Actually, there is nothing wrong with saying that we live in the modern age. The term “modern” is always used to describe the new or latest era and its associated spirit. But in literary terms, we are long past modernity. We live in the postmodern age. In other words, we live in the postmodern era. And to be overly precise: I am writing right now from the postmodern-contemporary era.

The literary epoch of modernism begins in the 1880s and finds its end in the 1920s. It is characterized by enormously creative, artistic movements. Expressionism and Impressionism, for example, are sub-epochs of modernism, but the avant-gardists, futurists, the successors of the realists, and any other world-shaking movements also had their era in modernism. The list of modern era is long and rich. 

It was a progressive era, both scientifically and artistically and spiritually. With this progress – however – also came an ever-prevailing pressure for “more” and a greed that left deep scars in our history in the years that followed. 

We do not want to write long about history. Let’s go to the core of modernity and ask ourselves, what impact does it have on us “postmodern” people? 

Etymologically, the word “modern” has its roots in the Indo-European “med”, which means “to take accurate measures”. This root can then be found in numerous words. In the word model, media, medium, meditation, module, medicine – to list a few. Do you already see what is happening here?

In Sanskrit “midiu” means “I judge”, in Avestic “vi-mad” means “physicist” and in Greek “mēdomai” means “pay attention” or “medesthai” means “think about it”. We find again similar traits of meaning. Everywhere we find a desire for certain accuracy and a search for a means to an end. 

Back to the question: what can we now understand by postmodernism? 

In postmodernism there are now two fundamental characteristics: on the one hand, one approaches this accuracy and strives for more and more sharpness and clarity. It is a matter of working out the best, most accurate and safest procedures in order to continue to make technological progress. At the same time, in some situations one consciously distances oneself – stylistically, of course, in favor of quality – from these overly precise, modern characteristics. One also consciously seeks raw, simple, dirty, noisy, or even distorted qualities that lend authenticity to an idea. In the post-modern era, we are more precise than ever – but at the same time, we strive for a certain asymmetry and imperfection. 

In conclusion: to be modern means to be aware of the present and to have a precise idea in which direction one is moving. The term “modern” will also grow beyond our current modernity, and the epoch of “post-modernity” must also come to an end at some point. But no matter how far we are in the future, we look back to our past. For this reason: We, the “now-moderns”, have plenty of time to learn from the developments of our ancestors and in the best case even to create something new out of it – something – that again opens new ways and again moves new people.