Immersion

           Postmodernism

Some twenty years ago or so I translated Donald Barthelme’s* novel "Paradise" into Polish, a “rated R” novel about a middle-aged architect living with three underwear models. The book was to be read in my translation on Polish public radio.  Anna Kołyszko who first introduced Barthelme to Polish readers** and  I were invited to say a few words about the author and the novel. The interview - or rather several short interviews - were broadcast a few days later, so I was able to tape it. A few months ago I stumbled across the tape. In this way, Monika-the-software-engineer who actually lives in the postmodern world was able to listen to her old self, Monika-the-literature-translator explaining the concept of postmodernism in literature on the radio. It felt very weird - like time travel. For the next few days I was disoriented and confused. After I had recovered from the identity crisis (if I have), I looked up the definition of “postmodernism” on the Internet.  "Postmodernity is said to be a culture of fragmentary sensations, eclectic nostalgia, disposable simulacra, and promiscuous superficiality, in which the traditionally valued qualities of depth, coherence, meaning, originality, and authenticity are evacuated or dissolved amid the random swirl of empty signals." Well, the Internet with its Facebook, YouTube, and blogs fits the definition perfectly. 

Another concept that comes to mind when I think about the Internet is "the medium is the message" and of course "the global village". Btw, does anybody still remember Marshall McLuhan, who was a kind of prophet to the Western World some thirty years ago?  According to McLuhan (who lived in the pre-internet era), the content is not important, the medium is; so whatever content we put in the Internet does not really matter - what matters is the Internet itself. That being said, let’s get happily immersed in the postmodern "random swirl of empty signals”.

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* Donald Barthelme  (1931 – 1989) - an American writer of postmodern short stories and novels. “Paradise” was published in 1986. 

** Anna Kołyszko (1953-2009) - one of the most eminent Polish translators of American contemporary literature. Her award-winning debut in 1981 was a translation of the  “Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts” by Donald Barthelme.