Atmosphere and its Place in Time: a Bergsonian approach

Abstract

<p>This dissertation is about the philosophy of atmosphere of place. It proposes that many of the conceptual ambiguities associated with atmosphere might be resolved if atmosphere is considered in terms of its genetic conditions. In particular, it suggests that the difficulties associated with whether to attribute atmospheres to the subjects who experience them, or the objects from which they proceed, stem from our tendency to view atmosphere in an abstracted way that emphasises its spatiality. Instead, the dissertation draws on the philosophy of Henri Bergson and his philosophical method of ‘intuition’, as the means to consider a pre-verbal consciousness. This leads to a conception of atmosphere as lived time – like a melody whose changing nature, as an unfolding and not yet determined whole, is what gives rise to our experience of it. The consequence is that the metaphysical reality of atmosphere is derived not in terms of subject and object, but rather in terms of perception and memory – and, from this, the implications for atmosphere are that representation is re-placed as embodiment, affect is re-placed as atmosphere itself, and place is re-placed as montage. Against this backdrop, the overarching aim of the dissertation is to contribute to atmosphere studies by providing a conceptual foundation by which to explore the making of atmospheres in urban settings..</p>