Xinxiu Tian

Dr. Lauren Holt

ENG221RW
February 7, 2015
The Way Back Home
After reading Yi-Fu Tuans Space and Place and Lahiris Rhode Island, I wanted to
explore the interpretations of space, place, home, and homeland. What makes a place
home? Can a home be a home without any family member? Is homeland a cluster of
historical buildings or is it composed of national culture and history? I believe that space,
place, home, and homeland compose each other, overlapping each other, but on the other
hand, they all have different connotations. In my essay, I will analyze the relationship
between space and place, place and home, and home and homeland.
In terms of place, a number of people might suggest that it has the same meaning as
space. It has become common today to ignore the distinctions between them. Tuan
himself writes, Space and place are basic components of the lived world; we take them
for granted (Tuan 3). Although I agree with the ordinary definition of space and place up
to a point, I strongly contend that space is a general concept, while place, which is related
to personal experiences and emotions, is a subset of space. Tuan states, Place is security,
space is freedom: we are attached to the one and long for the other (Tuan 3). In other
words, space is more objective and does not have personal meanings, while place is
sentimentally attached to a human beings experiences and emotions. This argument can
be demonstrated by an example. When a baby is born, every space in this world is the
same for him because he has not had any experiences in this world yet. Every inch of the

land has the same significance for him, waiting for his discovery. It can be determined
that experiences give space meaning, turning it into a place.
I believe that place is composed of space, and a space is able to transform into a place
due to a persons sensory organs. Living in this world, we use sensory organs to interact
with the space around us, creating memories and emotions to identify a space. For
instance, when I recollect the memory of a place, I will try to think about the appearance,
the smell, the sound, and the touch of the place. Tuan describes this relationship by
saying that Space is transformed into place as it acquires definition and meaning (Tuan
136). Likewise, writing in the essay Place, Price asserts that Human beings are not
simply social animals, we are too spatial animals, inasmuch as territory knowing it,
owning it, exploring it matters a great deal (Price 119). In sum, peoples experiences
in a space are developed by a variety of senses, and a place gradually takes shape in
peoples mind based on these experiences.
Another equally important point of view I have developed is that home is a subset of
place, where a person has the most intimate experience. In Tuans view, We move from
direct and intimate experiences to those that involve more and more symbolic and
conceptual apprehension (Tuan 136). This opinion can also be seen in Lahiris essay
Rhode Island: Though I was born in London and have Indian parents, Rhode Island is
the reply I give when people ask me where I am from (Lahiri 102). In terms of
hometown, London and India both have more important connections with Lahiri than
Rhode Island does. However, Lahiri spent most of her childhood and teenage life in
Rhode Island. She had the most intimate experiences in Rhode Island. Regardless of
whether these experiences were good or bad, they meant a lot in her life.

However, although I fully endorse Tuans claim that intimate experience is a key
element of home, I strongly disagree with his argument that home has a different
meaning for a person when he is in a different life situation. According to Tuan, The
home itself feels more intimate in winter than in summer. Winter reminds us of our
vulnerability and defines the home as shelter (Tuan 137). Similarly, In The Poetics of
Space, Bachelard compares a human beings sentimental feeling toward home to an
animals sense toward its nest. Bachelard complicates matters further when he writes, It
is striking that even in our homes, where there is light, our consciousness of well-being
should call for comparison with animals in their shelters (Bachelard 91). I consider these
two writers views as biased opinions since they think that peoples sentimental
attachment to home is the equivalent of animals instincts to seek shelter.
I do not deny the fact that home indeed can heal a persons vulnerability and sadness.
However, a homes distinctive feature is not that it is a shelter but the memories people
create in it and the family living in the home. This can be seen when Lahiri expresses her
sentimental feeling toward Rhode Island by saying, Due to my parents beliefs,
whenever and wherever they do die, they will not be buried in Rhode Island soil. The
house in Rolling Acres will belong to other people; there will be no place there to pay my
respects (Lahiri 111). Lahiri implies that Rhode Island is important because she has
family members there. Once her parents are gone, the house she grew up in will be sold
and she will not consider Rhode Island as her home anymore. My own view is that there
are important differences between peoples feelings and animals feelings toward home.
Home for a person means not only a physical location but also family, support, and love.
Conversely, home for an animal is just a shelter.

Yet some readers may challenge my view by insisting that if a person has had
negative experiences at home, his sentimental attachment to home might be different
from others who have only had positive experiences. I want to answer the objections
with my personal experience. When I was young, I argued with my mother every day
because she forced to me study when I wanted to play with my friends. However, even
though there were many arguments and tears in my home, I still missed my home very
much when I first came to the U.S. While it is true that people all prefer good experiences
to bad experiences, it does not necessarily follow that peoples affection toward home
will be negatively impacted by bad experiences.
In my perspective, homeland is composed of thousands of homes and experiences
that have happened within these homes. Though it is true that historical sites make a
nations homeland significant, it is a nations culture and history that make a homeland
meaningful and memorable. Based on Space and Place, Tuan emphasizes that Evidence
from different cultures suggests that place is specific tied to a particular cluster of
buildings at one location wherever the people believe it to be not only their home but
also the home of their guarding spirits and gods (Tuan 150). For instance, the Old
Summer Palace, one of the greatest historical palaces in China, was once considered to be
the most valuable building of China. In other words, this physical location represented
Chinas culture and the Emperors power.
Unfortunately, it was destroyed in 1860 by British and French armies. Historians
believe that this is one of the most memorable tragedies in Chinas history. On the other
hand, the destruction of the Old Summer Palace tells Chinese people to learn from the
past. I believe that even though the Old Summer Palace was destroyed, it is still a success

and a symbol of homeland. Today in China, students are required to visit the historical
remains of the Old Summer Palace because educators hold an opinion that students
should learn from our failures. At the beginning of the19th century, China had a closed
society and was not willing to learn from other nations technology. As a Chinese saying
goes, the winners are crowned and the losers vilified. However, even though a cluster of
brilliant buildings is all gone, when people come to this historical site, they can feel a
sense of national pride. A wise country knows to learn from the past and thrives in the
very near future. Therefore, I contend that a homelands essence is not purely buildings
but more importantly, a nations history and culture.
In summary, I want to demonstrate that place is a subset of space just as home is a
subset of homeland. However, what I have stated in the essay does not cover all the
meanings of the relationship between place and the self. For instance, a persons job,
educational background, family situation and so on will all impact his personality and
shape his identity, changing his sentimental attachments to a place. But why is this idea
important and what can we learn from it? It teaches us to consider a place as a subject
that defines who we are, rather than simply a physical location.

Works Cited
Bachelard, Gaston, M. Jolas, and John R. Stilgoe. The Poetics of Space. Boston: Beacon,
1994. Print.
Lahiri, Jhumpa. Where Are You From? Notions of Identity & Place. New York: Oxford
UP, 2014. 101-11. Print.
Price, Patricia L. "Place." The Wilay-Blackwell Companion to Cultural Geography. First
Edition ed. Minneapolis: Joha Wilay & Sons, 2013. 118-27. Print.
Tuan, Yi-fu. Space and Place: The Perspective of Experience. Minneapolis: U of
Minnesota, 1977. Print. 136-148.
Tuan, Yi-fu. Space and Place: The Perspective of Experience. Minneapolis: U of
Minnesota, 1977. Print. 149-160.
Tuan, Yi-fu. Space and Place: The Perspective of Experience. Minneapolis: U of
Minnesota, 1977. Print. 8-18.