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Maryann Erilim
Professor Khadka
English 113B TU-THU
March 23 2016
A Place Called Space
Any place one goes to, or anything one does to keep their mind at ease and away from
stress is considered a third space. Activities done as a third space could be done either in private
or in public depending on ones preference. The mall is a good example of a public space that
could also serve as a third space because people go to the mall for leisure purposes. The social
media is a space known as a digital space. It serves as a good distractor from stress and enables
people to socialize via different applications. Snapchat is a good example of a public space
because it allows many people interact at their leisure times, to know what is going on in the
world and in peoples lives; this also acts as a third space. Although going to the mall and using
the Snapchat application are two different activities, they are regarded as third spaces because
they both act as stress relievers. Going to the mall and the Snapchat application are quite similar
in nature because they are both characteristics of public spaces which could also be carried out as
a third space.
The mall is considered a public space because everyone is welcomed. No matter what
race or religion you are, or how much money you may have, the mall is opened to all. Malls are
so big that the public could fit and spend as much money as possible. Owners make sure that
people have places to rest, so they can continue shopping and eventually more people would
continue to show up. While shopping, you could come across a friend, a colleague, etc. The mall

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creates a social and friendly environment for everyone. People go to the mall for different
reasons; Some go to shop, some may go to meet up with friends for lunch, while some people
just go to relax. The mall is considered a third space because its not just specifically for
shopping, but could also be used for personal enjoyment. Many malls have massage facilities,
restaurants, movie theaters, gyms, nail shop, etc. Some malls also have free entertainment for the
shoppers. Many teens see the mall as a hangout spot and also to meet up with new people, not
necessarily having to spend money. The author of the article, USAs destiny? Regulating space
and creating community American Shopping Malls. States that Shopping malls are heralded
as the new town square. Historically, the town square was a place where diverse people came
together and where politics, economics and sociability were intermingled. This implies how
shopping malls bring people together, creating a mini townhome.

The image above is a visual representation of how the mall brings people together
making it a public space because its a source if attraction to many people. This normally occurs
when new items are released in the mall, or when items go on sale and also when celebrities
appear at malls. In the article Are Shopping Malls Private or Public Space? The Affect on
Hanging Out at the Mall it states: A place where anyone can freely gather and communicate

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ideas or information, with the space being able to be used for many purposes or functions This
is an example on how people can use the mall as ones third space.
Snapchat possesses similar characteristics as well. Snapchat is ranking as the most
popular and used social media application. Snapchat is used to enable the public see what people
are up to. Snapchat is considered a public space because it is opened to the public. Anyone can
view what you upload, regardless of if you know them or not. Many people use Snapchat to
entertain themselves or to entertain others. Many people add celebrities and comedians on
Snapchat to see whats going on in their personal lives as a motivation or sometimes for pleasure.
Many people also use Snapchat not just to show people what theyre doing, but for business
purposes as well. Business owners seek to Snapchat to showcase their products, clothing lines, or
other materials. The article 5 Ways to Use Snapchat for Business by Talbot Kate states:
Snapchat is perfect for real-time social media marketing because it can give the audience direct
access to live events. You can use it for product launches, trade shows or one-of-a-kind events
like the 1,000th customer to shop in your store. Snapchat gets your audience excited because
youre providing a different, more authentic view of whats going on at the event. This article is
basically stating how people publicize their business in order to gain more popularity and public
attention.
Others may use Snapchat in their third space to message their friends, send pictures and
videos of different things with out having to share it publicly. Beside the effortless and easy-touse interface design of Snapchat, the most unique features relate to the personal sharing of
content that disappears after a specified period (you choose specific person/group of people to
share it, rather than share with a large group of people or publicly by default). Multiple
magazines are broadcasted on Snapchat that focus on beauty, food, daily issues, animals,

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comedy, etc. Snapchat also possesses geographical filters which keeps people informed on your
location. It also contains other filters that change the look of a person to make them look weird,
funny or scary.

The image above, is a Snapchat image of girls snap chatting at the mall. This is a visual
expression of how people use Snapchat at their leisure times, to create awareness to people on
their location, to send funny images to friends and also see what other people are up to.
A third space is what brings the mind at peace and in a relaxed state. The mall and
Snapchat are two examples from different spaces, one as a public space and the other as a digital
space put together as activities that could be done as third spaces.

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Works Cited
Alex, Jane. Biggest Mall. 20 Dec 2014. WordPress. Web. 27 Apr 2016.
Sterling, Helen. Likes and Fails. 07 January 2015. A Social Media Agency. Web. 27 Apr 2016.
Jeremy Bonham Are Shopping Malls Private or Public Space?: The Affect on Hanging Out at
the Mall The Blue Oak Blog, (2013):
Kate Talbot 5 Ways to Use Snapchat for Business Social Media Examiner, (2015):
Piwek, L, & A Joinson. What Do They Snapchat About?' Patterns of Use in Time-limited
Instant Messaging Service. Computers in Human Behavior, 54 (2016): 358-367
Staeheli, Lynn A., and Don Mitchell. USAs Destiny? Regulating Space and Creating
Community in American Shopping Malls. Urban Studies (Routledge)43.5/6 (2006):
977-992. Academic Search Premier. Web. 28 Apr. 2016.