Breaking Young Divinities is a candid and spiritual coming-of-age tale about a boy who grows up in the housing projects of 1980s Toronto and comes to grips with young adulthood in the 1990s.
He lives a sheltered childhood until high school, where he meets Jen, a mysteriously troubled young woman. She introduces him to his first tastes of passion, adventure, and sex.
In one tragic night, his world is turned upside down by an event that sends him on a misguided quest to come to terms with the world, with the God that he feels has abandoned him, and with the limitations of being human.
Total Bull is a hard-working fellow from the big Cow City. But for all his hard work (a wife, a mortgage, a car) he feels like something is just missing from his life. So he decides to go on a journey of discovery. Along the way he meets the mythical and mysterious Buffalo civilization.
By Rick Talbot. August 15, 2002.
** Note: This is a philosophical essay, not fiction. Have fun! **
Introduction
The last decade of the 20th century - and the beginning of the 21st century – has seen a drastic shift away from post-modern thought and values. The predominant social themes of the recent years have moved away from post-modern ideals. The human mind has collectively evolved beyond the questioning of meaning, has decided that there is none, and has resigned itself to self-destructive outlets.
In this new era, which we should call post-meaning, we find the ultimate expression of the “Me Generation.” Namely, the self is important; others are irrelevant. Cultural relativism has given way to global homogeneity, and has headed toward non-culture. Ethnic diversity is being lost around the world. Finally, the question of God’s existence has become irrelevant, as God himself has become irrelevant and, by consequence, meaningless.
I thought of the idea of the post-meaning era as I was walking through the park one day in April. I then searched the internet for the term “post-meaning” and found that the first usage comes from a 1994 article, “The Meaning of Meaning in a Post-Meaning Age.”[1] And so, though I have not been the first to think of it, I hope that I can offer meaningful speculation on this new frame of reference. This article will reflect on the dawn of the Post-Meaning era.