...for the study of belonging and the politics of belonging. Her article is divided into three interconnected parts. The first explores the notion of ‘belonging’ and the different analytical levels on which it needs to be studied: social locations; identifications and emotional attachments; and ethical and political values. The second part focuses on the politics of belonging and how it relates to the participatory politics of citizenship as well as to that of entitlement and status. The third part illustrates, using British examples, some of the ways particular political projects of belonging select specific levels of belonging in order to construct their projects. KEYWORDS belonging, citizenship, identities, intersectionality, politics of belonging, social locations Belonging and the politics of belonging y aim in this article is to outline an analytical framework for the study of belonging and the politics of belonging. It is important to differentiate between the two. Belonging is about emotional attachment, about feeling ‘at home’ and, as Michael Ignatieff points out,1 about feeling ‘safe’. In the aftermath of 7/7, the 2005 bombings in London*the time at which this article was written*such a definition takes on a new, if problematic, poignancy. Belonging tends to be naturalized, and becomes articulated and politicized only when it is threatened in some way. The politics of belonging comprises specific political projects aimed at constructing belonging in particular ways...
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...The behaviour in which one individual interacts with others and the world around them can enhance or restrain their experience of belonging. A sense of belonging is reliant on relationships and close links with places, particular environments and landscapes. Relationships are initially built upon mutual interests and acceptance and this is closely linked with one’s innate desire to be able to affiliate with a group or another individual. Belonging is a part of everyday life and can enrich our identity and can lead to acceptance and understanding. In Shakespeare’s play ‘As You Like It’ and the first three episodes of the TV series ‘Seachange’ the protagonists experience a wide range of belonging and not belonging not only to person but also to place. This is observed throughout the wide use of juxtaposition of settings, country life versus city life, dramatic irony, and satire to express the characters feelings and to involve the responder. In the TV series, ‘SeaChange’ the concept of belonging and not belonging to place can be compared to similar concepts and values from ‘As You Like It’. In ‘SeaChange’ Laura Gibson’s life is shattered in a matter of a day; she almost kills the family cat, her son is expelled, she misses out on a partnership at work, and she finds out that her husband Jack is cheating on her with her sister. In a sudden change of behavior, she takes a job as a magistrate in a small seaside town, Pearl Bay, where she had been for a holiday with her family during...
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...Belonging describes a sense of acceptance and security created through perceptions of relationships. Whilst we can easily develop connections with familiar things, our tendency to do so can also potentially oppress our ability to belong. Due to its intangible nature, a sense of belonging is determined by a state of mind, as it requires mutual acceptance by both parties. Lastly, when facing hardships to belong, people may have the incentive to abandon their original relationships and search for new ones. A sense of belonging can be established through regular routines and interactions with familiar elements overtime. In the poem Feliks Skrznecki, the poet narrates how his father manages to establish strong rapport with his own place of belonging. The hyperbole “He swept its paths/Ten times around the world” emphasises on the large amount of time Feliks has spent in his garden; hence developing a strong sense of affiliation with the place. This also compliments with the phrase “from the soil he turned/ and tobacco he rolled”. Through the regular effort that Feliks has invested in his garden it can be argued that the familiarity being developed overtime is essential for one to derive a sense of belonging. However, our tendency to seek connection with the things we are well acquainted with can also result difficulties to connect with those that we do not. As a result, encountering with new or unfamiliar elements can potentially challenge one’s sense of belonging. In Allan Bailey’s...
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...the concept of belonging? What is the nature of belonging explored in the text? How are techniques used to explore the concept of belonging? The Fig Tree When is the text set and how does the time period impact on audience understanding or perception of belonging? Why has the composer created this text? (purpose) Where is the text set? How does the setting allow for inclusion or exclusion of characters or the reader? Who belongs or is excluded? Who belongs? What language has the composer used that explicitly links to the concept of belonging? What specific uses of language explicitly refer to the concept of belonging? What is the nature of belonging explored in the text? What is the nature of the belonging? When is the text set and how does the time period impact on audience understanding or perception of belonging? Breath Where: How does setting impact on belonging? How are techniques used to explore the concept of belonging? When: (CONTEXT) How does time and historical setting impact on your understanding of belonging? Why has the composer created this text? ( purpose) Where is the text set? How does the setting allow for inclusion or exclusion of characters or the reader? How effectively has Shakespeare presented the sense of belonging or displacement of his characters? How is belonging represented - what techniques are used? Core Text: As You Like It Who belongs or is excluded? Belonging Why has this text...
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...Through studying belonging I have developed an understanding that our tendency to belong is a profound part of human nature. Belonging creates personality, security and cultural identity, when an individual gains this sense of belonging a sense of fulfillment is achieved. This is evident in Peter Skrzynecki’s poems Feliks Skrzynecki, Migrant Hostel, Tim Wintons short story neighbours and Looking for Alibrandi directed by Kate woods. Peter Skrzynecki’s poem ‘Feliks Skrzynecki’ explores the need to belong through his use of describing his father through his childhood memories. The first stanza express’s the poet’s admiration for his father by using first person pronoun, ‘My gentle father’ this shows familiarity and possession. Which is then again shown through his hyperboles ‘from sunrise to sleep’ and ‘ten times around the world’ it puts emphasis’s on Skyryznecki’s will to exaggerates his father and the sense of connection to his garden, cleverly using the garden as a symbol highlighting his father’s creation of his own world to find that fulfillment and connection of that sense of belonging when he felt he had a detachment from the Australian society. Furthermore Skrynecki uses the simile ‘Loved his garden like an only child’ to emphasize the parental aspect of his father demonstrating how his father nurtures his garden to form a sense of security. Through this individuality we can see how an individual can create their sense of belonging. Skrzynecki used the first stanza...
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...Belonging is a challenging and complex concept that may be embraced or resisted by individuals or society. Peter S. Immigrant Chronicles composed by P.S explores a range of ideas and messages that the poet wants to communicate to his audience of the different layers and levels of belonging. Both poems Migrant Hostel and St Pat’s explore the importance of choice of environment by the individual and the role of the individual are seen to affect their own sense of belonging. An individual’s connection to a society cannot be fully recognised or embraced if the individual does not feel entirely comfortable of the world around them. In Migrant hostel and St Patrick’s there is a distinct tone that display a sense of detachment and an almost loathing of the environment around them, which is best seen in this line “Mother enrolled me at St Pats” this unaffectionate tone used in the first stanza of St Pats’ conveys the idea that this wasn’t the poets decision to attend a Catholic Latin School. This ultimately creates challenges in the developing process of creating a connection and sense of acceptance to the schools environment and people. In stanza four of Migrant Hostel the line “A barrier at the main gate” represents and symbolises that they are separated from the rest of the world where they are not ‘allowed’ to belong in. Both poems highlight the main issue of an individual’s choice of environment and explore the various challenges of belonging. An individual plays a significant...
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...Feeling of not belonging People who need people are the happiest people of all, but about a quarter of Australians are socially isolated and feel they do not belong, research shows. It reveals that simple activities, such as sitting down to dinner with the family regularly can promote happiness and mental wellbeing. But the activities some believe are intrinsically good, such as volunteering or becoming a community activist, are not necessarily good for you. The research, by Helen Berry of the Australian National University's National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, is based on 13,000 interviews done in 2006 and last year as part of the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia study. "We are first and foremost social creatures who need to belong to groups and be connected to other human beings," Dr Berry said. The research found the happiest and healthiest people were fully engaged in life - but were not necessarily activists. About 5 per cent to 10 per cent of the population were considered high-level participators in the activities that made people happiest. They enjoyed their interactions and felt the frequency of them was about right. They were found to have the best general and mental health, were happiest with their partners, felt part of the community, and believed that "most people can be trusted". The people categorized as average participators emerged as average on these wellbeing measures Dr Berry said that some kinds of social participation...
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...“I’m trying to make a case for people who don’t have the sense of belonging that they should have, that there is something really worthwhile in having a sense of belonging.” Imagine yourself in a foreign land. You have no idea where you are or who to turn to. Your new surroundings make you feel out of place. Imagine feeling like that for thirty days…or sixty days…or more. How are you coping? Are you sleeping well? What is your mood? My bet is that you are falling apart; That you are spiralling out of control. You want to be logical about all of this, but reason has taken a back seat to longing. “I’m trying to make a case for people who don’t have the sense of belonging that they should have, that there is something really worthwhile in having a sense of belonging.” An individual’s interaction with others and the world around them can limit or enrich their experience of belonging. Belonging can emerge from the connections made with people, groups or community. It is something we all feel whether we mean to or not. This belonging gives us an attachment to other people or things and we can gain other certain feelings such as security, happiness, pride, sense of value and acceptance by others as social human beings. It gives us an awareness of identity and builds our self-confidence and self-esteem as we feel part of something bigger. There are also implications for not belonging, our inability to connect can lead to isolation, alienation, vulnerability and dislocated from society...
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...Kafka’s novella Metamorphosis (1912) collectively explore ideas of belonging. (ADD ANSWER TO DIRECT QUESTION). They represent how belonging and exclusion from society contributes to shaping one’s sense of self and identity to determine their position in the larger world. The texts highlights how belonging to people and places within both social and cultural contexts, is dependent on the choices we make to feel accepted or remain an outsider, as voluntary social isolation affected deaf-mute protagonist Chieko psychologically and emotionally negatively however it became a catalyst for Dickinson’s creativity. The composers of both texts have represented the concept of belonging to challenge readers to consider if we feel we belong to the larger world today. Dickinson’s poetry elucidates the tension between her estrangement from society and her inherent need to belong, which is instigated by her voluntary social isolation. This paradox gives insight into her spirituality and notions concerning the human condition, highlighted in ‘This is my letter…’ as the first line “This is my letter to the world” serves as a declaration establishing distance between the singular pronoun “my” and the vast expanse of “the world”. It ends as a plea “judge tenderly of me” reflecting the persona’s inability to maintain distance and inherent need to belong. Traditionally, her poetry is characterized by her opposition to cultural belonging reinforced via her compressed writing style which can express unpopular...
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...It’s the tremble in our hands and the shiver down our spines. It’s that feeling of panic, of unease which can infiltrate and consume the human mind like nothing else. It is darkness, it is distress, it is fear; and it is our fears which ultimately shape our attitudes. But fear in itself is more than just an emotion, it is rather a state of being which, when evoked at a high level, can influence and shape not only the way we think and feel but consequently, the way we react to the world. However, an individual within a fear stricken context has the ability to overcome this fear if they develop the right attitude towards it and this can ultimately allow them control over themselves and those around them. George Orwell’s novel 1984 and the poem Auschwitz-Birkenau by Patrick Simpson explore the ability fear has to control thought and action and the way in which individuals have the ability to achieve control over themselves and those within their context if they overcome this fear. 1984 presents to us a futuristic, dystopian society under what is an extreme communist rule. George Orwell explores the way in which fear can control the movement of an individual. In this text we are presented with a society of people who have had a spark of fear ignited within them. Fear to stray from the party, fear to think separately from the party’s philosophies, fear to act out. And this fear is ultimately what shapes the way they react to the world and their attitudes and actions. In the back...
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...The general gist of this poem is that it’s about life and death. She’s recalling a childhood memory in the first stanza (at the beach), and then in the second stanza we come to the present and see that she’s with her friend, visiting the grave of her friend’s parents. In the third stanza she starts to think about their own death and mortality. In the fourth stanza she recounts a dream she had about her and her friend. That’s where we learn that her dream is much more inviting than the real world, because in her dream they have more time. However, the dream also seems to help her because by the final stanza, the narrator appears to have come to terms with her mortality. The tone of the poem is reflective, wistful, and conversational as it is set out like a conversation with a friend. It also has a tone of hopelessness and longing: longing for more time, longing for the past. Until, of course, we get to the final stanza where the tone changes to one of acceptance and hope. There are many themes, but a few are life, death, mortality and nature. There’s also the repeated imagery of water which (I think) is a symbol for time in this poem. Something to do with water appears in every stanza except for the third. This is a good thing to keep in mind (and possibly mention) in one of the questions. Especially the fact that in the first stanza the water is rough and tumultuous (when she is feeling the weight of time), but by the final stanza the water seems calm and inviting (when she accepts...
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...Great Expectations offers a diversity of interpretations so various responders will be engaged by the text. The main character, Pip, is used to establish the journey of a young boy’s life as he learns the true meaning of life and what values are most important. Dickens uses a range of characters to show Pip learning this lesson and to provide insights into various aspects of the Victorian era culture. Characters such as Joe and Magwitch provide an insight into the education and the crime and justice systems of Victorian England, along the importance of social class and wealth. Whilst, Estella and Miss Havisham provide an insight into the position of women and the inequality of power between the genders. Throughout the novel Pip encounters a range of people and undergoes various experiences. It is through these people and experiences that Pip learns numerous lessons in life. Pips main learning-catalysts are Magwitch, Joe, Miss Havisham and Estella. Education was an important cultural aspect of the Victorian era. Education allowed wider access to employment, and respect; for one could not become a gentleman and part of the upper-class without an education. Yet access to education was greatly determined to one’s position in society. Those in the upper class were given a higher priority to receive education than those in the lower class. Therefore it was very difficult for one to advance within society. This provides Dickens with the opportunity to gently satirize...
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...Elaine Yang (address xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx) Contact:xxxxxx Email: xxxxxxxxxxx Objective: Seeking a position as a Customer Service at the Gelatissimo Working experience: Chinese Restaurant Gordon Suburb Waiter, 2009-2010 Responsibilities include assisting customers with menu selection Sydney Today Pty Ltd (mainstream Chinese media company) Education adviser and website editor, 2010-2011 Responsibilities include editor the webpage, give education advice to whole NSW 2011 HSC students and also help more than 200 students get their offer successfully Easymobile (Paddy’s Market, mobile phone peripheral products shop) Sales Consultant, March 2012- July 2012 Responsibilities includes provide customer service, opening shop, balancing the bill and at end of the closing the shop. Education Background: * St Ives High School (2009-2010) Achievements: get 82.5 out of 100 in the High School Certificate exam. * University of Sydney (2011-present) Bachelor of Arts -- Major in Economic and Chinese, minor in Spanish Main Advantages & Achievements: * Good communication skills * Basic knowledge of Windows, Word Excel, Power Point * Ability to work well with others and be highly organized and efficient * Have positive work attitude and be willing and able to work diligently without supervision. * Barista Apprentice Certificate * Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) Available working time: * From 24 Dec...
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...Belonging speech Good morning/Afternoon teachers and students today I will be showing you how a sense of belonging or not belonging greatly influences an individual’s identity. A change in identity occurs when belonging is found through meaningful, intimate relationships, with senses of place, community, safety and familiarity. The free verse novel, The Simple Gift, composed by Steven Herrick, the dramatic fairy tale film, Edward Scissor hands, directed and created by Tim Burton and the novel Matilda composed by Roald Dahl, all explore the concepts of belonging and relationships through the strong use of literary techniques; and focus on a changing Identity as a base for belonging. All texts have significantly different perspectives of belonging and identity. Edward yearns to belong and become part of society’s conformity and routine, whereas Billy aspires to a life of solitude and self-reliance and Matilda tries to belong somewhere in her life. Billy is a misfit in high school, having no significant relationships and a heartless abusive father, the ‘old bastard’. Before he embarks on journey for belonging, it is evident that he lacks a sense of belonging at home and in his community. Billy describes his home house as ‘Deadbeat no hoper shithole lonely downtrodden house in Long lands road, Nowheresville’. This string of informal negative description emphasizes Billy’s emotional isolation and dislocation within his community. His missing sense of belonging gives him the identity...
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...A Pedagogy of Belonging Mitchell Beck and James Malley ABSTRACT: The psychological sense that one belongs in a classroom and school community is considered a necessary antecedent to the successful learning experience. In an era when traditional sources of belonging have diminished due to changing family and community demographics, the school plays an increasingly important role in meeting this need. There is evidence that conventional classroom practices fail to engender a sense of belonging, especially among at-risk students. Indeed, conventional practices may exacerbate feelings of rejection and alienation and place these students at higher risk for dropping out, joining gangs, or using drugs. Schools can increase the sense of belonging for all students by emphasizing the importance of the teacher-student relationship and by actively involving all students in the life of the classroom and the school community. Specific examples of programs that promote a sense of belonging for students are discussed. To Belong: To have a proper, appropriate, or suitable place. To be naturally associated with something. To fit into a group naturally — Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary Can children succeed in a school in which they do not feel they belong? Most children fail in school not because they lack the necessary cognitive skills, but because they feel detached, alienated, and isolated from others and from the educational process. When children feel rejected by others...
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