Performing the Border: Cartographic Enactments of the German-Polish Border among German and Polish High-school Pupils

On the basis of fieldwork conducted in the two towns Görlitz and Zgorzelec, situated directly on the German-Polish border, this article explores how different versions of the border are enacted among Polish and German high-school pupils. As is usually the case with borders, the German-Polish border...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Anthropological journal of European cultures 2009-03, Vol.18 (1), p.107-128
Main Author: Sandberg, Marie
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Actors
Actresses
Analysis
Astronomical maps
Borderlands
Cartography
Ethnology
High schools
International borders
International economic integration
Map skills
Theater
Walking
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Summary:On the basis of fieldwork conducted in the two towns Görlitz and Zgorzelec, situated directly on the German-Polish border, this article explores how different versions of the border are enacted among Polish and German high-school pupils. As is usually the case with borders, the German-Polish border has a multiple, even ambivalent character. Inspired by the performative approach within actor-network theory, this article aims to qualify the concept of the multiple border, where multiplicity is understood as heterogeneous practices and patterns of absences and presences that constitute the border. The data, based on ethnographic fieldwork, consist of 'cartographies', maps made by the pupils, followed up by 'walking conversations' in the two towns on the border. The analysis shows that the border is not only enacted differently; also it is suggested that the performances all deal with and constitute an ambivalent border.
ISSN:1755-2923
1755-2931
DOI:10.3167/ajec.2009.180107