In-Depth Explanation of the Main Concepts of Political Geography

During this essay, political geography will be explained, with the different types of politics outlined, as well as how politics have altered the history of Belfast. This essay will also provide an in-depth explanation of the key geographical concepts that are place, territory and identity, as well as the ways in which these themes can be associated with Belfast, thus the political manifestation arising as a result of the importance of these themes will be interpreted using fundamental literature which coincides with the key theme of political geography.

Political geography is an important theme in human geography. The reality is that individuals in a society are constantly ‘vying with each other’ to promote their personal interests. Consequently, the existing order in a society is at a constant state of destabilisation and change according to an individual’s or a group’s ideology. Political geography investigates the reasons behind the development of ‘formalised political spaces’, and “how the configuration of those spaces reflects and shapes cultural, social, economic, and environmental circumstances”. More specifically, political geography explores the ‘forces that go to shape the world we inhabit’. According to this definition, political geography contains vital information which is relevant to any individual who is questioning the way society works and is searching for a broader understanding of the world surrounding them. It also investigates the geographical attributes of social/political movements. Furthermore, the impacts that politics have on the organisation of human activity and also on the interactions between humans and the environment.

Firstly, this essay will explore what political geography is, the different types of politics, as well as outlining an in-depth explanation for ‘The Troubles’ which took place in Northern Ireland as a result of politics. Secondly, ‘place’, ‘territory’’, and ‘identity’ will be described, and the importance of these themes in human geography will be investigated. Lastly, this essay will describe the relationship between ‘place’, ‘identity’ and ‘territory’ in the context of Belfast, as well as providing clarification for how this relationship manifests politically.

What Political Geography Is: Hidden Truth and Concepts

Politics is generally seen as a subject which revolves around governments, elections, political parties, or around war and peace. This type of politics is often referred to as ‘formal politics’ and is defined as “the operation of the constitutional system of government and its publicly-defined institutions and procedures”. In contrast to this, ‘informal politics’ can be summarised by the phrase ‘politics is everywhere’. Office politics is a good example, used in Jeffrey and Painter’s book, to explain informal politics. Office politics has no relation with the political systems of governments and elections and the way in which they operate, however, everyone who hears ‘Office Politics’ understands why it is referred to as politics. Office politics is about ‘forming alliances, exercising power, getting other people to do things, developing influence over individuals, and protecting and advancing particular goals and interests’. When explained in this manner, politics is portrayed as clearly visible in every situation.

‘The Troubles’ in Northern Ireland occurred between 1968-1998. Around 3530 people were killed during the troubles, this included more than 2000 civilians, along with 47,500 injured. As a result of the sheer scale and duration of Northern Ireland’s ‘Troubles’, this conflict is considered one of the ‘most lethal episodes of contention in post-war Western Europe’. During ‘The Troubles’ in Northern Ireland, ‘Republicans’ and ‘Loyalists’ became more involved in engineering in order to strengthen their respective communities’ identities. Gallagher and Shirlow explore that the form of resistance for both communities ultimately resulted in territorialism in Northern Ireland. For ‘Loyalists’, territorialism was achieved through “discourses of suffering, moral righteousness and the right to resist ‘threats’ to continued union with Great Britain'. “The postmodern turn in geography during the 1980s was predicated on the assertion that structural and humanist explanations could not adequately explain the unevenness of social space”.

The ‘Good Friday Agreement’, which was signed by the Irish and the UK Governments, promoted the implementation of a ‘constitutional foundation for devolution of powers to a democratically elected Northern Ireland Assembly’. Belfast has witnessed intense and traumatic social/spatial restructuring over the past 40 years. This is greatly due to the events which have taken place over the last century.

The renovation which has taken place in the city of Belfast has obviously led to an implementation of ‘newness’, which is common for many post-industrial cities. However, the human costs that residents of the contemporary have had to endure are immense. Around 1500 people were killed in Belfast. Tens of thousands have been brutally victimised, consequently resulting in a constantly present ‘reproduction of bigotry’. The industry that would’ve been considered traditional in contemporary Belfast has now been made redundant. Shirlow explains that “the fate of the city of Belfast lies somewhere between the uniformity of corporate globalisation and the continual balkanising of social and cultural life”. Belfast has transformed as a result of the underlying political trouble, and globalisation has distorted the cultures of ‘Irishness’ and ‘Britishness’, whilst also promoting the creation of new social divisions.

Identity Changes in the Context of Political Geography

Radford explored how space and place directly impact identity and social relations. More specifically, how place and space affect one’s sense of belonging or non-belonging as well as using the growing diversity and intercultural encounters as a focal point. Massey’s study emphasised the importance of public spaces as “sites of regulation, infused with meanings around belonging, national identity, freedom, citizenship, and community”. This quote manifests the already known importance of public spaces and shows the ways that individuals in a society can use these spaces as a form of identity. Furthermore, this form of identity results in a feeling of comfort surrounding individuals that have become accustomed to these public spaces, most of the time this occurs without the individual being aware. This is supported by Wilson in his research, as he explains how social behaviour and identities ‘both shape and are shaped’ by these experiences that occur in these intercultural public spaces. Local spaces which contain multiculturalism reveal forms of conflict which have taken place, therefore constructing identity unknowingly. Massey argues that the understanding of the terms ‘space’ and ‘place’ needs to be extended beyond definitions such as ‘abstract’ and ‘lived’. Places are described as sites that are greatly linked to wider processes that are ‘relationally constructed’, not sites that are ‘fixed locally’ or of ‘prescribed boundaries’. Massey suggests that identities are formed through ‘embodied relations that transpire geographically and historically’. The way in which we define space, or what we associate with a particular space is a result of the intimate connection that is created by the personal encounters experienced by different individuals within the geography of place.

Identity is explained as a fundamental theme through which socio-spatial processes, including the ways that ‘territory and territorial identities are constructed’, can be understood to a greater extent. Geographers employed ‘spatial resistance strategies’ which varied. Cresswell investigated these different strategies. Some studies demonstrated how groups that are resisting ‘subvert territorial boundaries imposed by the state’. Valentine examined how groups resist by increasingly breaking ‘normative rules in spaces controlled by dominant groups’. There are some groups that use the ways that resistance groups can promote the creation of safe spaces in order to nurture resistance as a focal point. “A central aspect in the examination of place within geography has been an increasingly sophisticated analysis of how identity is constituted spatially”. Geographical literature explains how identity is bounded spatially as well as categorically. ‘Bounding practices’ are depicted as able to be influenced by different historical meanings and ‘depend on the creation of territory or spaces of identity’. According to these pieces of literature, political identity which is built on an overall ‘acceptance of difference’ culminates in borders that can be described as ‘porous’ and ‘fluid’. In contrast, political identity which is constructed around the theory that difference is dangerous leads to a territory that inspires difference, therefore leading to borders being ‘enforced against its incursion’.

The identity of the Northern Ireland society is divided. As already stated in this essay, between 1969 and 1999, more than 3,000 people died during the conflict in Northern Ireland and more than 2,000 of the people that died were civilians. A survey undertaken in 2003 demonstrated the extent to which this conflict had affected Northern Ireland residents, as the data showed that half of the respondents had been directly affected by the conflict as they knew someone who had been killed. The areas that proved to be most affected were often the most economically disadvantaged areas, as they endured the highest levels of violence, injuries and bereavement. Consequently, ‘The Troubles’ contributed to an undermining of economic investment/development, whilst also aggravating child poverty and the overall level of ill mental health, thus leading to a further worsening of the economic level due to an impairment in employability. Poverty, as a result, has been a dominant factor in the identity of Northern Ireland even in recent times. In the 2000s, the overall level of poverty was as follows; One-third of the children in Northern Ireland live in income poverty, whilst one-tenth live in extreme property. 21 percent of the children residing in Northern Ireland were ‘trapped in persistent poverty, compared with 9 per cent in Britain’.

This essay has already confirmed the centrality of space, territory and place in constructing a ‘personal and community identity’. In Ireland, however, given the known history of conflict, these paramount themes of human geography have particular importance. The division between the two main religious groups (the Catholics and the Protestants) prevails. This resonates with figures from Goldson’s study which state that approximately 95 per cent of social housing ‘remains segregated by religious affiliation and over half the population live in neighbourhoods which are either predominantly Catholic or Protestant.

Conclusion

To conclude, this essay has overlooked what political geography is, as well as outlining some of the different types of politics. ‘The Troubles’, which is the political conflict which occurred in Northern Ireland between 1968 and 1999, have been explained in detail, as well as the reasons behind the importance of these events in the construction of the identity of Northern Ireland of the present. The consequences which occurred as a result of these events have also been explored, with the effects it had on the residents’ mental health, employability, and the resulting overall economic stability of Northern Ireland. The relationship between space, territory and identity was summarised, with the use of academic literature such which coincided with the idea that the identity of a particular place is defined by the events and the emotions which individuals associate with any given place, thus creating an identity which is particular to each and every individual that resides in Northern Ireland, as a result of the events which have taken place over the decades. The theme of territory has also been portrayed in this essay, as shown by the data given in Goldson’s study that states that nearly all of the social housing remains segregated, separated by Northern Irish residents’ different religious beliefs, thus creating a sense of ‘territory’ to which you belong to depending on your religious beliefs.