The State of Western Thought in the 21st Century: Meta-Modernism and Beyond by Elliott Sage The intellectual landscape of the 21st century is marked by a profound transition. The philosophical and cultural frameworks that defined the late 20th century—particularly postmodernism—have begun to lose their grip, leaving behind an atmosphere of skepticism, digital hyper-reality, and existential uncertainty. In this space of ideological exhaustion, new paradigms are emerging, seeking to navigate the ruins of deconstruction while reintroducing meaning, transcendence, and ethical depth into human thought. Among these emerging intellectual movements, meta-modernism stands out as one of the most compelling attempts to synthesize the contradictions of modernist idealism and postmodern relativism. However, meta-modernism is not alone. Competing philosophical and theological currents are also shaping the future of Western thought, each proposing different ways of addressing the crisis of mean...