A Home of “Her” Own Home Formation and Lived Experience of Single Women

• Main Authors: Jou-Yin Chen, 陳柔吟
• Other Authors: 畢恆達
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2006
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/65169812713866294808

碩士 === 國立臺灣大學 === 建築與城鄉研究所 === 94 === The aim of this paper is to explore the meaning of ‘her’ home among single women through home formation and their lived experiences. Previous research on home formation in Taiwan did not pay much attention to single women. This research fills the gap by showing the housing situations and experiences before as well as after their departure from parental home. In general, the concept of home is associated with a meaningful and relaxed place that a person feels attached to. This kind of description neglects the unequal power relationship among family members, and ignores the true lives of women in the patriarchal family. In this paper, the absence of control in self and space dimensions, or the helplessness when facing conflicts between Mother and Sisters-in law or self and Sisters-in law is the key reason for single women to leave parental home. The resistance and assistance they encountered while departure from home not only reflect the rigid position of ‘daughter’, but also reinforce traditional marital family with patriarchal and gender power. Self-determined home-leaving action needs to challenge patriarchal structure with strategies. However, while leaving parental home, single women will take a risk to fall into homeless. In order to find a house for living alone, they must rely on economic resources and additional insurance to lead self-oriented life. However, if they want to form their own home, they must get rid of traditional gender framework, and inhabit without ‘men’. An opportunity to weaken feminity is also found in domestic space among single women who live alone. In the home without solid gender label, single women become the owner and the planner for their first time. In this circumstance, they will never be an essentialized or physicalized women and truly feel ‘at home’.