ABSTRACT
Postmodernity is a controversial term, a term that elicits highly charged reactions across intellectual disciplines and associated theoretical and political constituencies. Postmodernity is an issue in anthropology, sociology, philosophy, geography, theological studies, literary criticism and economics to mention only a few areas. Neo-conservative social analysts, critical theorists, classical and not-so-classical Marxists, rational-choice sociologists and standpoint feminists seem at times to share common cause in criticising the very idea of post modernity . An equally heterogeneous collection of analysts and commentators have embraced the term. What is it that has aroused so much attention; precipitated eager acceptance and yet called forth so much bile and scorn; pleased or troubled so many who seem so secure in their convictions? Could it be that such very mixed reactions to the nebulous notion of postmodernity betray traces of the very conditions to which the term tentatively and not a little ambiguously refers? Reactions to the issues raised under the contentious signs of 'postmodernity', 'postmodernism' and the 'post modern' are
rarely sober, measured or thoughtful. All too frequently postmodernity is presented as a condition to embrace, to celebrate and promote, or equally problematically set up as that which needs to be criticised, dismissed or rejected (Lash 1990: 2).
