Core Concept: What is Thirdspace?
- Thirdspace is a concept introduced by Edward Soja in Thirdspace: Journeys to Los Angeles and Other Real-and-Imagined Places (1996), building on Henri Lefebvre’s The Production of Space (1974).
- It represents the lived, experienced, and dynamic space where identity, memory, resistance, and meaning converge.
- It critiques the idea that space is just physical or planned; it argues that space is lived and socially constructed, especially by marginalised communities.
Relevance : GS 1(Society) , GS 2(Social Issues)
Soja’s Trialectics of Spatiality
- Firstspace (Perceived space):
- Physical, mappable space — roads, buildings, parks.
- Often viewed as “objective” but reflects deep-rooted inequalities (e.g., slums at margins, caste/religious segregation).
- Secondspace (Conceived space):
- Ideological and planned space — zoning laws, blueprints, city plans.
- Reflects the biases and visions of those in power (e.g., colonial mapping, gentrification).
- Thirdspace (Lived space):
- Where real human experiences, cultural practices, and acts of resistance happen.
- Blends the physical and ideological but goes beyond them, enabling transformation and subversion.
Thirdspace and Identity Politics
- In Thirdspace, marginalised identities (e.g., migrants, women, LGBTQ+ groups) find space for assertion and imagination.
- Feminist geographers like Doreen Massey and Bell Hooks emphasized how space is gendered and political.
- E.g., who feels safe in parks after dark? Who shapes urban layouts?
Urban and Rural Relevance
- While Soja focused on cities, Thirdspace exists in villages, squares, digital spaces, and protest sites.
- Example: A village square can be a Firstspace (gathering), Secondspace (tradition), and Thirdspace (resistance/conflict) simultaneously.
- Cities, due to planning, diversity, surveillance, and informality, are prime grounds to explore Thirdspace dynamics.
Contrasted with Marc Augé’s ‘Non-Places’
- Non-places (airports, malls, hotels) are transient and devoid of identity.
- Thirdspace resists this sterility — people remake even non-places into meaningful spaces through use, memory, and resistance.
Examples of Thirdspace
- Greenwich Village, New York:
- Firstspace: Historic street layout.
- Secondspace: Designed as educational/historic zone.
- Thirdspace: Site of LGBTQ+ resistance (Stonewall), cultural hub.
- Afghan streets or Chinatown in Indian cities:
- Created not by planners but by community lived experiences.
Why Thirdspace Matters
- Encourages us to value emotional, cultural, and political experience of space, not just what maps or planners say.
- Highlights the transformative potential of communities in reshaping urban and social landscapes.
- Offers a critical lens to study inequality, resistance, identity, and urban theory in the real world.
