The bone people and the architecture of 'home'

Abstract

This thesis addresses the novel The Bone People to explore the question of what is the architecture of 'home'. The book is used because the characters in The Bone People are on a constant search for a home, and in the process the narrative moves between a number of different domestic architectures. The relationships the characters have with their houses, and the symbolism of the houses, reveals the importance architecture can have in our concepts of home, and this architecture is always inclusive of its inhabitants. Part One introduces the author, the main character and their houses, and then presents architectural theories on house and home that are relevant to this work. In the second part the figures of Kerewin's Tower and Joe's State house are given as examples of houses that reflect their owners and show signs of uncanny (unhomely) qualities. The baches are then put forward as New Zealand icons and places of change and discovery. Part Three explores the whare as representing a traditional way of life that is dying, and the hut as a universal site for rejuvenation in nature. The children's 'homes' are places where Simon is definitely not at home, and the Maori hall becomes the 'home' marae for the local community. The final example of the shell house is presented as an expression of hope for the characters, and possibility for New Zealand architecture. I conclude that the architecture in The Bone People is fundamental to the novel as a whole because it structures the plot, and is used to understand the characters and their experiences of house and home. In The Bone People the architecture of 'home' is a place where people who care for one another live, and to have a home in this world is vitally significant as a basic human need.