Lyotards

Lyotard (Jean-François Lyotard, 1924–1998) was a French philosopher and sociologist whose work helped shape postmodern thought. He is best known for developing the concept of the postmodern condition and the idea of incredulity toward metanarratives, which argues that grand, universal explanations have lost credibility in contemporary society. In The Postmodern Condition (1979), Lyotard argued that knowledge is organized into competing language games and that legitimacy arises from the acceptance of diverse narrative frameworks rather than universal laws.

Another key concept is the differend, introduced in The Differend (1983), which describes a situation in which a conflict cannot be justly resolved because a party’s words cannot be adequately translated into the other’s system of rules. This highlights political and linguistic injustices and challenges how disputes are adjudicated in modern institutions.

Lyotard’s work also engages with aesthetics, art, and the social function of knowledge, arguing that culture generates meaning through plural, non-totalizing forms rather than universal standards. In later writings he examined the nonhuman and the sublime and questioned liberal humanist assumptions about progress and moral universals.

Influence and reception: Lyotard profoundly influenced postmodern theory and cultural studies; critics accuse parts of his work of relativism, while supporters view him as a careful analysis of knowledge, power, and language in a pluralist age. His ideas remain central to debates about the nature of knowledge, legitimacy, and cultural difference.

Selected works: The Postmodern Condition (1979); The Differend (1983); The Inhuman (1991); The Postmodern Explained to Children (1992).