Peter
King
deactivated
Peter retired in 2018 after more than 25 years lecturing, researching, and publishing at De Montfort University, Leicester, UK.
He wrote twenty-three books. Most of them asked critical questions about the nature of housing, taking a deeply personal and philosophical view of what housing was for and how individuals viewed their homes. This was the case in, for example, 'The Limits of Housing Policy: A Philosophical Investigation', (1996) 'Private Dwelling: Contemplating the Use of Housing' (2004) and 'The Common Place: The Ordinary Experience of Housing', (2005). He consistently argued that Housing is something that is deeply personal to us offering privacy and security. He wrote about the manner in which we talk about our housing.
He was a writer and thinker on housing but not just housing and not just using common academic approaches. In 'Private Dwelling: Contemplating the Use of Housing' (2004) he used philosophical analysis and critique, personal anecdote and even film criticism, to unpick the subjective nature of housing as a personal place where we can be sure of ourselves. His 'Keeping Things Close: Essays on the Conservative Disposition' (2015) is an example of how he applied his view of the world more broadly arguing that conservatism “is a way of understanding and viewing the world” and is an “attitude rather than an explicit dogma”. The titles of two of his texts summarised his position on several issues: 'Reaction: Against the Modern World' (2012) and 'The Antimodern Condition: An Argument Against Progress' (2014).
He did, however, describe 'The Principles of Housing' (2016) as his “greatest hits” in which he used “most of the ideas, concepts and discussions that I have used in my teaching over the last 25 years”. He thanked his students over this time, of whom he said, “I owe most to for this project” and that most of his ideas had been, “trialled, honed and argued over” with them. There are many students who as housing professionals working, for example, for local authorities and housing associations, will have benefitted from his wit, diligence, and insights.
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