The Resurgence of the Real: Body, Nature and Place in a Hypermodern World

The Resurgence of the Real is a fascinating proposal for correcting the ills of contemporary society. On the one hand, it offers an eloquent critique of modernity's tendency toward scientism and industrialism at the expense of holistic environmentalism. On the other hand, the distinction drawn between modernism and postmodernism turns out to be simplistic and largely illusory, for although Charlene Spretnak identifies her postmodernism as also "pre-modern," its origins and articulation are part and parcel of the modernist project. Still, her call to recover awareness of our context, our relationships to others and to our environment, is not only valid but necessary to our survival.