Towards a theory of political significance: Decline narratives and nostalgia in a fragmented migrant community

• In Event: 20420 - Section on Sociology of Culture Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (90 minute): Table 8: Narratives

Abstract

This paper explores the role of decline narratives and nostalgia in shaping political identity within a fragmented migrant community, focusing on the Turkish diaspora in Berlin, Germany. Drawing on 35 in-depth interviews conducted in Berlin's Turkish migrant community, this study examines how individuals utilize historical narratives to construct personal political identities in a politically fragmented and ethnically diverse context. Building on political myth theory from political philosophy, particularly Chiara Bottici’s concept of "significance," this paper argues that decline narratives and nostalgia serve a deeper purpose than mere sense-making. They provide individuals with a sense of political significance, answering existential questions about why they matter within their political community. The findings challenge existing scholarship that predominantly associates nostalgia and decline narratives with conservative or populist politics, illustrating instead that historical narratives are pivotal across the political spectrum in constructing political identity. Borrowing the concept of "significance" from political philosophy, this paper provides a sociological framework for understanding historical narrative as central not only to one's politics but also their very existence.

Author

• Vasfiye Betul Toprak, University of Maryland