'd better find a new way of dealing with each other and our world.  For Percy, (and I state the obvious, with apologies) the center of that new way is language.

 

Rhonda

----- Original Message -----

From: marcus AT loyno.edu

To: Percy-L: Literary and Philosophical Discussion

Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2003 8:25 PM

Subject: RE: [percy-l] The West Wing's comment on Biblical contradictions

Percy deliberately and explicitly embraced a post-modern
view of things--as early as LIR. He even uses the term.  And
his PoMo is founded on the notion that Modernism has run its
course and left us stranded.  He had little to say (to
me)about deconstructionism.  He was curious, but I suspect
he read about it and didn't do more than dip a toe in the
prime materials.  Maybe Nikki can add something.

There are some good post-modern readings of Percy.  The best
I've seen is Michael Kobre WP's Voices. U. of Georgia.
Couple of years ago. I think this book is outstanding.

Marcus


From: "Parlin, Steven" <PARLINS AT culver.org>
To: "'Percy-L: Literary and Philosophical Discussion'"
<percy-l AT lists.ibiblio.org>
Subject: RE: [percy-l] The West Wing's comment on Biblical
contradictions
Date: Tue, 19 Aug 2003 21:06:47 -0500

----- Original Message Follows -----
>
> Excellent!!  I'm keeping that one tucked away in my back
> pocket for later referal.
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Tim Cole [mailto:tcole AT adobe.com]
> Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2003 2:07 AM
> To: Percy-L: Literary and Philosophical Discussion
> Subject: Re: [percy-l] The West Wing's comment on Biblical
> contradictions
>
>
>
>
> Roger Scruton (I think in his Modern Philosophy) puts
> it...well, succinctly and memorably when he says something
> to the effect that if you turn Po-Mo/Deconstructionism on
> itself, it "...disappears up its own backside leaving
> nothing but a puff of smoke and a whif of sulfur."
>
>
>
>
> > I tend to see WP as having gotten beyond all this Po-Mo
> > BS, ironically pointing out that they more purveyors of
> such ideologies maintain that meaning
> > is relative, that there is no truth, etc., the more
> rabidly such folks assert
> > their ideologies as the only truth and their non-meaning
> as the only meaning,
> > thereby shooting themselves in the philosophical foot.
>
>
>
> --
>
> An archive of all list discussion is available at
> http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy/hypermail
>
> Visit the Walker Percy Project at
> http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy --
>
> An archive of all list discussion is available at
> http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy/hypermail
>
> Visit the Walker Percy Project at
> http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy
--

An archive of all list discussion is available at http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy/hypermail

Visit the Walker Percy Project at http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy