Space Odysseys: Spatiality and Social Relations in the 21st Century / Edition 1

by Jørgen Ole Bærenholdt, Kirsten Simonsen

Overview

The nature of spatial imaginations has become central to a range of major social and political debates. Narratives on spatial inequality, from the North-South divide in global economic and political visions, to marginalisation and 'ghettoisation' in Western cities, appear regularly in our daily newspapers. Such examples indicate that issues of space/spatiality are as crucial in our current societies as never before. 'Space Odysseys' brings together leading social scientists including John Urry and Derek Gregory to address a number of central issues in spatiality and social relations in the early 21st century. Starting from the presupposition that space is a social dimension and a social construct, it then presents examples of these conceptions of space at work. While the book title's indirect reference to the film '2001: A Space Odyssey' indicates the contributors' interest in questions of voyages and mobility, the plural use shows that the approaches to this conceptual exploration are multiple, reflecting differences in experience, in social context and/or in gender, class and ethnicity. The book is divided into three main sections. The first explores issues of 'mobility, immobility and embodied narratives', the second section deals with 'territoriality, mobility and identity politics and the final section concludes with chapters on 'the spatial production of knowledge'.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780754643494
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	12/15/2004
Pages:	232
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.19(h) x (d)

About the Author

Jörgen Ole Bærenholdt is Associate Professor in the Department of Geography and International Development Studies, Roskilde University, Denmark. Kirsten Simonsen is Professor in the Department of Geography and International Development Studies, Roskilde University, Denmark.

Table of Contents

Contents: Introduction, Kirsten Simonsen and Jörgen Ole Bærenholdt. Mobility, Immobility and Embodied Narratives: The complex spaces of scandal, John Urry; Ambivalent spaces of restlessness, ordering (im)mobilities at airports, Jörg Bechman; Spatiality, temporality and the construction of the city, Kirsten Simonsen; 'Space Oddity': a thought experiment on European cross-border mobility, Anke Strüver. Territoriality, Mobility and Identity Policies: Framing mobility and identity: constructing transnational spatial policy discourses, Ole B. Jensen and Tim Richardson; 'Your Passport Please!' on territoriality and the fate of the Nation-State, Wolfgang Zierhofer; Territoriality and mobility - coping in Nordic peripheries, Jörgen Ole Bærenholdt; Mobility and territorialising regimes: reflections on Andean history, Fiona Wilson; The making of globalized everyday geographies, Benno Werlen. The Spatial Production of Knowledge: 'Local' illustrations for 'International' geographical theory, Costis Hadjimichalis and Dina Vaiou; The unhealthy and misplaced other, Keld Buciek; Connective dissonance: Imaginative geographies and the colonial present, Derek Gregory; Index.

Editorial Reviews

’Space Odysseys brings together challenging and fascinating perspectives on the condition of the world, both local and global. While re-assessing the traditional contours of modern views of space and exploring the boundaries and possibilities opened up by new socio-spatial processes and realities, the book creatively engages with the 'new modalities' of space in the post 9/11 world. This should be an essential text for all those interested in spatial theory.’ Erik Swyngedouw, Professor of Geography, Oxford University. ’This momentous collection of original essays by leading scholars on mobility, territoriality, identity and the spatial production of knowledge moves our understandings of space and place onto new ground. Providing fresh theoretical insights grounded in empirical research, the book will be very useful for advanced students as well as researchers engaged in some of the most crucial issues of today.’ Eric Clark, Professor and Head of the Department of Social and Economic Geography, Lund University, Sweden ’...a dynamic and engaging collection of cross-disciplinary essays...a very worthwhile and challenging book...I anticipate it as being of great relevance to anyone with an interest in spatial theory.’ Social and Cultural Geography

From the Publisher