Journals / Mimarlık ve Yaşam / 2026 / Cilt: 11 Sayı: 2

Verticality, Atmosphere, and Inequality: Spatial Narratives in Parasite

Dikeylik, Atmosfer ve Eşitsizlik: Parazit Filminde Mekânsal Anlatılar

Hilal Sıla Şentürk(ANKARA YILDIRIM BEYAZIT ÜNİVERSİTESİ)0009-0002-3939-0408
Cemile Feyzan Şimşek(ANKARA YILDIRIM BEYAZIT ÜNİVERSİTESİ)0000-0002-3503-3633
Pages
191–217
Publication Date
2026-08-31
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AI Summary & Key Takeaways

AI Insight
⚡ TL;DR(Too Long; Didn't Read)

The study concludes that Bong Joon-ho employs architectural space as an active narrative agent, transforming physical environments into ideological instruments that critique the structural mechanisms of socioeconomic inequality.

📌 3 Key Takeaways

🎯
Objective & Hypothesis:This study investigates how architectural and cinematic elements construct spatial narratives of class inequality in Bong Joon-ho's film Parasite (2019).
📊
Key Findings & Data:First, the semiotic analysis reveals that the viewing stone, smell, and the invisible line operate not merely as symbols but as signs that construct and sustain the narrative of social inequality through their material and perceptual qualities.
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Conclusion & Impact:The study concludes that Bong Joon-ho employs architectural space as an active narrative agent, transforming physical environments into ideological instruments that critique the structural mechanisms of socioeconomic inequality.
🔬Design:Araştırma Makalesi
📍Scope:2019 Verileri
⚙️Variables:Mekânsal anlatı · Semiyotik analiz · Fenomenolojik mimarlık

Abstract

This study investigates how architectural and cinematic elements construct spatial narratives of class inequality in Bong Joon-ho's film Parasite (2019). Drawing on Juhani Pallasmaa's phenomenology of architectural perception, Peter Zumthor's concept of atmosphere, and Umberto Eco's semiotic theory, the research examines how built environments function as signifiers of social hierarchy. A qualitative interpretive methodology integrating semiotic analysis, spatial and architectural analysis, and cinematographic analysis was employed. The primary data comprise repeated viewings of the film, the published screenplay, storyboard materials, and production interviews with the director and design team. Three principal findings emerge from the analysis. First, the semiotic analysis reveals that the viewing stone, smell, and the invisible line operate not merely as symbols but as signs that construct and sustain the narrative of social inequality through their material and perceptual qualities. Second, the spatial and architectural analysis demonstrates that the vertical organisation of domestic spaces, including staircase sequences, the distribution of sunlight, and interior density, functions as a spatial syntax encoding socioeconomic separation. Third, the cinematographic analysis shows that framing, camera movement, and the deliberate violation of the 180-degree rule visually reinforce class boundaries. The study concludes that Bong Joon-ho employs architectural space as an active narrative agent, transforming physical environments into ideological instruments that critique the structural mechanisms of socioeconomic inequality.

Özet

Bu çalışma, Bong Joon-ho'nun Parazit (2019) filminde mimari ve sinematografik öğeler aracılığıyla inşa edilen sınıfsal eşitsizlik mekânsal anlatıları incelemektedir. Juhani Pallasmaa'nın mimari algı fenomenolojisi, Peter Zumthor'un atmosfer kavramı ve Umberto Eco'nun göstergebilim çerçevesinden hareketle, yapılı çevrelerin toplumsal hiyerarşinin göstergeleri olarak nasıl işlev gördüğü araştırılmaktadır. Semiyotik analiz, mekânsal ve mimari analiz ile sinematografik analizi bütünleştiren nitel yorumlayıcı bir yöntem kullanılmıştır. Birincil veriler filmin tekrarlı izlenmesi, yayımlanmış senaryo, storyboard materyalleri ve yapım röportajlarından oluşmaktadır. Üç temel bulgu ortaya konmaktadır. Birincisi, taş, koku ve görünmez çizgi yalnızca sembol değil, toplumsal eşitsizlik anlatısını inşa eden göstergeler olarak işlev görmektedir. İkincisi, ev mekânlarının dikey organizasyonu, güneş ışığı dağılımı ve merdiven dizileri sosyoekonomik ayrımı kodlayan bir mekânsal sözdizimi oluşturmaktadır. Üçüncüsü, çerçeveleme, kamera hareketi ve 180 derece kuralının bilinçli ihlali sınıf sınırlarını görsel olarak pekiştirmektedir. Çalışma, yönetmenin mimari mekânı aktif bir anlatı öznesi olarak kullanarak sosyoekonomik eşitsizliği eleştiren ideolojik araçlara dönüştürdüğü sonucuna varmaktadır.

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Cite This Article

Şentürk, H. S., Şimşek, C. F. (2026). Verticality, Atmosphere, and Inequality: Spatial Narratives in Parasite. Mimarlık ve Yaşam, Cilt: 11 Sayı: 2, 191–217. https://doi.org/10.26835/my.1815504

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