Perspectives: Postmodernism Key Words 6

• Normativity
• The phenomenon in human societies of designating some actions or outcomes as good or desirable or permissible and others as bad or undesirable or impermissible.
• Binary Opposition
• the system by which, in language and thought, two theoretical opposites are strictly defined and set off against one another. For example: Male/Female.
• Deconstruction
• A method of critical analysis of philosophical and literary language which emphasises the internal workings of language and conceptual systems, the relational quality of meaning, and the assumptions implicit in forms of expression. A critique of the relationship between text and meaning originated by the philosopher Jacques Derrida. Derrida's approach consisted in conducting readings of texts with an ear to what runs counter to the intended meaning or structural unity of a particular text
• Différance
• A French term coined by Jacques Derrida. It is a central concept in Derrida's deconstruction, a critical outlook concerned with the relationship between text and meaning. The term différance means "difference and deferral of meaning. 
• Reinscribe
• To reestablish or rename in a new and especially stronger form or context
• Cognitive dissonance
• The state of having inconsistent thoughts, beliefs, or attitudes, especially as relating to behavioural decisions and attitude change. The mental discomfort experienced by a person who simultaneously holds two or more contradictory beliefs, ideas, or values. This discomfort is triggered by a situation in which a belief of a person clashes with new evidence perceived by that person. 
• Judith Butler
• An American philosopher and gender theorist whose work has influenced political philosophy, ethics and the fields of third-wave feminist, queer and literary theory. She challenges conventional notions of gender and develops her theory of gender performativity.