| Chapter 2: | Composing a Place |
|
|
This is a limited free preview of this book. Please buy full access.
Chapter 2
Composing a Place
It is an ordinary task to distinguish a farmstead from a residential development (Gilbertz, 2002). Yet, the task is important in that it represents our attentiveness to landscapes as meaningful elements in life. It also reminds us of the symbolic nature of what we know. We interpret, label, and construct particular meanings to explain the material world. Our understandings of the world are inextricably woven together with representations that are both cultural and personal. That is, we learn to see through cultural lenses as members of collectives, yet as individuals we are products of multiple social groupings and unique personal histories. Individually, we employ interpretive leeway that allows us to thread together meanings derived from a variety of social roles, personal interests and histories, creativities, and even idiosyncrasies. A farmstead might, thus, be understood as “my neighbor's dairy farm,” and a residential development might conjure up childhood memories. In all cases, our attention to landscape is fundamental to living a properly situated and meaningful life. On the cusp of the long-anticipated cleanup, the tangible and known landscape at Milltown was essentially scheduled for demolition