I came across an interesting question today: We shape our buildings; thereafter they shape us." you agree or not?
While the question is interesting in and of itself, one of the responses brought up another issue: A person who lives in a closed and dilapidated building with a person living in building has health conditions.
I think this comment deserves its own discussion. A dilapidated building can cause a number of health issues. But there are sociological issues as well. Living in a home that's broken down, especially in comparison to other houses in the community, can make it difficult to invite people over and interact with the community. So in what ways (and I think there are many) do living conditions impact our lives?
Original question: https://www.researchgate.net/post/We_shape_our_buildings_thereafter_they_shape_us_you_agree_or_not
I guess it depends on what you'd call relative. There weren't really any good living conditions until XX century.The cave man considered a cosy, warm and shy cave as a safe haven and if he was well-fed and could procreate, that would suffice. Then evolution started and humanity became enlightened, devising ways and inventions in order to make their living more comfortable.
"We shape our buildings; thereafter they shape us." you agree or not?". I can agree that for the most part that would paradoxically work somehow regarding extremes. Imagine Marie Antoinette casually eating her cheesecake while being catered to every second of the day. We can only imagine that the Queen of the late 1700's France was especially comfortable during her lifetime, first in her homeland, then in Versailles. Then there are Buddhist monks who are bidden by faith and by such exercise balance and practice abstinence for a greater purpose than themselves, living with very little and owning very few personal belonging, yet experiencing(at least supposedly) more comfort( mentally) than the rest. Lastly, take the common man, the middle class, that has enough to live in rather decent conditions but most certainly will never be pleased with them and always aspire to greatness( nothing new). Relativity in this case depends yet again on who/where/when factors.
So in what ways (and I think there are many) does living conditions impact our lives?
To an extend, in every way. Be it either financially, socially, psychologically or simply by default, our surroundings will always manifest their influence. No one likes a dirty and shabby-looking house and everyone loves expensive mint ice cream in the midst of summer. This is just being human, after all.
There seem to be some interesting insights in your answer, Ardelean Oana-Alexandra, but this following statement is a problem: The cave man considered a cosy, warm and shy cave as a safe haven...
The "cave man" is essentially a myth. Caves don't make great living conditions, though certain outcroppings of rock can. For the life of me I can't remember what the formation is called though.
You're right. By cave man i meant the "Homo Sapiens" in his early stage. There are also a few caves where archaeologist still find signs of former habitation, yet not that many. Perhaps they were not comfortable or private but it beats staying in open field. The first types of a "structured home" in my opinion are from the Late Neolithic/Early Bronze age. Nowadays the problem seems to be greediness. "Less is more" does not function in the XXI century.
RE: So in what ways (and I think there are many) [do] living conditions impact our lives?
Some people are willing to put up with a lot of, literally, 💩 just to be in the presence of greatness. So the choice to live at Versailles had its own dis-stink-tive impact:
"... there weren’t toilets as we know them in Louis XIV’s Versailles. There were some rather fancy looking chamber pots…
"But they were chamber pots all the same. They were a hassle to empty… so normally, maids would just empty them right out the window. Imagine your fancy carriage arriving to the Palace of Versailles, your beautiful new gown or silk suit shining in the sunlight, and oh, look, there’s a nasty pile and splattering right next to the building. Yikes.
"It’s said some 10,000 people could be housed at Versailles at one time. You’d be sorely (stinkily) mistaken to assume there were enough toilets (and toilet cleaners) for everyone. Chamber pots overflowed and seeped into walls and through floors and ceilings. These awful conditions encouraged people to just… go wherever. Hallways and galleries became public restrooms, to an extent."
https://sightseekersdelight.com/6-juicy-versailles-secrets-not-in-guidebooks/
"It’s difficult to believe today when gazing at the gleaming golden palace, but life at Versailles was actually quite dirty. There were no bathrooms as we would know them. Courtiers and royalty used decorative commodes in each room, while commoners simply relieved themselves in the hallways or stairwells. No one bothered to house-train the royal dogs, and servants did not consider cleaning up after them to be part of their job description."
https://housesandbooks.wordpress.com/2013/02/02/the-grandeur-and-squalor-of-old-versailles/
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