Foer, 2007 (Photo by David Shankbone, via Wikipedia, used under Creative Commons CC-BY-3.0)
Lisa, over at ANZLitLovers, has produced a list of some of the main features of postmodernism. It just so happens that I am also reading a postmodernist book, Jonathan Safran Foer’s Everything is illuminated (from which the title of this post comes). I’ve only just started the book but it is exhibiting those features of postmodernism that I most enjoy:
- metafiction – in this case highly self-conscious authoring
- absurdity and irony thinly but uproariously disguising “real” meaning
- visual playfulness – the titles of chapters by one character typeset in various curvy shapes, while the titles by the other are presented in the usual straight line; use of other typographical features such as upper case, italics, strikethroughs and the like
- mixed genres – letters (ie correspondence), novel within novel, playscript, and so on.
All these are contained within a comprehensible story-line, once you get into it, and in language that is playful but not so playful that it’s obscure. But more anon. As a character in the novel says:
I do not have any luminous remarks because I must possess more of the novel in order to lumin.
Writing like this makes me laugh out loud…and that is always a good thing.
Whispering Gums 
Another one that I really must read! I remember the fuss when it first came out, and made a mental note to read it, but….
Oh yes, I know that but all too well. When I started it I was a bit reluctant – want to get onto the next SUP book, but I have wanted to read him for a while and I’m liking it a lot.
I tried everything is Illuminated and didn’t get on too well with it I’m afraid. I hope you do better than I did!
Thanks for visiting mine.
I have to say that I’m over half way through and am loving it: I love the humour, and the playing with fiction and writing – I laugh quite often as I read it. It’s the sort of stuff I like (I think). But I know what you mean – there are some books you just can’t get into aren’t there? I loved Orhan Pamuk’s Snow and Istanbul but the first book of his I tried, My name is red, I just couldn’t connect with. I plan to try it again though.
This playfulness inherent in the postmodern is a lot like my bear making!
Good analogy – I can see it….it’s inherent I think in much of what you do. I like it.