Extended Abstract
Background and Objectives: The household, as a complex network of architectural structures, objects, technologies, energy flows, concepts, and humans, has always been subject to change. Each of these agents, as active actors, have always played a role in changing the home and domestic spaces. Recognizing the agency and role of each of these actors in the home network and its changes can help to better understand the household as a dynamic and multidimensional institution. While some of these actors are very simple and have lesser roles and effects in the home network, others are very complex. These complex actors can cause changes in the material and non-material environment around them from various aspects Television is one of the most complex actors in the household network, having introduced significant changes to the form, function, and meaning of the home since its advent. A key reason for its importance lies in the fact that, unlike most other domestic elements, television encompasses both a material and a content-based dimension and the content-based aspect is even more important than its material aspect. Despite the crucial significance of this content dimension, this study focuses on the material aspect of television, aiming to explore the role of television’s material culture and the extent of its agency in domestic transformations.
While this subject can be explored across different cultural contexts and temporal-spatial frameworks, this research specifically investigates the role of television in shaping the houses of Tehran’s middle-class during the first two decades following its introduction in Iran, that is, from the establishment of the first television network in Tehran in 1958 until the Iranian Revolution in 1978.
Methods: This research employs ethnographic methods and thematic analysis. Three primary sources of data were utilized: interviews with residents of Tehran during the specified period, photographs from family photo albums, and textual and visual content from lifestyle magazines of that era.
First, using a purposive and criterion-based sampling method, semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with twenty individuals who lived in Tehran during the specified time period and owned a television set at the time. Family photographs were collected from three sources: participants’ personal photo albums, the researchers’ open search through various individuals’ family albums, and publicly available photos found on the internet and virtual social networks.
Regarding lifestyle magazines, data were gathered from four publications: Ettelā’āt-e Bānuvān, Ettelā’āt-e Māhāne, Ettelā’āt-e Haftegi, and Zan-e Rooz, all from the relevant time frame. Finally, all collected data were thematically analyzed using Atlas.ti software.
Findings: The findings indicate that in the early years, television faced various internal and external forms of resistance, most notably ideological and economic, when it was introduced to the middle-class homes in Tehran. Despite these challenges, television quickly found its way into homes, thanks to several key factors that helped make it a normal part of everyday domestic life. Among the most significant of these drivers were the connection it created between the outside world and the household, the domestication of leisure and entertainment, and the availability of television sets through installment payment plans. However, once inside the household, television encountered difficulties in finding a suitable and ideal placement due to the spatial organization of traditional Iranian houses. These houses were often characterized by closed floor plans and small, numerous, nested spaces. The absence of a large, central living area further exacerbated the challenge of integrating television into the domestic environment.
In the early years of television’s introduction, residents determined the placement of the television set through a process of trial and error, often guided by advice from popular magazines. In doing so, they took into account four main categories of considerations: functional, aesthetic, socio-cultural, and spatial. Thus, during this early period, the presence of the television set brought about numerous spatial, functional, and behavioral challenges, all of which required significant adjustments. The findings suggest that the material presence of television played an active role in driving these various spatial and structural changes within houses of the middle-class in Tehran.
Conclusion: In the first two decades following the introduction of television into the homes of Tehran’s middle-class, the presence of the television set played an active role in the occurrence of both material and immaterial changes within the spaces of these homes. Among these changes, one can note the transformation of certain concepts, such as inside-outside and public-private. These were concepts that had once been distinctly separated in domestic life and, consequently, in the architecture of Iranian homes, with clear and firm boundaries. However, with the advent of electronic media, particularly television, along with other agens not discussed here, these boundaries gradually became increasingly blurred.
The presence of television sets, along with the emergence of collective viewing behaviors and “television parties,” created a need for larger spaces that could serve as the main gathering area for the family while also accommodating guests who came to watch television. This need gradually led to a shift from closed floor plans to open ones, resulting in the integration of public spaces in new homes. The formation of a central hall, which eventually took on the role of the main living room, followed by the merging of the hall and guestroom to create the living/reception room, was a direct outcome of this shift.
As television became the central focus of home spaces, the empty area in front of the TV in typically unfurnished middle-class Iranian homes became the most important space for domestic activities. This transformation made television the key agent in organizing the public zone of homes.