‘Strangers in my home’: Disaster and the durability of the private realm

Abstract

The three realms of home, neighbourhood and public space comprise distinct socio-spatial entities, each with distinct sets of social relations and rules governing social interaction. The home, or private realm, is characterised by intimacy and familiarity; the parochial sphere is where people interact as neighbours or acquaintances; and the public realm is where strangers are encountered as a matter of course. While the contours of these realms are constantly shifting, the boundaries between the private sphere and outside world are preserved, such that strangers and neighbours enter the home only as temporary guests or as harmful ‘invaders’. In this article the authors examine how disaster can disrupt the boundaries between the private, parochial and public realms, allowing strangers to freely enter the home. Using interviews conducted after the Brisbane 2011 floods, the article shows that while the neighbourhood became a liminal space in which total strangers were accepted, the convergence of strangers in the private sphere of home generated anxiety among occupants despite the altruistic intent of those strangers. The article concludes that, paradoxically, the resilience of the private realm, even in a vastly degraded state, contributes to the distress felt by victims of disaster when strangers come to help restore it. The authors use this conclusion to contribute theoretically to the phenomenology of home in a critical case such as a disaster.