Research and Vocabulary An airlock is a chamber separating two spaces. Societies use cultural airlocks to maintain a perception of safety and amplify perceived power. A gun safety functions as an airlock, transforming a gun from a fetishized metal artifact to a deadly weapon; recognized danger is kept distant while it remains close. Spaces such as a locker room function as transformative airlocks in that the individual passing through is removed from a working-day reality and into that of an athlete. The airlock is a space that is used to make sense of the cognitive dissonance between two ‘realities’.
The Duplicitous Enigma / 9