I started writing this when I was
at my parents last year and we suffered from a loss of power due to a storm.
However, following storm Ciara, Dennis and Jorge, I returned to this piece of
writing to reflect on how sociology can explain my experiences with the weather
(and my parents’ cat).
It is cold. You cannot see the
outside world because the rain is coming down so heavily. It is all a blur. “Oh
no, there’s no satellite signal again!” my dad shouts in rage. Although it has
now been determined that the culprit is our newly rescued cat who is pulling
the cable out of the sky box. But it feels like one of those rare days of power
loss or heavy snow fall: when you cannot watch television, use the internet and/or
are essentially stuck in your house due to the weather. Although there is that
classic panic, which has generated multiple memes, of have we got enough milk
and bread?! I do find the feelings very satisfying.
One of the very first theorists
you learn about in Sociology is Durkheim. One of his concepts which has always
stuck with me is that of anomie and the resulting normlessness. As you may be
aware, anomie is a feeling an individual, social group or society experiences
when their normal behaviour, values and/or standards breakdown. For example,
during the stormy weather, I cannot access the internet and watch/stream
programmes or films. Due to my lack of hobbies, this is predominantly what I do
in my free time when I am at home and, as such, I experience anomie.
Sociologists such as Durkheim and
Merton frame anomie as a negative experience within their writing. However, I
feel that it is more complex than this and includes a whole spectrum of
positive, negative, and mixed emotions.
The negative
emotions
Of course, storms, snow, newly
rescued cats etc. can make you anxious, a known negative emotion: will our
fence get blown over? Will a trampoline blow into my car and cause damage like
I’ve seen happen on social media? Will my newly rescued cat get into my ham
sandwich again and leave me without lunch for work? Will I be able to get to
work tomorrow in my normal time or will my route be flooded and cause traffic?
This weather [and cat] produces fear of the unknown and could be seen as a fear
of future anomie.
The mixed
emotions
Loss of power can feel both liberating
and frustrating. For example, during a power outage I decided I would bake because
it is a hobby I really enjoy but do not do often. However, I soon remembered
that I could not Google the ratio of flour to butter nor could I even put my
baking in the oven because, of course, the power was out.
The positive
emotions
Before I discuss the positive emotions,
I experience, I want to recognise that I am speaking from a position of
privilege. Although the weather we endure in the UK can cause travel delays,
destruction of homes and businesses, I am fortunate that my home has not been
flooded, my belongings have not been destroyed and my car has not been hit by
flying objects. Geographically speaking, I am also extremely lucky that the UK
does not suffer from monsoons, hurricanes, tornados and other life-threatening
weather. The positive emotions I feel during our storms are those of comfort
due to the fact I have not faced life altering events due to the weather.
The positive emotions I feel
during a storm are nostalgic for a time in which I have never even lived
within. During a power outage, my mum would often say “this is what it was like
in the olden days” whilst she lit candles and would tell me about how, before
she was even born, one man was responsible for lighting oil lights in the
streets. Many sociologists have discussed the sociology of nostalgia. Indeed,
Davis’s 1979 book Yearning for Yesterday discusses how anxiety driven
situations can invoke a desire for the past, the simpler times. However, what
is interesting about a power outage is that the “old times of candles for
light” is my current reality. What makes this emotion a positive one is that I
know this power outage will pass at some point.
Since these storms, I’ve been
thinking about power relations and nostalgia, something I want to write about
in the future.
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