Borders, Boundaries and Identity in a Divided Europe - A Sociology of Europeanisation

Abstract

Based on qualitative data, I explore notions of collective identities within Europe – in particular, whether and how the EU and Europe evoke a sense of belonging. The main data comprises 12 semi-structured interviews with Europeans living in two different border regions, Lampedusa and the Danish-German borderland, together with pro- and anti-European movements and communities. The interviews are conceptualised and examined as narratives, with the aim of investigating how and when multiple identities surface, how social and symbolic boundaries are drawn and what this examination reveals about a collective European identity. To link the micro level to the macro level, the narratives are complemented with a critical discourse analysis that examines the discursive field of Europeanisation. The main theoretical framework comprises collective identities in relation to the European social space. Additionally, cosmopolitanism and Euroscepticism are conceptualised as two ideal types that are deployed to investigate how different social actors within the sphere of politics and media compete in influencing the further evolution of Europe. Overall, I argue that there is not one overarching collective European identity, but instead a broad range of competing narratives and discourses that attempt to ascribe fixed meanings to what a European identity comprises, whether it exists and which role it should play. Within the narratives, social actors’ identities appear to be more fragmented than united, but individuals can employ the European identity to represent themselves in a particular way depending on the context. In the study, I demonstrate that discourses and narratives overlap each other when recognising the uncertain future of Europe. In turn, this uncertainty offers novel playgrounds for imagining another Europe.

Popular Abstract

The idea of a European identity has been a recurring point of discussion within political science and sociology. Nonetheless, sociologists have mostly remained in the background while political scientists have employed quantitative data to compare how European citizens identify themselves with the EU. As questions from surveys are distant from the context in which lived experiences and social relations influence people’s attachment to Europe, I have conducted 12 semi-structured interviews with people from different parts of Europe. These interviews are investigated as unfolding narratives. I focus on how social and symbolic boundaries are drawn, with the aim of demonstrating how people possess different kinds of identities and what those identities say about the existence of a collective European identity. I theoretically demonstrate that there is a need for another way of conceptualising a collective European identity since the constitutive foundation stones of such differ from those of national identities. To cover different social and political levels, I have conducted three interviews with people living on the Italian island of Lampedusa, four with people from the Danish–German border region and five with representatives of pro- and anti-European movements and communities. Moreover, as Europe has been facing various crises that have affected European citizens to various degrees, I draw attention to how the interviewees have experienced these crises and what role they ascribe to the EU as a political entity and Europe as a continent.
To go beyond simply exploring the micro-level through European citizens’ lived experiences, I present a critical discourse analysis that draws attention to prevailing macro-discourses in contemporary Europe. By involving two worldviews, cosmopolitanism and Euroscepticism, I demonstrate how social actors within the sphere of politics and media utilise different ideologies in their pursuit to influence the evolution of Europe.
I argue that there is still not one overarching collective European identity, but several narratives and discourses that attempt to define what European identity is, whether it exists and what role it should play in times of crisis. The interviewees’ identities move between levels, often from the local to the national, before reaching the European level. This phenomenon demonstrates that people are still predominantly connected to the local and national levels, although the younger interviewees were more inclined to involve Europe in their narratives. This finding suggests that a collective European identity could evolve in the future. Lastly, the analysed discourses and narratives recognise that Europe is facing an uncertain future. Some actors and groups are demanding more European cooperation, while others desire a transformation of the current political system or a return to the nation-state.

• author: Kruse, Emil Nørager
• supervisor: Magnus Ring
• organization: Sociology; Department of Sociology
• course: SOCM04 20201
• year: 2020
• type: H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
• subject: Social Sciences
• keywords: borders, boundaries, multiple identities, Europeanisation, crisis, cosmopolitanism, Euroscepticism
• publication/series: Master Thesis in Sociology
• language: English
• id: 9028464
• date added to LUP: 2020-09-08 09:21:39
• date last changed: 2020-09-08 09:21:39