Domestic Boundaries

Privacy, Visibility and the Norwegian Window

Bibliographic Data

ID2390861
AuthorsP Garvey (0000-0002-7570-8965, National University of Ireland, Maynooth, corresponding author)
Year2005
Volume10
Issue2
Pages157-176
Publication date2005-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Material Culture (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1359-1835 • E-ISSN: 1460-3586
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/1359183505053073
OpenAlexW2003615631
LanguageEN
Citations received24
References cited24

The article presents an exploration of domestic borders in the Norwegian town of Skien. Differences between homes may be minimal, however the differentiation between homes, can occasionally, be marked (Wallman, 1978: 203). This observation has relevance for Norwegian and Somali households whereby perceptions of domestic boundaries, visibility and definitions of privacy are analysed. The domestic window is shown to provide one material medium for the negotiation of ethnic identity and social classification. I argue notions of the private are dynamic and contextual and frequently have less to do with 'being seen' than with a perception of the social gaze. Consequently, looking at ethnic minorities, Norwegian locals and the private home in Skien does not just imply investigating the link between visibility and privacy but questioning the ideas on which this link is based, and rethinking notions of privacy itself

Aesthetics · Ethnic group · Geography · Identity (music · Negotiation · Norwegian · Perception · Social science · Sociology · Visibility · Anthropology · Gender Studies · Migration and Labor Dynamics · Migration, Refugees, and Integration · Psychology · Sex work and related issues

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