Lefebvre and the space of everyday life
RIS ID
64810
Abstract
Space, for cultural studies, is a runaway train. No longer is there any such thing as justspace-which is, perhaps,all thatmetaphysiciansand physicians had to cope with; now a multiplicity of spaces have to be contended with. This paperwill offer a critical assessment of the concept of space articulated by contemporary approaches to social semiotics, specifically in termsofthe everyday, drawingon, particularly, the work of Henri Lefebvre. Ultimately it will suggest that social semiotics as a field needs to move beyond simple derivations of the structuralist theories ofSaussure and Levi-Strauss ifitis to engagemeaningfully with space as a concept. This is especially true if the work on the everyday by Lefebvre (and by extension de Certeau) is to be integrated into the critical arsenal.
Publication Details
Buchanan, I. 1994, 'Lefebvre and the space of everyday life', Southern Review, vol. 27, no. 2, pp. 127-137.