Denken over ontwikkeling. Modernisme en postmodernisme

Samenvatting

Thinking about Development: Modernism and Postmodernism. In recent years, discussion on development has been dominated by the opponents of neoliberalism who consider continuing economic growth the beacon of progress. The former critics of this model, those within the neo-Marxist tradition, have been forced onto the defensive. Their role as rebels against the dominant paradigm has been absorbed by postmodernist authors. Postmodernism, a school of thought that emerged under late-capitalist conditions of individualism and fragmentation, opposes any idea of universalizing Western reason and Western ideals associated with the Enlightenment. Their ultimate reasoning is that modernity and development are Western plots to oppress the people of the Third World and to imbibe them with alien expectations that alienate them from their roots and their culture. Postmodernism claims to represent the worldview of the downtrodden and indigenous people. In this article, an attempt is made to assess whether such claims correspond with empirical reality, or whether they are mere ideological fragments formulated by romantic intellectuals. Field investigation in rural areas in northern India illustrates that the (poor) villagers in that area indeed have experienced some of the effects of modernity, and appreciate the changes as positive. Their expectations and projections are structured by values that are closely associated with those of the Enlightenment in the Western tradition. They aspire for more development rather than for less, as the postmodernist school has argued. Their poverty and oppression are not brought about by the ideas of modernity, but rather by the material structures supported by the Indian state and the process of globalization. 2 Tables, 34 References. Adapted from the source document.