The decline from third place – 7/2/2023 – Ronaldo Lemos

One of the contemporary tragedies is the so-called “decline of third place”. The idea is simple and powerful. Society is made up of places of human interaction. The first place is our home. The second is work. The third place is the set of private or public spaces where we find people with whom we don’t necessarily have ties: cafes, clubs, libraries, parks, bookstores, churches, squares and so on.

The important thing is that it is an open place where people can connect with each other, with unknown or unpredictable situations, or still, united by shared interests or activities.

The third place is where a kind of accidental civic laboratory takes place, where differences are tolerated in the name of coexistence. The idea appeared in sociologist Ray Oldenburg’s book “The Great Good Place”, published in 1989 (Oldenburg died in late 2022). In the work, he emphasizes that third places are essential for creating a sense of community, for building a true civil society and, ultimately, for democracy.

But in 1989 Oldenburg couldn’t foresee the complexities of today’s third-place decline, including the role of technology in our lives. Despite having the potential to form virtual communities (to the point of being called “the fourth place”), most technological products end up generating more individualism. Just think of Apple’s virtual reality headset, the Vision Pro. The device has the potential to isolate people inside their own homes. If the cell phone is a force to push people away from home, imagine a computer placed in front of everyone’s face.

But technology is not the only factor. Part of the third place crisis is also structural changes in first and second place. Especially in the pandemic, the home became a place of work for a portion of the population, which took part of the people off the city streets. Furthermore, the ease of buying online is emptying urban centers.

One of the most terrifying experiences is watching documentary filmmaker Dan Bell’s videos on YouTube. His “Dead Mall” series is worse than many horror movies. It shows gigantic closed malls, many of them brand new or recently opened. Bell walks through the interior of these spaces, completely empty, working as a bad omen.

In Brazil, the challenge of third places is even greater. With a society divided by multiple factors, economic and social, we live full of false third places. A true third place needs to be neutral (no one has to be there), leveling (status does not determine entry), conversation is key to conviviality (not commerce), open to all, rooted in local communities , and so on.

It is clear that Brazil has experienced changes in social dynamics in recent years, such as the revival of street carnival or the growth of neo-Pentecostal churches. In a context where individualism driven by technology prevails, Brazil could assume a role in protecting and reinventing the 3rd places against disappearance or co-option. This strikes me as a healthy ambition (or utopia).

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