ABSTRACT
Most importantly for the purposes of anthropology, postmodernity rejects the assumptions of the Enlightenment–modernist project involving rationality, objectivity, and progress. Modernist architecture of the twentieth century created spare functional structures devoid of ornament: buildings were steel, glass, and concrete structures that corresponded to Le Corbusier's "machine for living." Governments of all political persuasions have sought progress through social planning in realms as diverse as urban design, transportation, economic development, and education. Expressively, postmodernism breaks with aesthetic styles of the past that emphasized uniformity and consistency. One attribute of Fordism was the cultivation of product brand loyalty, something that was vividly portrayed on the acclaimed 2007–2015 television series Mad Men. The intent of master plans was to obliterate previously existing traditions and "irrational" uses of space and materials and to replace them with modern, more "efficient" designs. Flexible accumulation sought to bolster capitalist profits in two ways: by lowering the production costs associated with manufacturing and by expanding markets for goods.
