BALANCE DEL ANÁLISIS DE LAS CIUDADES Y LINEAMIENTOS

Pawel talks a lot about his changing perspective on migration and about leaving the sentiment for the home country behind, along with new emerging possibilities. He is one of the examples of students, who do not feel so strongly connected with their country of origin, in patriotic and devoted ways. They do not feel this strong attachment with natives as their previous generations:

Maybe its just because of the way I think. I cannot thought in more abstract terms, so ..there was a period, especially it shows, you getting doctrinated a little bit. So I had a very strong feeling about the fairness or the unfairness of history of Poland and then how the Poland is messiah, you went through all of this yourself. Poland as the messiah of the nations, but especially when you can step out a little bit you see it different. But even when living in Poland I have starred to see it a little bit more better. It was more the global perspective. I think the fact as I say, the culture becomes more global and the politics becomes more global. Everything and communication. And that puts things in perspective and not thinking in terms of individuals more than nations. So that you ..I have to be honest , the nation as there is no grievances, no wars, it really doesn’t matter, right now. Especially in the EU, growing to something that looks reasonably stable. I think its not a big betrayal of Poland to feel European or global citizen as much as just Polish. In the way , I have to be honest, I would fell less Polish now, I would not stand out for the Poland, just for the sake of it.

But yes, I have still sentiment for it, so I would value the point its valid, but not anymore just for the sake of it. So its not better, because its Polish, but its better because its better! (Pawel).

The postmodern reality consists of plurality of diverse and heterogenous worlds, ways of living and local expressions of symbolic representations. The very versatility of social contexts is due to global transmissions of new ideas, symbols and values. The individual living in such a world needs to define himself anew, constantly asking himself – who am I and who do I want to be? If the person happens to be an immigrant, his choices are based on a broader spectrum of cultural reference. Budakowska uses the

expression of modern nomadism in accordance to the migration flows, which are not necessarily caused by economic reasons alone, and which can be characterized by regular movement of individuals as a way of living. The conditions of postmodernity provide the conditions for decentered multiplicity. It means and creates the possibility for drawing from the factually unlimited sources and possibilities of a variety of choices to construct the identity. It is the identity in the continuous process of becoming; the borderless identity.

Kate mentions the need for travelling and the weakened attachment to her home and even nationality:

Exactly! When I lived in Poland I was much younger. Later, during my period in Holland, I felt precisely like a global citizen: more closer to a trans-national rather than just Polish. Anyway, it is not so easy with this Polishness thing, you know. I have Ukrainian roots. I would say that I am more Ukrainian than Polish because both of my grandfathers were Ukrainian and one of my grandmothers was Ukrainian as well. So, when I really think about it, I don’t feel Polish that much but I am kind of attached to my Mazuria. And, for example, when I am in Cracow, I feel a bit of a stranger over there and not as if I was at home. But Mazuria… this is a place where I feel at home. But if I were to find a great job in Cracow, I would eagerly move there because I would do a lot for my dream job. But it is in Mazuria that I feel really great.

However, I have always wanted to travel a lot. I have never wanted stay in one place.

During the period of the last few decades, there has been an observable increase in the international population movements flow in the modern world.

The modern migration flows can be placed among the main factors of the social and cultural changes and transformations in the world. There is a need for a public discourse over the scientific research on the identity in the conditions of time and space compression along with the excavated trans-nationalism.

Pawel stresses that he has lost some of his national identity:

In a way you could say that I lost some of the national identity if all of those things are important. And they are but we are in that time when, probably its more important to be global citizen. Like we are at the same planet, where everything is global, so if we can live together constructively, regardless of nationality. Even if you can make it, probably it will never happen. Even if the borders disappear, I think it will be a circle, things will merge again. But at this point. Probably I could make a point of following the traditions, but it would be effectively in a way mentally rejecting the fact, that there is a higher level now. We can work on not just making sure that our own tradition goes forward but what is good about the European culture in general, regardless if it comes from France or UK or Italy, or Spain or Poland.

The increase in “transnationality” and the emergent modern nomadism are producing new and transient subjects, whose degree of reproduction of cultural values may depend on the subjective attributes of the migrating person, and on her preferences as to how to broaden her identity’s contextual referents. I am using the trans-nationalism expression in the meaning of the free border crossing and population movements on both economic and cultural levels.

Nomadism is based on the free movement, and more or less frequent place and/or work changes, and specific characteristics for the individual’s inclination to constant changes in her life. The changes concern many variables of her life. For example there can be the global elite of people from financial professions, who are constantly travelling.

The phenomena is being expressed also by the growing number of voluntary migrants, wanting to work and submerge in new cultures for periods of time, to visit many places and societies (Budakowska, 2005, p.57). Melucci writes about the need to reshape the identity, and teases the issue in this way:

The pace of social change, the plurality of memberships, and the abundance of possibilities and messages thrust upon the individual all serve to weaken the traditional points of reference on which identity is based. The possibility that an individual will say with conviction and continuity ‘I am x, y, or z’ becomes increasingly uncertain. The need to re-establish continuity of my biography becomes stronger. A ‘homelesssness’ of personal identity is created, such that the individual must build and rebuild constantly his or her ‘home’ in the face of changing situations and events. (Melucci, 1989, p.109).

The increase of personal rights importance in democratising societies has led to the rise in human subjectivity and his growing creative values awareness.

At the present the immigrant has, to a much bigger extent, the opportunity for becoming the co-creator of the social reality in the host country.

The identity concept has been for a long time perceived within the framework of the nationality and within the national identity context. Whereas the very characteristic for modern times is the social mobility and the international nets of relations, which violate and break the established order of duplicity of the cultural and national models of the individual identity. The human being intersects throughout her entire life with many more new structures and sets of relations than previous generations. Postmodern society generates more opportunities for plurality and ways of living in multiple worlds of choice, many social contexts, ideas, symbols, and values. It creates the space for the reflexive ‘self’. The immigrant can notice that differences do not have to mean barriers but rather complexity. However it reduces the opportunity for rooting and rather

demands flexibility in identity creation, which becomes renegotiated, adaptable and adjustable to the new perpetually changing circumstances. Katzenstein has proposed to treat the identity concept as variable.

However, the words of one of the respondents contradict with the rest. Peter argues that immigrants should still have a strong feeling of their belonging to a particular country.

Our country history and national identity is something that defines us and cultural differences are valid and create the beauty of humanity:

I am certain, however, that national identity is important. It is very important.

If it disappears one day and if globalisation saturates our personalities then I think we would only lose out because nationality and collective memory are things that define us. National identity is like a pillar, a mental pillar for a human being (Peter).

Peter stresses how important are the roots for each individual and how valid it is to remember one’s own country history and cultural outcomes. He believes that global identity is based on individualism and what is more important is the connection with own nation and national identity. This issue will be explored further in next chapter.