My understanding of relating Lyotard to our study of postmodern texts was that he believed that metanarratives are inadequate as a means of revealing history and that we need to focus on the micronarrative for a more comprehendsive view of the world.
So in applying his theory to Calvino's text, the reader notes how Calvino comments on Lyotards theory with the inclusion of the metanarrative being the numbered chapters and the micronarratives being the titled chapters in his text. He mocks and trivialises Lyotards theory by making the metanarrative more relevant for the reader to understand postmodernism and writes the micronarratives as unfinished stories, making them irrelevant to the novel as a whole.
However, if discussed further, the educated reader would look at the titled chapters and deconstruct the stories, and language features to recognise that the micronarratives have alot to say about Calvino's perspective on postmodernism, and that be believes it to be a humourous study and debate succumbing to more confusion amongst academics, in this case Lyotard. Calvino cleverly crafts the titled chapters - or micronarratives - to have meaning but to also have no meaning. For example, the chapter 'if on a winters night a traveller' opens up with descriptions of a clouded station etc. which is more or less the preoccupation of people's views on postmodernism in literature, that it is ultimately a confusing and neverending study. Although, the chapter seems to have to value in the actual story or plot of the novel, as it does not contribute to the story's development.
anyways... i have no idea if that makes any sense.... i'm probably just restating the same thing, but yeahh. i wrote that in liek 5 mintuesss.... so if it has anything of worth to you, i hope it helps. =)
