2008/12/01 by Maree Stenglin · 2 citations
Arts and Humanities · Psychology · #Discourse Analysis in Language Studies #Language, Metaphor, and Cognition #Rhetoric and Communication Studies
paper · doi:10.1080/10350330802469904
openalex publication_date 2008/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29
This paper takes an in-depth look at Binding, a recently theorised resource for analysing interpersonal meaning in three-dimensional space. Binding is concerned with the dialectic between affect and space. Extremes of Binding can evoke claustrophobic and agoraphobic responses to space, whereas median choices produce comfort zones of security or freedom. In considering how security and insecurity are experienced in the spatial realm, the paper also compares Binding with the resources language has for expressing similar meanings. While the examples used in this paper are drawn from the domestic sphere, Binding is relevant to spaces across an endless range of fields – the natural environment, schools, workplaces, retail sites, hospitals, museums – as well as virtual and literary spaces. It can be used to inform the design and analysis of all three-dimensional space – natural or built.