Postman, on the other hand, favors books only books. Born before the shift of postmodernism, he can only concentrate on one task at once. Amazingly, both agree on the need for repressive education as Paglia calls it. But, Paglia takes it a step further and says that once children are taught linear thought, then they can move to a multi-layered creativity with the radio going, the TV flickering and the phone ringing. Whether or not postmodernist thought is good or bad for education is moot.
Modern culture demands postmodernism.
And, in schools were first graders are taught to surf the Internet and the highest paying jobs require knowledge of technology, it s sink or swim. Paglia s ability to make a quick emotional shift, is a symptom of a larger problem, which Postman points out. That s partly because there is no contradiction in television. Pre-WWII era scholars, though, label the disease postmodernism. Paglia contends that it s not a disease at all, but merely an effect of technology.