PROGRESS IN GEOGRAPHY ›› 2019, Vol. 38 ›› Issue (2): 153-163.doi: 10.18306/dlkxjz.2019.02.001

• Reviews •     Next Articles

“Non-representational”, “re-materializing” and the research methods of new cultural geography

Min WANG1(), Ronghao JIANG2, Hong ZHU3,*()   

  1. 1. School of Geography, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China
    2. Department of Geography, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong 999077, China
    3. Centre for Human Geography and Urban Development, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou 510006, China
  • Received:2018-04-28 Revised:2018-09-09 Online:2019-02-28 Published:2019-02-28
  • Contact: Hong ZHU E-mail:wminmin@m.scnu.edu.cn;zhuhong@gzhu.edu.cn
  • Supported by:
    National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 41871127, 41630635 and 41701149;Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province, No. 2018B030312004.

Abstract:

Because the new cultural geography has been overemphasizing representations, symbols, and discourses, some scholars argue for the deployment of non-representational theory and re-materializing, aiming to shed more lights on everyday life, immanence, practice, and affect, which are transient, progressing, and difficult to be presented by textual representations. The new paradigm also suggests to highlight the performativity, mobility, affective atmospheres, and meanings of symbolic exchange of matters and materiality, thus encouraging new cultural geography to pay more attention on the topics of emotion, body, practice, performance, and everyday life. This article summarizes the general situations and essential concepts of non-representation and re-materializing, and discusses the related issues, including body, identity, and the construction of space; affection and atmosphere of space; body, performance, and its meaning; and power and network. This study tried to attract more attention of Chinese researchers to the embodied, perceived, and immediate geographical elements, and promote innovations in the research methods of new cultural geography.

Key words: non-representational theory, re-materializing, new cultural geography, dialogue, research methods