Why do we feel homesick when we’re away? And why can it sometimes feel so unsettling when we finally find our way back?
Professor Susan J. Matt is a historian of emotions at Weber State University and the author of several books about our emotional relationship with home, consumerism and technology – including Homesickness: An American History.
Once considered a legitimate medical diagnosis, homesickness came to be seen as a sign of weakness and a lack of adaptability. In this conversation, Susan traces how this shift happened, and what we’ve lost because of it.
Together, we explore why childhood homes exert such a powerful pull on us, how memory tends to idealise the past, and why our homes need to connect us to the world beyond their walls.
We also discuss how envy went from being a sin to a driving force behind consumerism; and what constantly looking at other people’s lives and homes is doing to our satisfaction with our own.
To hear more from Susan:
Email: smatt@weber.edu
Website: https://www.weber.edu/history/susanmatt.html
Susan is the author of Homesickness: An American History and Bored, Lonely, Angry, Stupid.
To hear more from us:
Patreon: Watch exclusive home tours, https://www.patreon.com/HomingWithMatt
YouTube: Subscribe to our channel, Homing with Matt
Instagram: Follow for updates and announcements, @homingwithmatt
Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com
Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496
Music by @simeonwalkermusic
Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office
Produced by @podshoponline
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