Monday, February 18, 2013

Post Modernism in Art- It is Black and White is It?




What are we too conclude from this? The Post modern worldview does not like to deal in absolutes. It doesn't want to admit any at all, totally and absolutely! This mood in our culture today wants to rid the world of absolutes, but in attempting to do this it finds itself totally involved in absolutes. They are, much to the distaste of many, undeniable.

The movie makers are not philosophically neutral, there is a deliberate, calculated message that instances of this kind are making. It is indoctrination. They often come at a moment of climax, a moment of truth- and the message is hammered home. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with that, so long as the moment of truth doesn't turn out to be false.

Darth Vader and his association with the Sith are obviously on the wrong side of "right", the "absolutists" are characterized as evil. Even the black clothes and capes and the super exaggerated Nazi helmet give an unmistakable impression of evil.

The piece of artwork above stands as a memorial to the message of the movie but has become even more specific. I have no wish to defend the Pope but the attempt to paint him as a "dark' character is clear.

What I do wish to defend is the absolute statement made by Jesus, from Mathew
12:30. It is a clear claim of this verse that there is no neutrality in the world- anywhere with regard to this question of Christ. You are either for him or against him. And this artwork actually stands as a symbol of this truth. The world is an ideological battlefield of the mind. Every influence is to pull you, and mold you into its image. This shows there is no neutrality, there are dark forces out there to win the mind, to make your thinking conform to its darkness.

Obi-Wan in his attempt at wisdom should now feel a little foolish, because in his accusation against Siths he has committed the same "fault". The script writer, in his rush to convince the world that absolutes are evil- through his heroic character Obi-Wan- has cut off the branch on which he stood. He himself makes an absolute statement while pointing out this "evil" in others.

The writer has- in and through the character of Obi-Wan- made himself a liar.

But are absolutes really evil? Why does the post-modern worldview have such a predilection for knocking absolutes?

 The mood in today's world does not like the idea of absolute truth, because if it were even to admit that much it may have to give up even more ground. The worst possible scenario would be to admit that not only does absolute truth exist- somewhere out there, it might possibly be known as well, it might become a personal absolute. Heaven forbid. Actually there might even be more bad news, it might be possible not only to know some absolutes but there might even exist.....gasp (furtive looks in all directions) an absolute morality (In whispered tones)

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