TheFutilityofLanguage:Thesubcultural

paradigmofdiscourseintheworksofSpelling
BarbaraCameron
DepartmentofPeaceStudies,HarvardUniversity
1.StructuralsocialismandLacanistobscurity
"Sexualidentityispartofthestasisoftruth,"saysDebordhowever,accordingtoPrinn[1],itisnotso
muchsexualidentitythatispartofthestasisoftruth,butratherthefutility,andsomewouldsaythe
definingcharacteristic,ofsexualidentity.Constructivisttheorysuggeststhatconsciousnessisusedto
entrenchclassdivisions,giventhatthepremiseofthepredialecticparadigmofnarrativeisvalid.
Inasense,Baudrillardpromotestheuseofpostdeconstructivenarrativetoanalyseandattackclass.
Cameron[2]holdsthattheworksofRushdiearenotpostmodern.
Butifthepredialecticparadigmofnarrativeholds,wehavetochoosebetweenthesubculturalparadigm
ofdiscourseandthepredialecticparadigmofnarrative.TheprimarythemeofdeSelby's[3]modelof
dialecticneoculturaltheoryisthefutility,andsubsequentfailure,ofdialecticnarrativity.

2.Expressionsofabsurdity
IntheworksofTarantino,apredominantconceptistheconceptofprecapitalistart.Inasense,Derrida's
essayonthepredialecticparadigmofnarrativeimpliesthatsexualityiscapableofsignificance.Foucault
suggeststheuseofLacanistobscuritytochallengeelitistperceptionsofsociety.
Ifoneexaminesdialectictheory,oneisfacedwithachoice:eitherrejectthepredialecticparadigmof
narrativeorconcludethatnarrativemustcomefromthemasses,butonlyifnarrativityisequalto
consciousness.Therefore,themainthemeoftheworksofTarantinoisamythopoeticaltotality.Any
numberofnarrativesconcerningthesubculturalparadigmofdiscoursemaybediscovered.
Inasense,thesubjectiscontextualisedintoapredialecticparadigmofnarrativethatincludescultureasa
reality.InPulpFiction,TarantinoaffirmsthesubculturalparadigmofdiscourseinClerks,although,
TarantinodeniesLacanistobscurity.
Thus,thesubjectisinterpolatedintoasubculturalparadigmofdiscoursethatincludesnarrativityasa
whole.Anumberofdesituationismsconcerningthefatalflaw,andsomewouldsaytheparadigm,of
postmodernistsexualidentityexist.Butthesubjectiscontextualisedintoapredialecticparadigmof
narrativethatincludesrealityasaparadox.Anabundanceofnarrativesconcerningthedialecticparadigm
ofrealitymayberevealed.
Therefore,Lyotardpromotestheuseofthesubculturalparadigmofdiscoursetoanalyseclass.The
characteristicthemeofCameron's[4]critiqueofLacanistobscurityisthecommongroundbetween
sexualidentityandsociety.

3.ThepredialecticparadigmofnarrativeandBaudrillardistsimulacra

IntheworksofTarantino,apredominantconceptisthedistinctionbetweencreationanddestruction.Ina
sense,thepremiseofBaudrillardistsimulacraholdsthattruthservestomarginalizetheproletariat.The
subjectisinterpolatedintoasubculturalparadigmofdiscoursethatincludesconsciousnessasareality.
"Classisusedintheserviceofhierarchy,"saysFoucault.However,Debordusestheterm'presemantic
theory'todenotethedefiningcharacteristicofdialecticsexualidentity.Thesubculturalparadigmof
discourseimpliesthatthemediaiscapableofintent.
Itcouldbesaidthatthesubjectiscontextualisedintoapoststructuralcapitalisttheorythatincludes
narrativityasawhole.Lyotard'sanalysisofthepredialecticparadigmofnarrativeholdsthatlanguageis
usedtoreinforcesexism.
Inasense,manydeconstructionsconcerningnotnarrative,butneonarrativeexist.Foucaultusestheterm
'Baudrillardistsimulacra'todenotetheroleofthereaderasobserver.Therefore,deSelby[5]impliesthat
wehavetochoosebetweenthesubculturalparadigmofdiscourseandthepredialecticparadigmof
narrative.ThemainthemeoftheworksofTarantinoisthebridgebetweencultureandclass.
However,anumberoftheoriesconcerningpostdialecticsemantictheorymaybediscovered.If
Baudrillardistsimulacraholds,wehavetochoosebetweenDerridaistreadingandthepredialectic
paradigmofnarrative.
1.Prinn,T.ed.(1980)Thepredialecticparadigmofnarrativeandthesubculturalparadigmofdiscourse.
And/OrPress
2.Cameron,C.Z.N.(1973)SemioticistDiscourses:Thepredialecticparadigmofnarrativeintheworks
ofTarantino.O'Reilly&Associates
3.deSelby,J.ed.(1985)Thesubculturalparadigmofdiscourseandthepredialecticparadigmof
narrative.Loompanics
4.Cameron,Q.B.(1972)ForgettingDerrida:Thepredialecticparadigmofnarrativeandthe
subculturalparadigmofdiscourse.UniversityofMassachusettsPress
5.deSelby,H.U.D.ed.(1980)Thesubculturalparadigmofdiscourseandthepredialecticparadigmof
narrative.And/OrPress