In class we discussed the characteristics of Postmodernism, as both a literary descriptions and a broader cultural phenomenon. A very good overview of some of the key ideas involved in Postmodernism can be found at this website maintained by Dr. Mary Klages, Associate Professor of English at the University of Colorado. Among the major critics who have defined Postmodernism is Frederic Jameson, who connects Postmodern art and literature to the rise of global capitalism, and the onslaught of marketing produced by our consumer-based society. Other important critics include Jean-Francois Lyotard (whom I mentioned in class), who sees Postmodernism as a reflection of new ways of defining knowledge in what “post-industrial” societies, and Jean Baudrillard, who suggests that we are surrounded by “simulacra,” or simulations, which rely on the suggestion of a coherent “original” that doesn’t really exist.
Donald Barthelme’s “The Balloon” is certainly a prime example of postmodern fiction. It’s very much about the act of reading and understanding, a story about reading a story, in other words. Like a lot of postmodern writing, it serves as a philosophical text more than a traditional “story.”
April 26, 2008 at 3:39 am
Thanks for the summary of a topic that is usually hard to understand for most of us. The Postmodern Condition by Jean Francois Lyotard seems to be somewhat of a “manifesto” to the topic. This book is hands down a classic as it seems to summarize some of the social and economic changes we are experiencing up to today.
Daniel
April 27, 2008 at 2:30 am
I found Dr. Klages’s website to be quite helpful in understanding Postmodern concepts, especially Postmodernism’s relationship with objective truth (or lack there of). She cites the differences between works with a concrete original (i.e. Van Gogh’s paintings) versus those which are all replicas (i.e. compact disks). It seems to me that the former has more authority (or at least merit) over the latter, as this notion of materialism and consumerism is depicted in Andy Warhol’s 1968 “Campbell’s Soup I (Tomato). My question is whether or not Postmodernism rejects high truth or merely shifts the emphasis away from it.
Donald Barthelme’s “The Balloon” certainly is not in our anthology for the plot. As Dr. Dudley mentioned, its form, rather than content, serves as the nucleus for critical discussion. Not only does it discuss the different perceptions the citizens have of an object (a balloon floating around Manhattan) but, consequently, addresses how the act of reading the very text (and texts in general) influence one’s perception. Furthermore, it distorts contemporary expectations of short fiction; I do not think it an overstatement to assert that readers have become conditioned to seek a protagonist, plot, and a beginning, middle, and end. Hence, the form of this piece in general challenges the function of an objective reality within temporal cultural bounds.
April 28, 2008 at 2:36 pm
As I read “The Balloon,” I spent much of my time, trying to discover what the balloon was supposed to represent. Was it an idea or a new way of looking at things or what? For a while it seemed to me as if Barthelme could have been talking about people’s distaste for “postmodernism” and how it was eventually removed, but that didn’t seem to fit what could be referred to as the ‘plot’ of this work (since the writing didn’t necessarily lay out a progressive series of events for the reader). During my reading, I felt as though there was a balloon above me with ideas that I could not reach in order to comprehend. I felt as though I could see the ideas (as one sees the balloon), but I couldn’t interpret them as the author wanted me to. I never really came to a final conclusion as to what Barthelme wanted me to understand, and I hope that the discussion of this work in class will clarify things for me.
April 30, 2008 at 7:49 am
From the website provided, I found that the easiest way to understand postmodernism is the fact that many literary techniques used in this form strive to stay off the mainstream idea of what is popular. One of the most postmodernistic piece of literary work that follows the list from the website given is MArk Z. Danielewski’s House of Leaves. It is the one novel that can easily say that it follows every characteristic of postmodernism, in that in many ways reflects modernism, but does it in a new way by displaying it in a tragic way.
April 30, 2008 at 12:10 pm
Because “The Balloon” was very unclear yet seemingly technical, I found to be very easy to forget. There was nothing my memory wanted to hold on to, because it seemed bland, boring, and basically not reader friendly. I find the concept of postmodernism to be very interesting, however as an example of postmodernism, “The Balloon”, did not strike me as a story worth reading.
April 30, 2008 at 12:13 pm
Frederic Jameson’s idea between modernism and postmodernism helped me the most from the website. He shows the three distinctions in time that correlate the ideas that have been focused on by people throughout time. He discusses the three primary phases of capitalism and how modernism and postmodernism shaped these periods in time. He discusses how advancements in technology changed how people viewed art, literature, etc. during the specific time. These advancements in technology focused on the social changes that took place during these three phases in history. Modernism and postmodernism are different because modernism focuses on the percieved and postmodernism focuses on seeing or reading it for yourself. Postmodernism is about getting out and seeing and reading postmodernism art and literature. Today people have to go out and see it for themselves rather than hearing ideas from others and thinking that it is all true.
April 30, 2008 at 12:39 pm
My first impression of “The Balloon” was that the narrator was the personification of a problem (like nuclear war, I think somebody mentioned that in class) that the whole world was worrying about. That the worry was hanging over New York City like a cloud or a “balloon.” When I got to the end of the story, it got me thinking that the narrator was just lonely and depressed. He subjected the citizens of New York to this balloon because “lonely loves company” and finally got rid of the balloon when his significant other arrived, eleviating his loneliness and depression.
In the beginning, I pictured the balloon as a regular sized red balloon bouncing around the streets of New York, but as the balloon grew the color changed to a darker rust-red. It was cool to find out that the story took place in January. It made my idea of a red balloon overhead way better to look at than the gray winter sky, but I was disappointed to find out that the balloon was gray, brown, and yellow. I think that would be worse to look at than the sky.
Now for postmodernism… So most stories have a beginning, middle, and end. Not many introduce a new idea in the last paragraph and then just stop. I guess that’s what I find frustrating about postmodernism. I like stories to have an ending… and something of subsance in the middle. Balloons are fun, but they suck without air in them. That’s kind of how I think of this story. It’s got the rubber outside part, but it’s missing the air on the inside to make it worth while.
April 30, 2008 at 3:34 pm
“The Balloon” as a piece of postmodernism piece as well as a philosophical reflection is an interesting and innovative piece of literature. I do feel, however, that the balloon in the story might be over interpreted. I think the point of the balloon is the fact that it is not very well analyzed or defined. The lack of meaning for the balloon, not the balloon itself is the subject of the story. The way both kids and adults react to it suggest very little concern for such an absurd situation. The way it is hyper-rationally described denotes lack of emotion. A normal person would worry less about detail and more about why?
April 30, 2008 at 10:39 pm
Was this guy on drugs? Seriously, this story is extremely off the wall. The mumbo jumbo, the no plot, and the introduction of the person at the end of the story not only confused me, but I was downright dumfounded. My interpretation of “The Balloon” made me think of nuclear war. I am not sure if this an accurate analysis; however, considering the time period I believe that that is a good possibility. By the way, why would any writer integrate a new character at the end of a story? I’m still confused about his inhibitions to incorporate this person (maybe a girlfriend?) into the passage. I don’t understand how this person had anything to do with the story, as there was no plot…can you please address this question, because I have no idea what he was thinking when he wrote.
May 1, 2008 at 1:28 am
I can’t say that I would go out tomorrow and buy a postmodern book, or borrow one from the library. I like to read literature that has a little more emotional attachment to it. I like to lose myself in a story, to get lost in the characters of the story. I could find nothing to get lost in most of the postmodern literature that we have read. I really feel as if the writers don’t want to have feelings about it. I know that is not true because Ginsberg wants us to get angry, but after reading “Howl” for awhile I found I ended up tuning out. I know that there must be people out there who really appreciate these authors, but I can’t help if they aren’t being reminded of an acid trip they had experienced.
May 1, 2008 at 1:56 am
I feel that a major theme in the short story “The Balloon” is the perception of what you actually see. Is the object that you are looking at just an ordinary balloon or does it represent something far more to you. The short story provides non detailed details, or explains specific events or places, but really doesn’t enhance our knowledge of what is going on. By knowing a certain street corner does not enhance a person from South Dakota’s perception. The balloon itself is whatever that individual makes it to be, and is done so my the critical opinions provided. The balloon allowed people to think about what was happening and actually give their analysis about what the balloon meant to them. When people looked at the balloon, they could stop what whatever they were doing in their busy lives and just reflect and symbolically reflect about the balloons presence in their own lives.
May 1, 2008 at 10:54 am
I have to admit that “The Balloon” definatley kept my attention the whole time I was reading it. I don’t think it was because I particularly liked it, but more that I was digging and digging to try to discover some kind of meaning. Because the author doesn’t exactly give you much for hints about the meaning, the reader is pretty much open to their own interpretation. Even in class we heard a couple of different people’s interpretations, all seeming quite different from the rest. I have to agree with what Roxanne was getting at in her post above, I am usually more interested if there is something that I can “get lost in”, so to say. While it did keep my attention, it was more of a confused, digging attention that an actual “I’m really enjoying this” attention.
May 1, 2008 at 12:07 pm
I’m not sure where to post this; so, I’m posting it her. After sitting in Amer. Lit I and II I have learned a greater appreciation for Amer. Lit., who the authors were, and how the literature fit into the time and place it was written. I think it would be interesting sometime to take a history class that mirrored the reading from a literature class. I have learned a lot about American starting with the Puritans and going through the literature of today. I have a better feel of who we are and where we come from.
I also have appreciated reading the black and Native American authors. As someone who has never lived outside the Great Plains, these stories have given me a greater affinity to the feelings and hearts that these subcultures have had through the years. It does remind me that our country did start out with noble ideas but found themselves doing some un-noble things. These classes have been a great learning opportunity and gave me an opportunity to expand my thinking of the history of this country.
May 1, 2008 at 12:19 pm
I think that “The Balloon” especially points out the way in which we crave unnecessary detail today. Or is it unnecessary? Reading through previous posts, it seems as though people either kept ruthlessly digging for purpose in specificity or gave up in frustration because they could not find the specifics and the purpose they felt that the specifics would provide. I wonder if it is because we are college students in a Literature class looking critically at the work or if it is because of the way in which we, as a society, have become. Why are we searching so hard? Why can we not just accept and move on from the fact that there is a grey balloon in the dull sky? Furthermore, why do we move on looking for more? What does it say about our society that we cannot just be content with it the way it is?
May 1, 2008 at 5:07 pm
I really liked “The Balloon” and agree that it is a prime example of postmodnern literature. I think that it can be confusing to understand, but then again, lots of stories are like that. I liked that it was a story telling a story because that is often how modern people communicate and exchange tales today. Postmodernism is a subject worth talking about in literature courses because it is still going on today.
May 1, 2008 at 5:10 pm
After reading some of the comments on the blog, I’m quite put off by the blatant ignorance reflected. Yes, Ginsberg did LSD, he is even recorded defending it and his experience, but to call his writing the product of an acid trip is horribly diminishing. Ginsberg wrote about a world that many people are never exposed to. The insight into the human condition is both riveting and pervasive. If Postmodernism doesn’t give you something to “get lost in,” you’re writing off a largely influential part of the literary world.
May 1, 2008 at 5:38 pm
While it has been noted that Allen Ginberg has indeed experienced an acid trip, it is not really that relivant in relation to Howl. Not to mention that there are plenty of notable authors that have been influenced by mind altering substances. One may consider such authors as Coleridge, Poe, Dylan Thomas, Hemmingway, and countless others as drug addicts. I mean, it’s even a stereotype that writers are alcoholic. So the whole “This guy’s an acid trip” excuse seems like a pretty flimsy excuse for a lack of imaganination or comprehension. Just look at Naked Lunch if you want an acid trip. Howl is concerned with madness and how it rips people from their paths and the ignorance a society that dismisses such individuals due to the outlandishness of their art and behavior. I’d recommend reading the poem again.
May 1, 2008 at 10:43 pm
“The Balloon” was indeed a very difficult piece to understand. The vague usage of language by the author made it difficult to imagine many aspects of the story. However I feel that this perfectly represents Postmodernism. Postmodernism strives to set itself apart from all other forms of literature. This piece certainly sets itself apart. In addition it is safe to say the works of Allen Ginsberg strived to be set apart from traditional forms of poetry. While this sometimes means shocking and controversial language, it is Postmodernism all the same.
May 1, 2008 at 11:19 pm
“The Balloon” is probably the most out there story I have read in a long time. The way the story flows seems almost as if the narrator has some type of personality disorder because he switches so frequently from idea to idea. It is a story that is set apart from others, and is definitely one that can be easily remembered. I also thought that the story had a “doom” sort of tone. It wasn’t happy and it seemed like something was being hidden the entire time. I think that post modernism is a very interesting genre and would like to read more works from around this time period.
May 2, 2008 at 12:41 am
“The Baloon” was a story that did not catch my attention at all. I often found myself questioning what I was reading. Because of that, it is not a traditional story. When I read a traditional story, I believe that I should not have to analyze what I am reading. Because I have to analyze it, I find it difficult to like. “The Baloon” does represent postmodernism in the fact that it is clearly different from modernism style of writing. After taking a sociology class that dealt with issues such as modernism and postmodernism, I was able to relate to these different stories that we have read in class. It is easy to tell that postmodernism came directly from modernism, however it is easy to tell the differences between the two. I enjoy modernism more than postmodernism, but they are both important aspects of writing to study.
May 2, 2008 at 10:42 am
Raymond Carver’s short story, “Cathedral,” is a classic example of postmodern literature. The main theme that classifies this work as postmodern is the irony of the story. In the story, there is a comparison made between the narrator and the blind visitor, Robert. The narrator seems to take his life for granted- mainly since he resists new experiences and defines “truth” as that which comes from TV and/or movies. In contrast, despite Robert’s blindness, he is always learning something new and experiencing as much as he can out of life. The irony here is that the narrator seems to actually be more “blind” in comparison to Robert.
Towards the end of the story, Robert asks the narrator to describe a cathedral. The narrator finds this rather difficult to describe in words, so Robert asks the narrator to draw a cathedral while he holds the narrator’s hand. By closing his eyes, the narrator is able to see the world differently, through a blind man’s perspective. With this, the narrator reaches an emotional epiphany (another theme of postmodernism), thanks to his connection he establishes with Robert. Before this experience, I am certain that the narrator never dreamed of seeing the world in such an unconventional way. Hence, another theme of this story shows the reader how difficult it can be for an individual, like the narrator, to transcend the postmodern world.
May 2, 2008 at 12:05 pm
I agree with statements above that maybe the balloon is being over-anaylyzed. If it were to be something that is so complex and hard to grasp on to, or difficult to understand then why would it be just a balloon? I would personally think that if the story were to reflect some huge deeper meaning the author would use something a little more complex or intricate that an everyday balloon. Maybe it is just supposed to stand for awareness instead of one thought or idea that is too hard to grasp. Or a very basic concept that people should spend more time noticing. As with “Cathedral” both stories have a basic plot that somewhat ends in a debatable arguement to either view the world with an open mind, or a closed mind.
May 2, 2008 at 12:52 pm
After reading “The Balloon” i found my strangely entertained, it seems as if the adults in the story try to over analyze the concept or the purpose of the balloon, just as some of us are doing here. The adults in the story eventually became baffled by the balloon to a point where the authorities were called into action, while the children in the story play on the balloon and merely enjoy the presence of the balloon and not analyzing the meaning at all just coexisting with it. I also think come over analyize the story, just as Barthelme writes in the last portion of the story; there are so many ways to interpret such a vague ocurrence that we may as well not interpret the balloon itself. I merely found the story to be absurd in its premise and it seems a bit ambiguous to me, all the while I think the story is comical and entertaining nontheless.
May 2, 2008 at 1:12 pm
After going through actual philosophical texts, stories that toe the line towards them don’t seam so bad. The level of confusion you deal with is all a matter of how much you can take in, and how far you’re willing to deal with thigns beyond the norm of what you’re used to. Beyond the baloon, the ideas for such text are present in post-modernism, as you see styles and ideas evolving, particularly present in Maus. The evolution from comic strips to graphic novels follows the realization of potential, as it begins to strike authors that the form is capable of a degree of expression difficult in words or pictures alone. Ideas are more than simple words, after all, and oftentimes it is far easier to express complex and subtle ideas and feelings in art form. But words add structure to our thinking, and as such structure to the art of the graphic novel as well. The result is a powerful new story-telling tool, one which holds capability to sway people without their realizing just what triggered it, and to reveal expressions and feelings that would be lost in the time it took to convey them via words.
May 2, 2008 at 3:00 pm
The Baloon was a great story. The fact that the author was able to point out the fact that no one would have been so intrigued by the balloon if it had some sort of a saying or slogan on it is so very true. If someone would put a huge balloon on top of Old Main with Obama, Clinton, or McCain written on it, nobody would bat an eye. However, if a large balloon with no writing on it was seen up there, people would throw a fit and demand to know what it was doing up there. In a society filled with so much attention paid to advertising its suprising that we don’t have a huge balloon flying over campus right now.
May 2, 2008 at 4:33 pm
“The Balloon.” Now, when I started reading it, I thought the lack of description in the beginning didn’t mean that it lacked plot. So while reading through it, I kept waiting for the punch line and purpose of the balloon. So near the end I was like “Okay … where’s the ending?” and I silently wondered to myself that if I’d shot down the balloon it might just be revealed to me. Yet, now that I understand postmodernism a little more accurately, I can honestly state that I did get the meaning of the story or more the question, “Isn’t life answerless?”
May 2, 2008 at 8:53 pm
Just like Dr. Mary Klages describes postmodernism, “The Balloon” is hard to define. I do think that we are overanalyzing what the balloon could mean. If we really wanted we could have the balloon represent anything we want: Nuclear War, commercialism, the main characters feelings looming over him… the list goes on. This fact, I think, makes the story entertaining and captivating. With postmodernism writing, I believe that you can make the story relate to any situation you want.
May 2, 2008 at 8:55 pm
I had several questions about the balloon itself as I read this story. Was the balloon a metaphorical insertion into the city life? I thought that possibly the balloon served as a representation of freedom and not being tied down to anything. A balloon, in certain instances, is free to go where it desires. As this balloon was controlled by man, I thought that the “driver” was in charge of his own freedom and destiny. Why was the balloon created with such boring color? The sky is described as drab as well. I would have expected a colorful and vibrant balloon juxtaposed with the unexciting sky. The city is this huge industrial,mechanized place inundated with large buildings and people running from one place to another. The balloon could have been a lot of things in this story. Was it the representation of an individual missing his girlfriend? It is possible.I feel that the balloon served its purpose by causing me to evaulate its purpose, function and possible representation within the story.