Besides home and school, where do you go to gather with others on a regular basis?
Maybe it’s the football field where you practice daily, a recreation center where you hang out with your friends after school, the local library where you go to study, a restaurant or store where you and your family are regulars or your place of worship.
How often do you go there? Who do you see or spend time with there? What does that place mean to you?
These spaces are often known as “third places,” and some say they’re disappearing. In “Where Have All the ‘Third Places’ Gone?,” Ephrat Livni explains:
The term “third place” was coined by the urban sociologist Ray Oldenburg in his 1989 book, “The Great Good Place.” It refers to spaces outside of home and work (one’s first and second places) where friends and strangers can gather unrushed — like cafes, bars, hair salons, dog parks and gyms. In some conceptions, the term refers to places where you don’t have to buy anything to hang out.
Mr. Oldenburg’s coinage filled a linguistic gap — the value of public gathering spaces was well known but there was no term for it. His phrase took hold and remains popular.
The article continues:
Gwendolyn Purifoye, an assistant professor at the University of Notre Dame, examined the pandemic’s impact on third places in a September article in the journal Visual Studies. The physical constraints created by Covid protocols, she noted, kept people away from their favorite spots and ultimately led many businesses to shutter, a permanent loss for communities.
Dr. Purifoye said in an interview that she had come to appreciate at least one virtual third place in her life — an online writing workshop that started during the pandemic and that she still attends. Community, she believes, can be created in digital spaces.
Still, she said, “Public leisure space is critical for society. If you don’t build places to gather, it makes us more strange, and strangeness creates anxiety.”
For an example of one such place, just look to Joann, the arts-and-crafts retail giant that announced last month it would be closing all 800 of its stores. In “Joann Is More Than a Chain Store to ‘Heartbroken’ Regulars,” Alex Vadukul examines what this closure means to the people who shopped there:
To its loyal customer base, the news represented more than just the decline of a chain that sells yarn, art supplies, sewing machines and fabrics. It also symbolized the demise of a sanctuary for those who find joy in the therapeutic hobby of creation.
Jen Clapp, a longtime quilter and former fiber optics salesperson who lives in Northern Kentucky, mourned the expected end of the Joann she had been visiting since she was a girl. Back then, it was known as Jo-Ann Fabrics.
“My friends who don’t quilt have been texting me to ask, ‘I just heard what happened — are you OK?’” Ms. Clapp said. “And no, I’m not OK. I’m heartbroken. My grandmother took me to that Joann, and I still go to it. Back then it opened up my world to quilting, seeing a whole wall full of calico cotton, and it’s been my go-to Joann ever since.”
Students, read one or both articles and then tell us:
Now that you better understand the term “third place,” what would you say is yours? Is it online or in-person? Do you have one at all?
If you do have one, what does this place mean to you? How has it shaped who you are? What memories do you have there? What would it be like if you were to lose that place, like the Joann customers have lost theirs?
Ray Oldenburg, the sociologist who coined the term “third place,” challenged the notion that virtual spaces can create community in the same way that physical spaces can. Gwendolyn Purifoye, an assistant professor at the University of Notre Dame, believes they can. What do you think? How do online gathering places compare with real-life ones?
“Public leisure space is critical for society,” Dr. Purifoye said. “If you don’t build places to gather, it makes us more strange, and strangeness creates anxiety.” What is your response to that statement? Do you agree? How do you think a lack of public gathering spaces might affect our lives?
If you don’t have a third place, do these articles inspire you to try to find — or perhaps create — one? Where do you think you might be able to feel the sense of community, belonging or sanctuary that you desire?
Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public and may appear in print.
Find more Student Opinion questions here. Teachers, check out this guide to learn how you can incorporate these prompts into your classroom.
