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| author |
Robert Kyle Warren
| | title |
Assembling Nearness, Constructing Proximities: Toward a Theopoetics of Spatial Justice and Architecture
| | abstract |
This dissertation proposes a theopoetic framework for spatial justice in architecture, examining the interplay between Eurocentric ontological structures and material configurations perpetuating marginalizing socio-spatial hierarchies. Utilizing theopoetics as a hermeneutic tool, it analyzes relational dynamics within built environments, contrasting the experiences of those "without a home" with those "at home." The study scrutinizes how neoliberal policies, material configurations, and historical religious values have influenced social interactions and conceptualizations of relational spaces. It emphasizes the experiences of "the homeless" against the backdrop of whiteness ideologies, particularly within Boston's social services contexts, critiquing the enduring dehumanization in housing systems rooted in colonial and Puritan legacies. Advocating for a theological and ethical confrontation of these systems, the research proposes architectural interventions to enact theopoetic spatial justice. By reconceptualizing architectural practices, it argues for extending theological inquiry beyond sacred spaces to address socio-spatial injustices in design, planning, and development. This entails examining architecture's impact on neighbor relations, inclusion/exclusion dynamics, and capacities for shaping communal living within structures of care and confinement. Interrogating political narratives on housing insecurity and homelessness in Boston through case studies and interludes, the dissertation aims to challenge discursive and biopolitical frameworks that overlay the design, construction, and governance of shelters, public spaces, and the stigmatization of marginalized populations tied to property. It seeks to operationalize socio-spatial justice by contesting prevalent spatial inequalities and proposes a critical constructivist approach to liberal-progressive ideologies complicit with security measures, advocating for a theopoetics of spatial justice to reimagine alternative spatial futures.
| | school |
The Theological School, Drew University
| | degree |
Ph.D. (2024)
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| advisor |
Catherine Keller
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| committee |
Chris Boesel
Diana RamÃrez Jasso
Benjamin Peterson
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| full text | RWarren.pdf - requires Drew uLogin |
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