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The emergence of materialism in geography : belonging and being, space and place, sea and land
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Nieuwenhuis, Marijn (2016) The emergence of materialism in geography : belonging and being, space and place, sea and land. Social Science Information, 55 (3). pp. 300-320. doi:10.1177/0539018416638949 ISSN 0539-0184.
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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0539018416638949
Abstract
This article provides an analysis and discussion of the concept of emergence in the context of the materialist turn in the discipline of geography. Etymologically, the word emergence is said to describe that which ‘becomes visible after being concealed’ but is also described as an ‘unforeseen occurrence; a state of things unexpectedly arising, and demanding immediate attention’ (Oxford English Dictionary). The concept is in this article analysed through the lens of two distinct traditions of thought. The first is commonly associated with relational ontologies of becoming. The second finds its ‘roots’ and is ‘grounded’ in a metaphysical analysis of the ontology of being. Divisions between these two schools of thought are characterized by conceptual differences over concepts of space and place, difference and sameness, process and constancy, land and sea, etc. These differences are not restricted to the conceptual level but also bear political relevance. The article makes this explicit by looking at the theme of emergence, which can be understood either as a relational process of change or as a force of stability and a quest for origins. The former suggests an understanding of materiality that is always in a state of becoming, while the latter infers an approach to materiality that is static and permanent. The article critiques both of these approaches: the relational one for its lack of place, the metaphysical one for its reification of place and its omission of relationality. The article finishes with a call for an elemental ontological approach to place. Rather than abandoning place (Being) for the sake of space (Becoming), the material turn should seek ways to broaden understandings of place.
Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||||
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Subjects: | H Social Sciences > HT Communities. Classes. Races J Political Science > JC Political theory |
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Divisions: | Faculty of Social Sciences > Politics and International Studies | ||||||
Journal or Publication Title: | Social Science Information | ||||||
Publisher: | Sage Publications Ltd. | ||||||
ISSN: | 0539-0184 | ||||||
Official Date: | September 2016 | ||||||
Dates: |
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Volume: | 55 | ||||||
Number: | 3 | ||||||
Page Range: | pp. 300-320 | ||||||
DOI: | 10.1177/0539018416638949 | ||||||
Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||||
Publication Status: | Published | ||||||
Access rights to Published version: | Restricted or Subscription Access |
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