The Importance Of Placelessness

Placelessness is a repressed occurrence that co-exists with numerous issues and matters involving social norms, socio-cultural systems, ideologies, and interactions in our modern society. It can be comprehended as either a phenomenon where a place loses its local meaning or identity, or as its literal meaning, the act of lacking a fixed location. Both meanings are evident in “The Quiet Ones”, where Diaz exhibits placelessness as an underlying occurrence behind issues in modern society, observed from the profound discussions between Scott and Alvin about Manila, to issues of broken families and relationships in Marie Estrada’s life. Although placelessness would generally be recognized as a negative occurrence, it serves as a form of temporary satisfaction in …show more content…
. . the city’s center is by no means a static point,” (page 47).
Combining all these concepts, the city’s center may actually be a representation of people in high levels of social interaction. People are always in constant interaction with each other and their environment, hence Scott’s implication of the city center not being a static point--- because it is constantly moving as well. This constant mobility will eventually lead to change, and in this concept, when people change, so does the city as it conforms according to the people’s wants and needs at the moment. This results to a satisfaction that is only temporary because it is gotten through the changing and inconsistent qualities of people’s experiences with distinct places as well as the onand-off of placelessness as the “the city’s center”, or as the people, are in constant interaction with their environment.
Everything discussed are depictions of the temporary satisfaction of placelessness through “The Quiet Ones” in instances such as Marie’s escape