The Allure Of Liminality

The topic of liminality has recently taken the world by storm, skyrocketing into the limelight online. These seemingly mundane spaces trigger a primal unease while drawing people in, leaving them longing for a nostalgia they have never actually experienced. Liminal spaces are described as “neither here nor there; they are betwixt and between the positions assigned and arrayed by law, custom, convention, and ceremonial” (Turner 127). Put simply, liminality can refer to either a physical space in which a person is between two situations, or a mental state that similarly describes being in between two states of being (Neumann). Liminality is undoubtedly attractive for a variety of reasons, most of which stem from the mental effects a liminal space can have on people. Liminality is alluring because both its aesthetic emptiness and its psychological in‑betweenness evoke nostalgia, unease, and suspense while ultimately offering a transformative space for reflection and identity development.

Aesthetic Liminality  

To understand its appeal, it is necessary to examine liminality in its aesthetic form. First, we’ll talk about liminality in the aesthetic sense, particularly as it has appeared online in recent times. Put simply, a liminal space is any space that appears empty or (recently) abandoned and gives off a surreal feeling. These spaces are typically devoid of life despite normally serving as places where people gather. An example of this would be an empty children’s birthday party room, equipped with all the decorations and plates that would be there had a party actually been taking place. These environments feel “off” in a sense, as though you were looking at a place you were never meant to see, at least not outside of its typical state (Heft). In many cases, liminal spaces are areas of transition, such as hallways or highways (this is strongly connected to the anthropological idea of liminality, but we’ll cover that in greater depth later), which may cause a person to feel out of place, as although the environment itself is usually familiar, the situation is not (Simon). Aesthetic liminality is ambiguous in nature, feeling neither here nor there, and leaving an observer disoriented.

Why Is Aesthetic Liminality Alluring?  

This doesn’t sound particularly appealing, however. So why exactly is aesthetic liminality so popular? Let’s use the Backrooms as a case study for this. The Backrooms is a popular internet phenomenon that has rocketed into the public zeitgeist recently, even being adapted into a film by the indie film studio A24 (A24). The Backrooms first appeared in 2019 on an internet board known as 4Chan (“The Backrooms”). Pictured was an empty, office‑esque space featuring yellow wallpaper, a brown carpet, and fluorescent lighting (Cho and Goode 17). Immediately, people began to latch onto this concept and expanded it into the much larger internet fandom it has become today (Cho and Goode 19). How could such a seemingly mundane photo entice so many people to work together on fan projects?

One aspect that makes liminal spaces so alluring is their appeal to the sublime. The sublime is a concept originally described by Emmanuel Kant that can be defined as “an aesthetic experience, i.e., a perceptual experience enjoyed for its own sake” (Sanderson). There are two variations of the sublime: the mathematical sublime, or that which can be perceived as infinitely large, and the dynamic sublime, or that which can be seen as infinitely powerful (Sanderson). As mentioned, the sublime is enjoyable simply by virtue of its existence. Certain liminal spaces, such as the Backrooms–famously interpreted as being infinitely or otherwise impossibly large–exemplify this sense of scale, leaving observers in awe. This massive scale imbues the Backrooms with a sense of sublimity, giving it that inherent enjoyability. At the same time, this sense of sublimity amplifies the liminality of the Backrooms, making it feel even emptier.

Sublimity is only one of several aspects that make aesthetic liminality appealing, though. Nostalgia also acts as a pull‑factor of liminality, with many instances of liminal spaces invoking the feeling that the viewer has been there before, even if they haven’t actually been there (Mensah). This effect is especially powerful when the imagery resembles childhood environments, such as the empty children’s birthday party room mentioned earlier, because it recalls a period associated with simplicity, obliviousness, and fewer responsibilities. This nostalgia is accompanied by a sense of eeriness, as although the spaces feel familiar, they are not actually known to the viewer. As Sigmund Freud said in his paper on the uncanny, “What is ‘uncanny’ is frightening precisely because it is not known and familiar” (Freud, par. 6). Liminal spaces operate as emotional triggers in this sense, allowing viewers to momentarily re‑experience a past that feels both personal and comforting, while also providing a sense of uncertainty, drawing a person closer in.

Psychological Liminality

Psychological liminality describes a state of ambiguity, the space between two areas of experience (Turner 127). This could be something as simple as being considered for a job but not yet having been selected, or something more complex, such as the stage between childhood and adulthood, in which someone may no longer be considered a child while not yet feeling like an adult. This connects to my earlier mention of “areas of transition,” with the only difference being that we are now working in the mental realm instead of the physical world. Similar to aesthetic liminality, psychological liminality evokes the “off” feeling mentioned earlier. In both cases, a person may feel as though they are out of place or as though they do not belong in their environment. The difference is that in aesthetic liminality, the “off” feeling arises from a person’s physical surroundings, whereas in psychological liminality it stems from their internal state. Despite this difference, either form of liminality can prompt a person to confront the instability of their identity, making both experiences similarly transformative.

Why Is Psychological Liminality Alluring?

Despite sharing certain aspects with aesthetic liminality, psychological liminality can be alluring for very different reasons. One such reason is its transformative nature, which can help a person better understand and develop their identity (Neumann).

Liminality is also crucial to this development, as Walkiewicz said in his paper on the rites of passage: “The concepts of rites of passage and the life course clearly illustrate the risk of disruption to the temporal sequence of progression of life experiences and of lingering in a particular stage of the life course or a certain phase of life crisis” (Walkiewicz 154). We can see here that, since one stage in the rites of passage is liminal, liminality is a crucial aspect in advancing the progression of life. The ability of liminality to reassure a person that they are not stuck in their previous condition is part of what makes it so appealing. There is also the excitement that comes along with the potential of change, with new and different experiences being a way many people find enjoyment.

Of course, there is also the suspense that comes along with psychological liminality. Suspense, although it can be stressful in the moment, is a highly sought‑after feeling, evident in activities such as haunted houses and in thriller films. In the philosophy of horror, Carroll mentions the addition of curiosity to this mix, “When to this sense of fear and evil the inevitable fascination of wonder and curiosity is superadded, there is born a composite of keen emotion and imaginative provocation…” (Carroll 162). This curiosity is part of psychological liminality, as when you are in between two stages in life, you aren’t going to be necessarily sure of what will happen next.

How Do Aesthetic & Psychological Liminality Connect?

Aesthetic and psychological liminality are closely related, with both being similarly associated with “in-between” areas. With this, they also share many of the same reasons for allure. Earlier, I mentioned the nostalgia associated with aesthetic liminality, but this actually closely ties in with psychological liminality. Psychological liminality focuses more on the life of a person and how it changes with time, but nostalgia plays a large role in this. During a period of liminality, a person may look back on their earlier life and wish that they could return to it, similar to how a person viewing a liminal space may wish they could return to an earlier time in their life. 

The most important connection between psychological and aesthetic liminality is their shared ability to help a person develop their sense of identity. Although this is more direct in psychological liminality, both forms can encourage a person to reflect on their experiences and move forward. The Backrooms is a clear example of this, since a key component of the Backrooms is the desire to escape. A parallel can be drawn to a period of change in someone’s life, because although they might feel out of place in the moment, they are encouraged to understand their environment and move through it. Even though aesthetic and psychological liminality exist in different areas, both ultimately guide a person toward greater self‑development.

Conclusion

Liminality, whether aesthetic or psychological, is an undoubtedly alluring concept. The combination of nostalgia, sublimity, eeriness, suspense, and the promise of change contributes to the strong pull people feel toward these in-between states. Both forms of liminality encourage a person to pause and reflect, even when the experience feels unfamiliar or unsettling. Aesthetic liminality alters ordinary environments in a way that makes them feel strangely empty, while psychological liminality places a person between stages of life and challenges their sense of stability. In each case, the experience prompts a deeper awareness of one’s surroundings and of oneself. The appeal of liminality ultimately comes from this mixture of uncertainty and possibility, as it allows individuals to confront moments of transition and move forward with a clearer understanding of their own identity.

Works Cited

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