glossary of terms

Here are some terms I use often which deserve personal definition. Some of the below I am using in a technically unique way, some I am using wrong, but consistently. This list will grow as I do.

Classical— The dominant paradigm in 19th century Western thought. Defined by a belief in a singular Truth and objective reality, values, and teleologies / theologies. Painting sloped upwards towards realism. Literature refined prose to gothic heights. Scientific thought was Newtonian.

Contemporary— Meant to draw distinction from modern. Literally means, “as of 2024.” This Substack is devoted to the characteristics which define our discrete contemporary moment.

Document— Find post here. To understand something as a document is to take into consideration its widest possible context. It is the gathering of all available information on an event, a person, an object, or a piece of art.

Lindy Effect— The idea that a thing will last as long as it has lasted. Lindy predicts that iPhones will be around for 15 more years, the Earth will be around for another 4.4 billion, America another 250.

Modern— Not to be confused with “most-recent.” When I use Modern I am referring to modernism, a very widely applicable term but, generally speaking, the mode of thought created to confront a world of rapidly evolving technology, political theory and social norms. I often use this term as a catch-all for the period of artistic creation between the Classical and the Post-Modern. Modernism is defined, amongst many other things, by a disjointing of narrative structure, a rejection of linear thought, an obfuscation of identity, and a meta-textual questioning of who is creating a piece of art and who is digesting it. The hegemony of christian gods and values is replaced by a blend of Eastern and Western thought. A hard-core faith in One Truth makes way for nuanced, contradictory thought. Modernism is the natural evolution of history’s complicated relationship with individualism. It is the descendant of the progression of 19th century thought from Goethe through Picasso: Romanticism (our experience of reality has value) → Transcendentalism ( perception defines reality) → Modernism (reality is subjective). Scientific thought was defined by the complication of Newtonian physics by theories of Relativity. Late Modernism includes quantum theory.

Mousecarian— Of or relating to the stylistic methods practiced in the popular blog the mouse-car moment.

Post-Modern— I don’t often use this term because it resembles a lot of modernist ideas. Distinctions are very specific, but include: late-quantam theory (hard sciences), the dissipation of logic (social sciences), and a familiarity with the viewer (arts). Most of this is baked into “Modernism.” Dadaism, futurism, the replacement of point-particle theory with particle-wave theory, the introduction of Eastern philosophy into Western thought, etc. Post-Modernism is really Late Modernism. Popularized in the 90’s when DFW railed against it as Ironic. Picked up by filmmakers like Cohen Brothers, Charlie Kaufman and Paul Thomas Anderson. A short-lived and widely despised movement.

Straussian— Originally from Leo Strauss, German political philosopher. The idea is that thoughtful writers will bake layers of meaning into their work, and keen readers will know to not take thoughtful writing at face value. This is a technique used historically to protect writers from authoritarian regimes. It is often used to conceal ideas which directly confront the status quo or are socially unfavorable, and the writer hopes that by burying their true intentions, only those who are extremely intelligent and perceptive may access them. It is also intended for fun. Ideas are more enjoyable when accessed with a degree of difficulty. Plainly stated ideas are vulnerable to attack and often make a nuanced idea appear overly simple. The modern usage of this idea was popularized by Tyler Cowen.

Trickster— A stock-character common in Mythical literature, a trickster is an intelligent and bold figure who comedically thwarts the rules of the universe, often in attempts to sneak gifts from the realm of gods into the hands of men. Think: Prometheus, Hermes, Brer Rabbit.