The Other Kind of Social Distance: Living Alone, Together.

Episode 03 (notes)

Living alone together describes the state of living within a community of people who are bonded more by their geographic proximity, rather than their social ties. It’s the feeling of recognizing your neighbours, but not really knowing who they are. It’s the curious sense of feeling lonely in a crowded room. It’s feeling alone – together.

This podcast explores feelings of isolation in modern society and how they may stem from a combination of cultural and personal sources. Who we are is, in many ways, inseparable from the cultural context within which we exist, however, we possess the agency to make choices that deviate from cultural norms. This piece explores the interplay of structure vs. agency as it relates to the social mechanisms that paradoxically create both chaos and order in our lives.

This piece is not driven by heavy research, but is instead a more casual opinion piece influenced by own unique perspective.

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Defining our terms

Social Distance

The sense of similarity or difference that we feel between oursleves and others, particularly those belonging to other social groups.

Political Homelessness

The state of being unable to find a political "home" because your thoughts and political beliefs don't fit neatly into any one party or ideology. This leads to a sense of political homelessness as you feel unrepresented or unwelcome in the politics of your time.