Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.15176/vol53no103
Containing the Past, the Present and the Future: Packing a Suitcase
Orvar Löfgren
Abstract
Everyday life is a constant negotiation between experiences and memories of the past, the challenges of the present and longings and anxieties about the future. My paper focuses on “the throwntogetherness” of such temporal frames. How are they synchronized or kept apart? My chosen example is the suitcase, which I will analyze with the help of two perspectives focusing on the acts of throwing together and containing, to explore how the past, the present and the future is organized, intertwined and stored. The mundane tasks of packing and unpacking will be explored in different contemporary and historical settings, among holidaymakers, migrants, commuters and refugees. The suitcase works as both a material and cultural container.
Keywords
mobility; luggage; suitcase; containment; throwntogetherness; temporalities
Hrčak ID:
162048
URI
Publication date:
20.7.2016.
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