From: jimruttshow8596
Modern discourse, particularly in academic and activist circles, is increasingly shaped by theories that re-evaluate the roles of race, gender, and identity. Drawing heavily from the philosophical tradition of postmodernism, these theories often critique foundational liberal principles and traditional concepts of truth and objectivity [00:42:01]. James Lindsay and Helen Pluckrose’s book, Cynical Theories: How Activist Scholarship Made Everything about Race, Gender, and Identity—and Why This Harms Everybody, meticulously explores the history and impact of these ideas [00:42:20].
Abandonment of Liberalism as an Alternative
Philosophical liberalism is presented as the primary alternative to the current, problematic approaches to social justice [00:07:26]. Liberalism, which underpins documents like the U.S. Declaration of Independence and Constitution, is viewed as the best approach for epistemology (how we know things) and ethics [00:08:31]. It is fundamentally opposed to all types of authoritarian movements, whether left-wing, right-wing, secular, or theocratic [00:07:33].
While acknowledging ongoing issues such as racism, anti-gay bigotry, and gender inequality [00:07:45], the liberal approach seeks to resolve conflicts by appealing to reason and evidence, rather than solely relying on demands or claims of offense [00:12:15]. Historically, liberalism has been a process of continuous improvement, challenging injustices like patriarchy, racism, slavery, and homophobia by upholding universal humanity and individual autonomy [00:17:19].
The current “Social Justice” movement (capitalized as a term of art) is seen as distinct from general social justice efforts, employing critical theory infused with postmodern epistemology and ethics [00:10:16]. This approach is criticized for attempting to “throw away” liberalism at a time when genuine progress is being achieved [00:13:30].
Critique of Postmodernism
Origins and Core Principles
Postmodernism emerged from art and literature around the 1940s, questioning rigid structures and rules by inserting arbitrary elements to expose the arbitrary nature of rules themselves [00:25:47]. In the 1950s and 60s, French philosophers like Jacques Derrida and Michel Foucault applied this ethos to language and power, particularly through structuralism [00:26:50]. They became interested in how culture is produced through language, representation, imagery, and power, aiming to demonstrate that rules are arbitrary and contain “structural oppressions” [00:27:10].
A central conclusion of these thinkers was that all knowledge and claims to truth are ultimately the result of political processes, serving as means of forwarding power politics rather than objectively describing reality [00:29:22]. This perspective views science, for instance, not as a superior way of knowing, but as another social process whose validity is determined by political biases [00:31:17].
The two core principles identified are:
- The Postmodern Knowledge Principle: Knowledge is socially constructed, generally in service of power, and there is no access to objective truth [00:41:11].
- The Postmodern Political Principle: Dominant groups construct knowledge to maintain power, creating an ethical imperative to dismantle powerful discourses [00:41:19].
Four Core Themes
These principles manifest in four core themes:
- Blurring of Boundaries: The attempt to dissolve categories like man/woman, or knowledge/storytelling, making everything seem indistinct [00:42:09].
- The Almighty Power of Language: An exaggerated belief that words function like “magic spells” to structure society [00:42:26].
- Cultural Relativism: This includes both ethical relativism (one culture’s ethics cannot be judged by another’s) and epistemological relativism (one knowledge system, like science, cannot judge another, like witchcraft) [00:42:35].
- Dissolution of Universal Humanity and the Autonomous Individual: The belief that people are solely products of their social groups, denying universal human principles and individual agency [00:43:14].
The “Applied Turn” of Postmodernism
Around the mid-to-late 1980s, postmodernism underwent an “applied turn” [00:45:30]. Radical activists from the 1960s and 70s, facing waning influence, adopted postmodern tools [00:45:41]. They simplified postmodernism by setting aside universal deconstruction and asserting that the “experience of oppression” is real and immune to deconstruction, especially by those with “privilege” [00:46:36]. This shift explicitly brought identity politics to the forefront, linking postmodern principles and themes to cultural identity categories [00:46:58].
Strategic Essentialism
A key concept in applied postmodernism is “strategic essentialism,” coined by postcolonial theorist Gayatri Spivak in the mid-1980s [00:49:18]. This involves adopting negative stereotypes about oneself, in a self-aware or ironic manner, to use them as a weapon of resistance against power [00:48:26]. Spivak characterized it as preserving existing power hierarchies but reversing the direction of power, for example, flipping male dominance to “girl power” [00:50:01]. Critics argue this is cynical, as it preserves the very hierarchies liberalism seeks to dismantle [00:50:40].
Postcolonial Theory and the Rejection of Universalism
Postcolonial theory applies strategic essentialism to the relationship between the West and the East/Global South [00:51:17]. It claims that concepts like reason, science, and philosophy, having developed predominantly in a European context, are properties of “white Western men” and therefore “colonial acts” if introduced elsewhere [00:53:13]. This perspective frames efforts to share universally useful knowledge as attempts to “erase” other cultures [00:54:02].
This view leads to “research justice,” where research that has “systemically excluded certain ideas and voices” (whether due to methodological rigor or historical power dynamics) must be “fixed” [01:06:07]. This translates to calls for minimizing the citation and teaching of “white Western men” and prioritizing “black women” or “marginalized voices,” based on identity rather than the merit of the work [01:07:05]. This is seen as a deliberate attempt to manipulate academic standing for activists [01:08:14].
Queer Theory and the Instability of Sex and Gender
Queer theory takes a radical rejection of anything normal or normative, viewing it as constraining [01:19:24]. For example, it opposed gay marriage because making it legal would make being gay “more normative,” thus removing its “radical divergent” status [01:19:32]. The core aim is to “queer” things, making categories seem unstable and laughable [01:19:59].
This extends to the concept of sex itself [01:21:01]. Influenced by thinkers like Judith Butler, queer theory questions whether biological sex is as culturally constructed as gender roles, arguing that if biological science asserts fixed categories of men and women, it could justify sexism [01:21:08]. Therefore, it is deemed necessary to “break down the idea that sex has any meaning at all” beyond medical imposition [01:22:14].
Critical Race Theory and Identity Politics
Critical race theory (CRT) traces the concept of race to the late 16th century, arguing it was invented specifically to justify racism, slavery, and colonialism [01:26:51]. While acknowledging the historical social construction of race and its use to justify white supremacy, CRT diverges from liberalism’s goal of reducing the social significance of racial categories (colorblindness) [01:27:16].
Instead, CRT, particularly through Kimberly Crenshaw’s work on intersectionality, advocates for an “identity first” approach, arguing that “I am black” is more meaningful than “I am a person who happens to be black” [01:28:57]. This approach aims to re-assert social significance into racial categories, pushing for “black power” and defining “black culture” in opposition to a perceived “white culture” which is claimed to be intrinsically anti-black [01:32:51]. This can lead to defining concepts like productivity, reliability, loyalty, and punctuality as “white supremacy,” creating division [01:33:10].
A Hermetically Sealed Worldview
These theories are criticized for being “hermetically sealed,” operating on a completely different worldview with a distinct epistemology and ethics [01:03:39]. Truth and falsity are deemed irrelevant; what matters is whether an idea is “problematic” and aligns with the “lived experience” of an “oppressed social position” [01:04:42]. Criticism from outside this framework is dismissed as coming from a place that doesn’t “properly understand” it, often labeled as racist or sexist [01:03:46].
This approach is seen as detrimental to mental health, fostering paranoia, cynicism, pessimism, and nihilism by portraying the entire world as being “out to get” certain groups [01:38:21]. It is described as “reverse cognitive behavioral therapy,” making individuals more sensitive to slights and prone to catastrophizing [01:38:25].
Responding to the Tide of “Crazy”
To counter these trends, it is suggested that individuals who adhere to liberalism and universal human values must:
- Listen Better: Acknowledge the single valid point these theories sometimes make about the need to listen [01:39:18].
- Assert Liberalism: Actively teach and assert liberal principles and civics, which have been neglected in education [01:41:49].
- Get Informed: Understand the arguments and jargon of these theories to effectively counter them [01:43:03].
- Show Up: Participate in local governance, committees, and public forums, as these spaces are often ceded to a small number of activists [01:42:24].
- Do Not Back Down: Resist intimidation and name-calling, remembering that liberalism holds the moral and epistemological high ground [01:46:06]. It is crucial to grow a “backbone” and speak up, as silence allows the problem to worsen [01:46:34].