Geography of Home: Writings on Where We LiveThe house is home to many things. Far more than four walls and a roof, it contains our private and public lives, our families, our memories and aspirations, and it reflects our attitudes toward society, culture, the environment, and our neighbors. In a literary tour of the spaces of our homes, Geography of Home reflects on how we define such elusive qualities as privacy, security, and comfort. Part social history, part architectural history, part personal anecdote, this rich book uncovers the hidden meanings of seemingly simple domestic spaces, in chapters ranging from "The Front Door" and "The Porch" to "The Library," "The Kitchen," "The Bedroom," "The Bathroom," and "The Garage," among others. These writings about the home touch on our culture's fundamental issues: the notion of family, the aging of the population, working at home, and respect for the environment. Together, these eloquent essays help us understand not only what home means for each of us, but how our idea of home shapes our place in the world. As Busch writes, "There are times when our homes express infinite possibilities, when they reflect who we are and what we might be." |
Contents
Acknowledgments | |
Preface 11 | |
Introduction 15 | |
Front Door 29 | |
Dining Room 51 | |
Laundry 61 | |
Closet 71 | |
Home Office 81 | |
Library 93 | |
Front Porch 103 | |
Bedroom 115 | |
Dressing Room 125 | |
Bathroom 135 | |
Garage 143 | |
Epilog 161 | |
Other editions - View all
Geography of Home: Essays on Architecture, Psychology, and the History of ... Akiko Busch Limited preview - 2003 |
Common terms and phrases
accessories accommodate American appeal appliances architect architecture areas barn bathing bathroom beautiful became become bedroom building called century chair Christopher Alexander closets clothes comfort contemporary cultural decoration dining room domestic space dressing room edutainment electronic floor plan Frank Lloyd Wright front door front porch function furnishings gathering Geography of Home glass Greek Revival home office household human idea industry interior kitchen landscape laundry room less living room logic Mario Praz Mark Girouard Metropolis magazine once ourselves outfitted Pattern Language physical piece of furniture postmodern realm recent reflect rituals Seaside seems sense sensory experience serve Shakers Sharper Image shelves Sigfried Giedion sleep social solitude steam showers stoop storage suggests tend There's things traditional Victorian Victorian era walls wash Witold Rybczynski women York