Modernity brought us the promise of democracy, the values on which the American and French revolutions
were fought. It taught us to overcome superstition, and create our own futures with self-determination.
Modernity was the overthrowing of the old ways, feudalism, aristocracies, authoritarian traditions, and the
coming of the new. And nothing epitomises modernity more than America, the brave new world.
But modernity also taught us a naive faith in the power of the scientific method to shed light on deep
human problems. My own postmodern impulse, more than anything, is a desire to throw off the cultural
lessons that foster this particular faith so that I can gain a clearer view of what is of value here. It is not an
easy thing for me to do. My roots are very modern....
And we therapists, haven't we also been carriers of this modernist promise for far too long? Isn't it time
that we sift through all the promises of diagnosis and cure for our mental pathologies and find the hidden
flowers here in our midst? That is the fresh spirit that I detect in the postmodern movement.
I believe, paradoxically, that therapists may be able to lead us in this fresh direction -- because society has
given us the power to lead. But, first, there is the problem of digging through the promises and finding the
hidden flowers beneath.