000			02205nam a2200241 a 4500
003			GR-AtICH
005			20140520161118.0
008			140520s2001 enkao rb 001 0 eng d
020			_a1859735800 (hbk)
020			_a1859735851 (pbk)
082	0	4	_a306
245	0	0	_aHome possessions : _bmaterial culture behind closed doors / _cedited by Daniel Miller.
260			_aOxford : _bBerg, _c2001.
300			_axi, 234 p. : _bill. ; _c24 cm.
504			_aIncludes bibliographical references and index.
520			_aAlthough so much of life we care about takes place at home, this private space often remains behind closed doors and is notoriously difficult for researchers to infiltrate. We may think it is just up to us to decorate, transform and construct our homes, but in this book we discover a new form of 'estate agency', the active participation of the home and its material culture in the construction of our lives.What do the possessions people choose to take with them when moving say about who they are, and should we emphasize the mobility of a move or the stability of what movers take with them? How is the home an active partner in developing relationships? Why are our homes sometimes haunted by 'ghosts'? This intriguing book is a rare behind-the-scenes expose of the domestic sphere across a range of cultures. Examples come from working-class housewives in Norway, a tribal society in Taiwan, a museum in London, tenants in Canada and students from Greece, to produce a genuinely comparative perspective based in every cae on sustained fieldwork. So Japan, long thought to be a nation that idealizes uncluttered simplicity, is shown behind closed doors to harbour illicit pockets of disorganization, while the warmth inside Romanian apartments is used to expel the presence of the state. Representing a vital development in the study of material culture, this book clearly shows that we may think we possess our homes, but our homes more likely possess us.
650		0	_aHousing _912737
650		0	_aFurniture _xSocial aspects _912738
700	1		_aMiller, Daniel, _d1954- _912739
999			_c5264