Strangers, Ambivalence and Social Theory

by Bulent Diken

Covering a range of philosophical, methodological and theoretical materials combined with a detailed micro-sociological investigation of the ambivalent and marginal position of a settled immigrant community in Aarhus, Denmark. Interdisciplinary in approach through sociology, urban studies, ethnicity studies, geography and planning, this book examines the politics of immigration, issues of social and cultural discrimination, exclusion from the economic system, and the political problemization of immigrants. Much of the book deals with theoretical issues, construction and de-construction, social theory and the concept of ambivalence. A case-study of Gellerup supported by photographs of the immigrant settlers is used to contextualize the theories and examine the issues of social and spatial segregation in a ghetto environment. The text finally looks at social issues from a modern planning perspective drawing on experiences in Denmark to highlight problems for other European countries with similar immigrant groups.

360 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 1998