Book by Anthony Cooper
Contemporary borders appear as highly diverse phenomena. In the present era of globalization, bor... more Contemporary borders appear as highly diverse phenomena. In the present era of globalization, borders are defined by the constantly changing multifaceted and complex correlation between local, national, regional, and global entities. This complexity is further accentuated by a more diverse understanding of what borders actually define. In recent decades, border studies have thus increasingly focused on the constitutive role of borders in relation to a host of broad and often hybrid relations of identity, culture, and discourse.
This anthology will initiate a dialogue between multidisciplinary border scholars and philosophers that will contribute to a multifaceted and theoretical discussion of how we are to make sense of and understand the concepts of borders today. Moreover, by involving philosophers, the anthology wishes to counteract a surprisingly limited involvement of philosophy in the interdisciplinary field of border studies. Despite the fact that philosophy and the study of borders have continuously intersected, as for example in the relationship between the Cartesian concept of space and the border as an abstract and strictly defined line, very few philosophers are directly involved in the study of borders today. Contrary to this tendency, this book will focus explicitly on engaging border scholars and philosophers in a direct dialogue.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Europe’s borders have always been historically ambiguous and dynamic, whereby borders shift and c... more Europe’s borders have always been historically ambiguous and dynamic, whereby borders shift and change character and new borders replace older ones. By focusing upon the title question ‘where are Europe’s new borders’, this collection of essays looks at the present state of European bordering and questions the often taken for granted relationships between borders, borderers and the bordered. While each essay concentrates on a different (but overlapping) border issue or perspective, they are united through their focus on the level of everyday bordering practices and experiences, as well as the meaning that borders have upon all stakeholders and the relationships between them. To talk about border meaning (including the perspective of the researchers themselves), and how that meaning continually (re)creates and is (re)created by bordering practices, is to critically question where important borders lie, why and for whom do they matter and how are they imposed, maintained and resisted. As a result the chapters engage with issues of border violence, the power of maps and symbols (cartopolitics), migrant mobility, gender and the rise of the far right in Europe. Taken together this edited collection will be of interest to border scholars as well as students of European politics more generally.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Journal Articles by Anthony Cooper
""
Existing accounts of the relationship between cosmopolitanism and borders tend to assume that... more ""
Existing accounts of the relationship between cosmopolitanism and borders tend to assume that cosmopolitans are able to cross borders with ease, or even live across borders. Consequently, such accounts bring to the fore a cosmopolitan agency that, by definition, renders borders easier to cross but crucially, in doing so, fail to take into account the changing nature of borders. This paper challenges the traditional relationship between borders and cosmopolitanism by focusing on the changing nature of contemporary border processes. Using this as a framework, it is asserted that focusing on post-national border monuments can generate new perspectives on borders. More specifically, in order to understand post-national border monuments, it is argued that borders must be viewed less as markers of division and more in terms of mechanisms of connectivity and encounter. To this end, the paper offers some novel intellectual resources – namely ideas concerning interfaces and scale – that capture the ways in which borders are able to connect well beyond that which is proximate. The paper also considers the rationale behind two recently proposed border monuments - the ‘Star of Caledonia’ situated on the English/Scottish border and the ‘White Horse’ at Ebbsfleet in the south of England – in order to show how certain borders, some of which are located in non-traditional locations, are being (re)configured as visibly welcoming and ‘outward looking’.""
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
This article develops an institutional understanding of borders. Drawing on constitutive construc... more This article develops an institutional understanding of borders. Drawing on constitutive constructivism and theories of practical communication we argue that bordering as a process is a form of sorting through the imposition of status-functions on people and things, which alters the perception of that thing by setting it within a web of normative claims, teleologies and assumptions. Studying any border, therefore, extends to include the rule structure that constitutes it as well as the sources of that structure’s legitimacy. Furthermore, rule structures are both restrictive and facilitative and importantly they overlap while retaining different sources of legitimacy: actors bring different constitutive perspectives on the border depending on the particular rule structure they are drawing on in order to make legitimate claims about what that border produces. This recognition sensitizes analysis to the interplay between different sense-making regimes and their authoritative underpinnings. Methodologically it points researchers towards the practical and discursive methods actors use when making arguments about what a particular border can and does do.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Guest Edited Special Issue by Anthony Cooper
Special Issue Title: Where are Europe's New Borders?
What do we refer to when we talk about Euro... more Special Issue Title: Where are Europe's New Borders?
What do we refer to when we talk about European borders? What, for that matter, do we mean when we talk about borders more generally? Asking the question ‘where are Europe’s new borders’ orients researchers to consider what important EUropean bordering currently looks like, where these often contradictory bordering processes can be found and the implications of this bordering on the way we think about Europe more generally and its place in the world. At the same time, looking for new borders necessarily facilitates fresh insights into bordering more generally, particularly in relation to their symbolic importance/function/meaning, how they continually transform and how they are maintained in novel and less obvious or immediate ways. This introduction, and indeed special issue, frames and advances the general debate by staking a claim for the need to question the established importance of some European borders over others. To do this we must continually offer multiple frames of reference upon which to understand and deconstruct Europe and European bordering (a broad approach reflected more specifically by the individual contributions).
Special Issue Papers:
Cooper, A., 2015. 'Where are Europe's New Borders? Ontology, Methodology, Framing'. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 23(4): 447-458
Andersen, D. Kramsch, O. Sandberg, M., 2015. 'Inverting the Telescope on the Borders that Matter: Conversations in Café Europa'. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 23(4): 459-476
Lacy, R. van Houtum, H., 2015. 'Lies, Damned Lies and Maps: The EU’s Cartopolitical Invention of Europe'. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 23(4): 477-499
Innes, A., 2015. 'The Never-Ending Journey? Exclusive Jurisdictions and Migrant Mobility in Europe'. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 23(4): 500-513
Kinnvall, C., 2015. 'Borders and Fear: Insecurity, Gender and the Far Right in Europe'. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 23(4): 514-529
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Book Chapters by Anthony Cooper
Building upon the basic premise that borders are not incongruent to globalization, which assumes ... more Building upon the basic premise that borders are not incongruent to globalization, which assumes a simplistic understanding of both, this chapter explores the role borders play within dynamic local-global connections vis-à-vis the ways in which entwining local-global processes can be used to understand the transformation of some borders. The basic argument (or outcome) is that some borders, under certain conditions and contexts, can become connective tissues through their capacity to create transnational networking opportunities well away from the border in question. Understanding the local/global nexus and applying it to border thinking, it is argued, can help illuminate the ways in which individuals and groups at some local level can be mobile in the sense of connecting to and networking with other places that are spatially non-proximate (non-local) because of bordering, hence the ‘glocal border’ of the title.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Governing Borders and Security: The Politics of Connectivity and Dispersal
"…In this chapter we focus on two particular but overlapping aspects of mobility in the context o... more "…In this chapter we focus on two particular but overlapping aspects of mobility in the context of borders and bordering. As highlighted by Rumford (2008b), the first aspect takes into account the dynamic between the ubiquity and heterogeneity of contemporary surveillance oriented state bordering and the more outwardly visible borders located at traditional points of entry. On the one hand, the most effective components of state bordering are arguably becoming completely diffused and spatial while, on the other hand, borders located at traditional points of entry (or the edges of a polity) are being made more visible in order to appease public perception of what a border is, what it should do and its effectiveness in doing it. As Rumford (2008b: 639) points out in the context of the UK, ‘one of the consequences of moving the border offshore is that its visibility decreases at the same time as its effectiveness increases’. The second aspect looks at the ways in which certain borders require movement to be (or to function as) borders. Movement here can be categorised into two overlapping dynamics. First, the ways in which borders are becoming networked, spatial and in one sense divorced from the fixed crossing points of entry associated with traditional border variants. And, second, the ways in which many of these borders specifically require movement to function accordingly, either in terms of the border itself, or in terms of people and things crossing them. While they will be discussed in detail below, examples of these mobile, mobility dependent, borders are the UK’s ‘juxtaposed’ borders whereby UK passport checkpoints are spatially extended to, and located at, international transport hubs at major cities such as Paris and Brussels. Even less visible or recognisable perhaps are networked borders functioning along major transport routes (Walters 2006) and supermarkets and rural farms (see Rumford 2008a), enacted and maintained by non-state actors on behalf of the state in a relationship that has been characterized as ‘remote control’ (Lahav and Guiraudon
2000). And, perhaps the most concentrated expression of mobile and mobility dependent borders, is the idea of the ‘biopolitical’ border in which the human body itself is rendered a prime location of border control becoming, to paraphrase Amoore (2006: 338), ‘the portable border par excellence’ […] In this chapter, however, we want to discuss the possibility that while the perceived strength of mobile, mobility dependent, borders lies in their ability to be ‘less border-like’, in doing so they create the possibility for linguistic spaces of resistance that challenge their own legitimacy and subsequent effectiveness. We argue that highlighting this dynamic provides an example of how non-state actors can shape border securitisation policy and practice by questioning the legitimacy of what state borders should and should not do…"
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Placing the Border in Everyday Life, May 2014
"A major shift in border studies in recent years has been away from an exclusive and primary conc... more "A major shift in border studies in recent years has been away from an exclusive and primary concern with conventional nation-state borders (the external edges of a polity) to a concern with borders being dispersed throughout society and found “wherever the movement of information, people and things is happening and is controlled” (Balibar 2004: 1). This move towards the study of ‘diffused’ borders has been partially offset by the post- 9/11 preoccupation with securitization and surveillance. Rosière and Jones (2012) have noted the ‘hardening’ of diffused borders through the construction of walls or fences, a process they term ‘teichopolitics.’ The resultant and somewhat contradictory dynamics of contemporary border studies are summed up by Lyon (2013: 6) in the following terms, “Even national borders, which once had geographical locations—however arbitrary—now appear in airports distant from the ‘edge’ of the territory and, more significantly, in databases that may not even be ‘in’ the country in question.” The ‘biometric border’ (Amoore 2006) is emblematic of these major shifts, as is the idea of ‘remote control’ (obliging airlines to conduct their own security checks on passengers and their travel documents) (Guiraudon and Lahav 2000). The study of borders which no longer only take the form of securitized perimeters, and which are sometimes enacted by commercial agents, and can possibly be controlled from a distant center suggests a radically transformed landscape of borders and bordering..."
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
The Ashgate Companion to Cosmopolitanism, Sep 2011
“This chapter advances the case that the border is a prime site for connecting individuals to the... more “This chapter advances the case that the border is a prime site for connecting individuals to the world, bringing them into contact with Others and causing them to reassess their relations with the (multiple) communities to which they may or may not belong. In Beck’s (2000: 51–2) terms, borders should be conceived of as ‘mobile patterns that facilitate overlapping loyalties’. As outlined in this chapter the border is best thought of as a ‘quilting point’ (or ‘anchoring point’ – point de capiton in žižek’s Lacanian term) which makes the cosmopolitan experience a real possibility; making connectedness possible, encouraging contact with others and negotiations of difference…”
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Uploads
Book by Anthony Cooper
This anthology will initiate a dialogue between multidisciplinary border scholars and philosophers that will contribute to a multifaceted and theoretical discussion of how we are to make sense of and understand the concepts of borders today. Moreover, by involving philosophers, the anthology wishes to counteract a surprisingly limited involvement of philosophy in the interdisciplinary field of border studies. Despite the fact that philosophy and the study of borders have continuously intersected, as for example in the relationship between the Cartesian concept of space and the border as an abstract and strictly defined line, very few philosophers are directly involved in the study of borders today. Contrary to this tendency, this book will focus explicitly on engaging border scholars and philosophers in a direct dialogue.
Journal Articles by Anthony Cooper
Existing accounts of the relationship between cosmopolitanism and borders tend to assume that cosmopolitans are able to cross borders with ease, or even live across borders. Consequently, such accounts bring to the fore a cosmopolitan agency that, by definition, renders borders easier to cross but crucially, in doing so, fail to take into account the changing nature of borders. This paper challenges the traditional relationship between borders and cosmopolitanism by focusing on the changing nature of contemporary border processes. Using this as a framework, it is asserted that focusing on post-national border monuments can generate new perspectives on borders. More specifically, in order to understand post-national border monuments, it is argued that borders must be viewed less as markers of division and more in terms of mechanisms of connectivity and encounter. To this end, the paper offers some novel intellectual resources – namely ideas concerning interfaces and scale – that capture the ways in which borders are able to connect well beyond that which is proximate. The paper also considers the rationale behind two recently proposed border monuments - the ‘Star of Caledonia’ situated on the English/Scottish border and the ‘White Horse’ at Ebbsfleet in the south of England – in order to show how certain borders, some of which are located in non-traditional locations, are being (re)configured as visibly welcoming and ‘outward looking’.""
Guest Edited Special Issue by Anthony Cooper
What do we refer to when we talk about European borders? What, for that matter, do we mean when we talk about borders more generally? Asking the question ‘where are Europe’s new borders’ orients researchers to consider what important EUropean bordering currently looks like, where these often contradictory bordering processes can be found and the implications of this bordering on the way we think about Europe more generally and its place in the world. At the same time, looking for new borders necessarily facilitates fresh insights into bordering more generally, particularly in relation to their symbolic importance/function/meaning, how they continually transform and how they are maintained in novel and less obvious or immediate ways. This introduction, and indeed special issue, frames and advances the general debate by staking a claim for the need to question the established importance of some European borders over others. To do this we must continually offer multiple frames of reference upon which to understand and deconstruct Europe and European bordering (a broad approach reflected more specifically by the individual contributions).
Special Issue Papers:
Cooper, A., 2015. 'Where are Europe's New Borders? Ontology, Methodology, Framing'. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 23(4): 447-458
Andersen, D. Kramsch, O. Sandberg, M., 2015. 'Inverting the Telescope on the Borders that Matter: Conversations in Café Europa'. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 23(4): 459-476
Lacy, R. van Houtum, H., 2015. 'Lies, Damned Lies and Maps: The EU’s Cartopolitical Invention of Europe'. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 23(4): 477-499
Innes, A., 2015. 'The Never-Ending Journey? Exclusive Jurisdictions and Migrant Mobility in Europe'. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 23(4): 500-513
Kinnvall, C., 2015. 'Borders and Fear: Insecurity, Gender and the Far Right in Europe'. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 23(4): 514-529
Book Chapters by Anthony Cooper
2000). And, perhaps the most concentrated expression of mobile and mobility dependent borders, is the idea of the ‘biopolitical’ border in which the human body itself is rendered a prime location of border control becoming, to paraphrase Amoore (2006: 338), ‘the portable border par excellence’ […] In this chapter, however, we want to discuss the possibility that while the perceived strength of mobile, mobility dependent, borders lies in their ability to be ‘less border-like’, in doing so they create the possibility for linguistic spaces of resistance that challenge their own legitimacy and subsequent effectiveness. We argue that highlighting this dynamic provides an example of how non-state actors can shape border securitisation policy and practice by questioning the legitimacy of what state borders should and should not do…"
This anthology will initiate a dialogue between multidisciplinary border scholars and philosophers that will contribute to a multifaceted and theoretical discussion of how we are to make sense of and understand the concepts of borders today. Moreover, by involving philosophers, the anthology wishes to counteract a surprisingly limited involvement of philosophy in the interdisciplinary field of border studies. Despite the fact that philosophy and the study of borders have continuously intersected, as for example in the relationship between the Cartesian concept of space and the border as an abstract and strictly defined line, very few philosophers are directly involved in the study of borders today. Contrary to this tendency, this book will focus explicitly on engaging border scholars and philosophers in a direct dialogue.
Existing accounts of the relationship between cosmopolitanism and borders tend to assume that cosmopolitans are able to cross borders with ease, or even live across borders. Consequently, such accounts bring to the fore a cosmopolitan agency that, by definition, renders borders easier to cross but crucially, in doing so, fail to take into account the changing nature of borders. This paper challenges the traditional relationship between borders and cosmopolitanism by focusing on the changing nature of contemporary border processes. Using this as a framework, it is asserted that focusing on post-national border monuments can generate new perspectives on borders. More specifically, in order to understand post-national border monuments, it is argued that borders must be viewed less as markers of division and more in terms of mechanisms of connectivity and encounter. To this end, the paper offers some novel intellectual resources – namely ideas concerning interfaces and scale – that capture the ways in which borders are able to connect well beyond that which is proximate. The paper also considers the rationale behind two recently proposed border monuments - the ‘Star of Caledonia’ situated on the English/Scottish border and the ‘White Horse’ at Ebbsfleet in the south of England – in order to show how certain borders, some of which are located in non-traditional locations, are being (re)configured as visibly welcoming and ‘outward looking’.""
What do we refer to when we talk about European borders? What, for that matter, do we mean when we talk about borders more generally? Asking the question ‘where are Europe’s new borders’ orients researchers to consider what important EUropean bordering currently looks like, where these often contradictory bordering processes can be found and the implications of this bordering on the way we think about Europe more generally and its place in the world. At the same time, looking for new borders necessarily facilitates fresh insights into bordering more generally, particularly in relation to their symbolic importance/function/meaning, how they continually transform and how they are maintained in novel and less obvious or immediate ways. This introduction, and indeed special issue, frames and advances the general debate by staking a claim for the need to question the established importance of some European borders over others. To do this we must continually offer multiple frames of reference upon which to understand and deconstruct Europe and European bordering (a broad approach reflected more specifically by the individual contributions).
Special Issue Papers:
Cooper, A., 2015. 'Where are Europe's New Borders? Ontology, Methodology, Framing'. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 23(4): 447-458
Andersen, D. Kramsch, O. Sandberg, M., 2015. 'Inverting the Telescope on the Borders that Matter: Conversations in Café Europa'. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 23(4): 459-476
Lacy, R. van Houtum, H., 2015. 'Lies, Damned Lies and Maps: The EU’s Cartopolitical Invention of Europe'. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 23(4): 477-499
Innes, A., 2015. 'The Never-Ending Journey? Exclusive Jurisdictions and Migrant Mobility in Europe'. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 23(4): 500-513
Kinnvall, C., 2015. 'Borders and Fear: Insecurity, Gender and the Far Right in Europe'. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 23(4): 514-529
2000). And, perhaps the most concentrated expression of mobile and mobility dependent borders, is the idea of the ‘biopolitical’ border in which the human body itself is rendered a prime location of border control becoming, to paraphrase Amoore (2006: 338), ‘the portable border par excellence’ […] In this chapter, however, we want to discuss the possibility that while the perceived strength of mobile, mobility dependent, borders lies in their ability to be ‘less border-like’, in doing so they create the possibility for linguistic spaces of resistance that challenge their own legitimacy and subsequent effectiveness. We argue that highlighting this dynamic provides an example of how non-state actors can shape border securitisation policy and practice by questioning the legitimacy of what state borders should and should not do…"