Good Place: An Experiential Perspective Article Review Example

Yi-Fu Tuan (1975) in the article “Place: An Experiential Perspective” describes how on may perceive a place. There are different aspects that one may use to understand space. Tuan suggests that one may know the meaning of a place through sensation and experience from schooling or the work of art. Further, Tuan asserts the understanding of a place is differently viewed by different groups i.e. each of the spaces is unique to either an individuals or group of people. He explains this aspect using variorum categories. Places within home e.g. the fireplace, dining table, and the bed, etc. are unique and have personalized meaning. Tuan describes the home as place, then the city, neighborhood or region, and the nation. I have experienced various places as indicated below.
One of the places that have a significant meaning to me within the home is the dining table. Every day we sit around the dining table in evening all of us and have our meals. There is a unique sense of belonging that is brought about by sharing a meal at the dining table. In the event, that one is missing, everyone would seem to take note since there are particular positions that each one of us has assumed. I have never come to think of such places since; in the first place, I had no idea on how unique it is. It is on the dining table where we carry out most of the deliberations. Therefore, most of the worldview in so far as family matters are concerned is derived while at the dining table.
In my city insert city name, one finds it unique in various ways. Most people tend to assume that the life in the city is devoid of challenges as it shows opulence. Staying insert city name, more than often one would hear the sirens of police cars chasing criminals; Tuan noted that the city accommodates both the thief and the burgher (p.157). On weekend afternoon, majority of the dweller in insert city name stroll on the streets leisurely. Some get drunk as the clubs play loud music. The casinos are full, the videos and cinema halls are full. The young, and old, men and women get out enjoying themselves. The city is full of life.
In my nation, as one sees in the television, the politics are quite stable. The army uniform, the flag, and the national anthem (Tuan, 1975, p. 160) are the symbols of unity that are displayed in various parts of the country and the mainstream media. The Newspaper screams to us how we ought to uphold democracy, to respect our statutes, and participate in various charity organizations. The oneness of the nations is emphasized. More than often the politicians clash over ideologies and still come out to hold hands and claim unity is the best way to forge ahead.
The sense of place is subjective to every individual. The fact that one uses senses to understand a particular place makes it more of a personal idea than universal. One cannot get the sense of a place immediately. One has to take time staying in the place to understand it. Such enables one to remove prejudices and stereotypes that one could have had about the place. Therefore, the place or the sense of the place to me is the totality of the experiences that one has either directly or indirectly. I had not thought of a place in this perspective before. Tuan’s ideas do not cater for the imaginative apart of the human being. Even though one may experience certain things; the imaginative aspect may change the understanding. Such is true since humans tend to modify their experiences to fit into a certain social-cultural space. For example in the city, the poor, the rich, and the middle classes have a different experience of the same city. Even if Tuan tends to emphasize on the subjectivity of the experience, he does not emphasize on the social-cultural and economic aspects that may change the perspective.

Work cited

Tuan Yi-Fu. Place: An Experimental Perspective. American Geographical society. Vol. 65, no. 2. April. 1975. Pp. 151-165. URL http://www.jstor.org/stable/213970