Abstract |
“Render not my creations in miniature”. This decree centred on Lumon Industries’ ethos, reinforces a radical assertion against any form of recreation. Lumon’s intention is to maintain its integrity through design, rejects any form of reduction that deconstructs its intended purpose. This decree encompasses the oppressive ethos of corporate control that saturates Severance (2022), the Apple produced television series. One employee, Petey dares to defy Lumon’s corporate control. Armed with nothing but a pen and paper, he creates a map of Lumon’s spatial layout, as a tactical act of rebellion, transforming its sterileness into a lived space of memory. This dissertation explores these questions: How does Petey’s map mediate between abstract spaces of corporate control and lived experience, and what does this reveal about the interplay between personal tactics and systemic abstraction?
Petey’s map transcends as a physical artifact, echoing the trivial and everyday acts that often go unnoticed, embodying potential for change. His chaotic annotations disrupt the ordered efficiency of Lumon’s hallways, reclaiming these homogenised spaces as sites of individuality and rebellion. This study situates the map as both a critique of capitalist abstraction and a tactic that reclaims personal and collective agency. Reflective of the corporate landscape in Severance (2022), is the real-world workspaces, where these hyper-capitalist systems often prioritise efficiency and conformity over workers’ autonomy.
Drawing on Henri Lefebvre’s The Production of Space (1991) and Michel de Certeau’s The Practice of Everyday Life (1984), both philosophers meticulously observed the fragments of trivial every day acts that were often overlooked. This dissertation will explore how space is produced, controlled and resisted. Lefebvre’s spatial triad examines how corporate environments impose abstraction, while de Certeau emphasises how subtle, everyday acts can challenge such systems. Together, these frameworks epitomise Petey’s map as a spatial critique using ordinary tools to rewrite dominant spatial narratives imposed by corporate control, celebrating the quieter voices that are often overlooked.
This qualitive case study undertakes a close textual and visual analysis, tracing the evolution of Petey’s map as a tool of spatial critique. Key case studies include the characters’ varied interactions with the map and its narrative arc, as well as online fan communities that further extends its meanings into the digital space. Supporting the analysis visually, is explored through framing, annotations, and lighting of the map, deepening its representational and symbolic connections.
Ultimately, this dissertation argues that even the smallest acts of the everyday that often is overlooked such as mapping can initiate a dialogue, deconstructing spatial systems of control. These spatial mappings become an inscribed terrain of rebellion and creativity, a reminder that reclaiming agency, begins with reimagining the spaces we inhabit.
First Class Distinction