Phenomenology of Migration in the Context of the Contemporary Migration Turn

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to divulge today’s changes in the phenomenology of migration and migrants, which are closely related to the situation of transculturalism. The aim presupposes the solution of the following tasks: to analyze the historical logic of the formation of the migration discourse, to underline the relationship between the imperial as well as the nation-state narratives and migration narratives, to study the dynamics of creation and the emotional context of the image of the migrant, to consider changes in the perception of migration and displacement in the context of transnationalism and globalization.

To implement the tasks, the following methods have been used: discourse-analysis, comparative-typological, presentism, historical-comparative. To highlight the comparative analysis of modern and contemporary approaches to migration, the authors of the article applied the typology of the movement of human masses proposed by Z.Bauman.

The novelty of the research lies in the fact that for the first time the idea of the migration turn has been verbalized and the realities of its occurrence have been explained. Changes in the reception of migration can become fundamental for reviewing the historical processes of the movement of human masses, as well as for overcoming the dichotomy between “us” and “them”.

Conclusions. Contemporary migration turn signifies the recognition of immigrants as part of the community of the country of settlement and the appreciation of their contribution. Within these changes we witness their removal from the peripheral status of the nation-state and, accordingly, their localization in the center of material and spiritual practices of today’s transcultural communities.