‭DIYA SARAH KOSHY‬

‭ OMMON SPACE AS‬

C
‭THRESHOLD SPACE:‬
‭Urban Commoning in Struggles to Re- appropriate Public Space‬
‭Stavros Stavrids‬

‭NORMALISATION AND INTRODUCTION‬

‭Urban order is described as an unattainable ideal that ordering mechanisms aim for to‬
‭support capitalism's needs. These mechanisms also serve as tools for social‬
‭normalization, encouraging predictable behaviors and social roles. Normalization‬
‭infiltrates all aspects of society, shaping individuals through daily actions and power‬
‭structures, reflecting a project of domination grounded in specific power relations.‬
‭People in enclaves tend to accept enclave rules as normal and protective, often giving up‬
‭their rights in exchange for this perceived protection. However, there is a growing loss of‬
‭faith in societal promises, leading to acts of resistance. Normalization is a contested and‬
‭fragile project, especially during times of crisis. New forms of resistance involve‬
‭reshaping urban spaces to create new social connections and collective movements for‬
‭survival and change.‬

‭OBJECTIVES‬

‭1.‬ ‭Collectivity and Common space:-‬

‭Practices of this kind lead to collective experiences that reclaim the city as a‬
‭potentially liberating environment and reshape crucial questions that‬
‭characterize emancipatory politics. In this context, the city becomes not only the‬
‭setting but also the means to collectively‬‭experiment with possible alternative‬
‭forms of social organization‬‭.‬‭Moreover, the sharing of space becomes a crucially‬
‭important stake, both as a means of experimenting and as one of the goals of such‬
‭experiments.‬

‭Common spaces are those spaces produced by people in their effort to establish a‬

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 ‭common world that houses, supports and expresses the community they‬
‭participate in. Therefore, common spaces should be distinguished from both‬
‭public spaces and private ones. Public spaces are primarily created by a specific‬
‭authority (local, regional or state), which controls them and establishes the rules‬
‭under which people may use them. Private spaces belong to and are controlled by‬
‭specific individuals or economic entities that have the‬‭right to establish the‬
‭conditions under which others‬‭may use them‬‭.‬

‭2.‬ ‭Purpose of thresholds:‬

‭Thresholds, like doorways, separate inside from outside, but they also connect‬
‭these spaces. They control the act of passage, and rituals often mark them to‬
‭manage the significance of crossing.‬‭Thresholds symbolize the potential‬
‭connection between inside and outside‬‭and may be associated with guardian‬
‭deities. Entering is seen as intrusion, and exiting as a form of ostracism.‬

‭3.‬ ‭Create Connection with surrounding:‬

‭Thresholds hold both symbolic and practical significance, serving as spatial‬

‭constructs that regulate‬‭the act of crossing and bridging different worlds‬‭,‬
‭which can have social implications, either positive or negative. These thresholds‬
‭also serve as‬‭metaphors for‬‭social status‬‭changes that‬‭individuals undergo‬
‭throughout life‬‭, such as transitioning forms of life.‬

‭4.‬ ‭Sense of community and common-ness‬

‭Victor Turner, an anthropologist, noted that crossing a threshold carries inherent‬

‭transformative potential‬‭that isn't strictly tied to societal rules. People on the‬
‭threshold experience the possibility of change, accompanied by a sense of‬
‭"communitas." This is a phase where individuals lose their previous social identity‬
‭but haven't yet acquired a new one, placing them in a state of being "betwixt and‬
‭between," with shared human characteristics. Social differences may seem‬
‭arbitrary during this phase, fostering a‬‭sense of equality‬‭. Liminality, the‬
‭spatiotemporal aspect of threshold experience, offers people the chance to share a‬
‭common world-in-the-making, where differences appear as pre-social or even‬
‭anti-social.‬

‭5.‬ ‭Transformative and expansion‬

‭Thresholds can symbolize equality. However, "institutions of commoning" can‬

‭restrict community practices. To promote an emancipated society, commoning‬

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 ‭should involve‬‭expanding sharing and collaboration‬‭.‬‭Dominant institutions can‬
‭either legitimize inequality or promote abstract equality by imposing general‬
‭rules and restrictions on behavior. Both types of institutions deal with differences‬
‭based on their classifications, with one focused on ensuring equality and the other‬
‭often imposing discrimination.‬

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