The political space of the sea

This chapter broadens the scope of the discussion to the sea’s potential as an alternative source of concepts and ideas. It explores a different approach to thinking togetherness, rejecting ‘methodological nationalism’ and theorising belonging in non-binary ways. It considers how to rethink belonging using examples from South-East Asia and questioning political rules based on ethno-national categorisation.

‘The Europe we want’

This chapter considers what kind of Europe we want, what does Europe stand for and who are ‘we’? It considers the importance for the EU of moving beyond the modern geopolitical dichotomy of insiders and outsiders and the EU’s failure to deal with the so-called migration ‘crisis’.

Home and belonging

This chapter examines the feelings of home and nostalgia that permeate nationalist atmospheres, using scholarship that transcends static associations of home with homeland. It considers some examples of current political discourse around the nation and migration, particularly in the UK, and explores how the underlying assumptions might be challenged and ultimately transcended by focusing on alternative conceptions of home and belonging

Introduction

This chapter starts by looking at the idea of nationalism, referencing the European refugee ‘crisis’ of 2015 and Brexit vote in 2016, and the frightening power of this nationalist ideology. It also introduces Anthony Key, an artist, whose work is used to illustrate the ideas presented throughout the book. The chapter concludes with an outline of the book’s chapters.

Conclusion

This chapter concludes by questioning the logic of nationalism and chauvinism in perpetuating inequality, starting with colonialism. It explores why nationalism still has such power to mobilise by considering the importance of affect, emotion and nostalgia in shaping political attitudes. It moves beyond ethno-national categories to focus on the sea as a metaphor for thinking about belonging

Representation beyond the nation

This chapter examines representations of the sea in several museums with maritime associations, using their engagement with the materiality of the sea to call for greater attention to seaborne mobility as an alternative source of belonging. It discusses three maritime museums in the Mediterranean and asks if they offer ways to go beyond ‘us’ and ‘them’. Together they make statements about the migration crisis in that area.

Brexit nation

This chapter looks at the incipient ‘Brexit nation’ that the UK is today and seeks to understand what motivates individuals’ need for community in the context of a pervasive nationalist mood or atmosphere. It explores the construction of the national ‘Self’ and the foreign ‘Other’ by focusing on some of the ethnic and class divisions that characterise British society today, and how these link back to its colonial legacy.