TY - BOOK

T1 - Spaces of reproduction

T2 - how teenagers co-construct post industrial soundscapes in Smithfield, Dublin

AU - O Keeffe, Linda

PY - 2014

Y1 - 2014

N2 - Sounds are specific to space, yet much of the critique of urban space within social theory fails to address the social and cultural significance of sound in the shaping of spatial practices. This thesis provides an in-depth argument for the inclusion of sound as formative in the social construction and shaping of urban spaces, and mobile mediation practices within the urban. This thesis: (1) advances theories of sound within sociology; (2) contributes new data on sound in urban development and spatial use; (3) interrogates the role of mobile mediation in navigating spaces of regeneration, and (4) explores these concepts with young teenagers. This research examines sound and the urban using Lefebvre’s theory of space, particularly his theorization of symbolic spaces. It also offers a critique of the politicizing and policing of noise within the EU, as well as Ireland’s adoption of quantitative models to measure sound.The study examines the Smithfield area in Dublin, Ireland by using a triadicmethodological approach (combining sound mapping, soundwalking and focusgroups) to explore the urban soundscape of young teenagers. The outcome of this sociological investigation is that: teenagers employ mobile technologies to enhance their experiences within silent spaces, urban spaces are defined as participatory and engaging only if they contain the sounds of consumption, and that silence, within a city, is defined as problematic and dangerous - a symptom of poverty and the current recession.

AB - Sounds are specific to space, yet much of the critique of urban space within social theory fails to address the social and cultural significance of sound in the shaping of spatial practices. This thesis provides an in-depth argument for the inclusion of sound as formative in the social construction and shaping of urban spaces, and mobile mediation practices within the urban. This thesis: (1) advances theories of sound within sociology; (2) contributes new data on sound in urban development and spatial use; (3) interrogates the role of mobile mediation in navigating spaces of regeneration, and (4) explores these concepts with young teenagers. This research examines sound and the urban using Lefebvre’s theory of space, particularly his theorization of symbolic spaces. It also offers a critique of the politicizing and policing of noise within the EU, as well as Ireland’s adoption of quantitative models to measure sound.The study examines the Smithfield area in Dublin, Ireland by using a triadicmethodological approach (combining sound mapping, soundwalking and focusgroups) to explore the urban soundscape of young teenagers. The outcome of this sociological investigation is that: teenagers employ mobile technologies to enhance their experiences within silent spaces, urban spaces are defined as participatory and engaging only if they contain the sounds of consumption, and that silence, within a city, is defined as problematic and dangerous - a symptom of poverty and the current recession.

KW - soundscape

KW - teenagers

KW - space

KW - Lefebvre

KW - mediatization

M3 - Doctoral Thesis

PB - Maynooth University

ER -