The name Jean-Francois Lyotard has been central to the discussion of postmodernism. However, the intentions and fundamental ideas of his work have largely remained in the background and seem to have been little understood. Walter Reese-Schäfer brings these to the forefront in his introduction. He makes accessible a position that subjects the totalizing thinking of modernity to sharp, rational criticism and rejects any dominance of a unified principle. In a conversation with Willem van Reijen and Dick Veerman in the second part of this volume, Lyotard himself addresses questions regarding his philosophy.