ABSTRACT
Farrell (2001) helpfully notes that postmodernism may take the form of a claim either about history or about knowledge. To illustrate this with an example relevant to the theme of this chapter, postmodernists are generally dismissive of the ‘grand narrative’ that progress is achieved through rationality and science. This can mean both that: (a) there is no credible basis in logic for this grand narrative (a claim about knowledge); and (b) whether or not there is such a logical basis, people generally have now widely ceased to believe in the ability of rationality and science to deliver progress (a claim about history). In terms of the claim about knowledge, the continuing potential efficacy of science as a means to progress has been a significant thread throughout this book. We have tried to argue that progress though the acquisition, dissemination and application of knowledge is perfectly possible; but that, at the margins of complexity, uncertainty, risk and necessity, it is likely to be an incremental, non-linear and surprise-prone enterprise. In terms of the postmodern
claim about history, this is of course self-fulfilling to the extent that postmodernism succeeds in attracting new converts. There does also appear to be some evidence (Scott, 2001) that public trust in science has been reduced following its apparent implication in a number of environmental incidents, such as the Chernobyl explosion of 1986. To this, three different responses may be made. First, Lucas (1980) has pointed out that however much science may be responsible for the creation of environmental problems, it appears to remain a necessary tool for their resolution. Second, Beck (1992 and chapter 1 of the companion reader) has argued that in contemporary society science is fundamentally implicated in the creation and management of risk for commercial exploitation. One might therefore expect apprehension and trust to go hand-in-hand. Finally, it is quite possible to argue that, far from being a spent force, science and technology are the principal drivers of economic growth and therefore of globalisation (Dicken, 1998).
