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Temporalities in spatial narratives about war ruins in Mostar
Umeå University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Political Science. (Peace and conflict studies)ORCID iD: 0000-0002-0734-475X
2024 (English)In: Political Geography, ISSN 0962-6298, E-ISSN 1873-5096, Vol. 115, article id 103197Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

The spatial turn in peace and conflict studies and the geographies of peace research agendas have underscored the importance of space in (post-)conflict societies. These fields, despite recognising that space and time are inseparable dimensions, often pay more attention to the former compared to the latter. To address this gap, this article explains how space relates to temporality, a concept that delves into the lived experiences of time. More specifically, I analyse how understandings of the past, present, and future shape spatial narratives about war ruins in Mostar (Bosnia and Herzegovina), where buildings targeted during the 1990s wars remain unreconstructed. Drawing on spatial narratives gathered through walks and elite interviews, I show that temporality is a crucial element of space because lived experiences of time structure individuals' perspectives on war ruins in Mostar. Four temporalities were woven into participants’ narratives: (1) narratives shaped by trauma temporalities where war ruins remind people of wartime violence and collapse past and present; (2) narratives driven by temporalities of nostalgia and opportunities that invite reflections about the future of Mostar; (3) narratives building on a temporality of commodification that sees ruins as marketable attractions for tourists; and (4) narratives framing ruins as barriers to synchronising Mostar to a temporality of modernity, characterised by notions of progress and economic development. Through these findings, I demonstrate that temporalities are a key factor in how individuals perceive space and highlight the importance of temporalities in explaining heterogeneous attitudes toward space in areas affected by violence.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Elsevier, 2024. Vol. 115, article id 103197
Keywords [en]
Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, War ruins, Space, Temporality, Spatial narratives
National Category
Political Science
Research subject
Peace and Conflict Research
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-229534DOI: 10.1016/j.polgeo.2024.103197ISI: 001314418400001Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85203460103OAI: oai:DiVA.org:umu-229534DiVA, id: diva2:1897098
Available from: 2024-09-12 Created: 2024-09-12 Last updated: 2025-04-24Bibliographically approved

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Souza, Matheus

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Citation style
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