A Review on “The Postmodern Condition: A Report on Knowledge”

In 1970s, Jean-François Lyotard wrote The Postmodern Condition: A Report on Knowledge at the request of the president of Conseil des Universities, government of Quebec. In this book, he argues that the conditions of communities have changed. Knowledge and information have undergone the dominance of technology in general, and computers in particular. Besides these effects on knowledge, Lyotard has named this the end of the industrial age and mass production, “The Postmodern Era”. In his book, he continues by criticizing the knowledge under the dominance and control of technology. He discusses the incredulity toward metanarratives, the knell of the age of the professor, legitimation of knowledge, as well as narrative and scientific knowledge. “The Postmodern condition” is in a sense a forerunner of postmodern thinking. Instead of starting from power struggle to maintain the global capitalist system, it starts from technology, and this may be the weak point of this work. There are many different reviews on this report which have contributed to the growth of postmodern thoughts, and it is recommended for all audiences interested in postmodern topics.