I don't feel at home in this world anymore: on the detrimental nature of living 's-places' in late capitalist urban society
Date
2023
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Tartu Ülikool
Abstract
Our homes serve as the central hubs for our everyday lives and experiences. As such, we expect them
to foster the regeneration of the self; provide for our safety and security; and serve as a reflection of
our individual identities. However, technological advancements and the re-merging of home- and
work environments, have resulted in a constant intrusion of our homes by the outside world,
preventing us from finding solace within our four walls. Secondly, the distinction between the inside
and the outside world has moved from a reciprocal sparing and preserving to a one-sided focus on
self-preservation, in which our suspicion of the outside world leads us to use aggressive security
measures that further alienate us from our surroundings. Lastly, our desire to personalise our homes
so that they express our identities is thwarted by commodities that are only marginally different,
which makes the pursuit of personal distinctiveness become an illusion that is perpetuated by a society
in which alienation is total. In short, the home has become the source of every self-estrangement and
alienation. Therefore, as this thesis shall argue, the late capitalist urban home is detrimental to the self
as an individual and creative agent.
Description
Keywords
philosophy