Ocean Borders K - Michigan7 2014

8/9/2019 Ocean Borders K - Michigan7 2014

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Ocean Borders K/PIC CFJMP

7wkMiles GrayJessica Jiang


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Oceans PIC


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TEXT: 8are 4iles larger than that of Goode2s, and that of theEncyclopedia Britannica, with 4arginal seas incl8ded, is 4orethan 6 4illion s>8are 4iles larger still (Mero "!", $6A$6). 't one level, s8ch a4big8ity is of little acco8nt. 'dding or s8btracting afew 4illion s>8are 4iles fro4 or to the Pacific is hardly a pressing 4atter. Most geographers wo8ld probably contend that s8chn84bers are 4erely vag8e appro3i4ations anyway, reflecting so4ewhat arbitrary divisions of the bo8ndless sea. 'nd despite the

discrepancy regarding the siBe of the Pacific, global agree4ent on 4ariti4e divisions is act8ally stri:ing( T'e sa.e oceansand seas" +%en &'e sa.e na.es a,e%& o)&en %n &ransa&%on= and ,o-nded" .ore oress" a& &'e sa.e paces" are reco+n%0ed across .os& o) &'e +o,e( Po%&%cacons%dera&%ons occas%ona* %n&r-de a& &'e ee o) no.enca&-reA Coreans insist that the bodyof water to their Dast is the Dastern Sea and not the Sea of Japan, and 1ndonesians so4eti4es refer to the body of water to their

west as the 1ndonesian %cean rather than the 1ndian %cean. S8ch disp8tes, however, are rareE in general " oca na.es

'ae *%eded +o,a conen&%ons . /he res8lting global concord in geographical na4ing and bo8nding istre4endo8sly 8sef8l, for it facilitates the e3change of infor4ation and aids the nascent 4ove4ent to provide so4e for4 of

international governance for the 4arine world. F8t a&'o-+' %& %s -se)- &o d%%de &'e seas %n&orea&%e* we de.arca&ed and %n&erna&%ona* reco+n%0ed -n%&s" s-c' a .ane-er%s pro,e.a&%c &o &'e e6&en& &'a& %& d%s+-%ses &'e conen&%ona na&-re o) &'e%rcons&r-c&%on( T'e .ar%&%.e rea. can ,e" and 'as ,een" d%%ded %n d%))eren& wa*s"

*%ed%n+ -n%&s &'a& are none&'eess >-s& as o+%ca* cons&%&-&ed?and >-s& as )a%&')-&o &'e -nder*%n+ pa&&erns o) &'e p'*s%ca word?as &'ose presen&* on o-r .aps .

En&er&a%n%n+ a&erna&%e %ews o) &'e ocean and %&s s-,d%%s%ons aows -s &o see

&'e word a)res'" reea%n+ pa&&erns and connec&%ons &'a& .a* ,e o,sc-red %n o-r

s&andard word%ew. /he c8rrent ta:en;for;granted syste4 of 4ariti4e spatial classification did not, in fact, e4erge in

broad o8tlines 8ntil the !55s and did not ass84e its f8ll;blown for4 8ntil the twentieth cent8ry. 1n earlier ti4es, espec%a*d-r%n+ &'e e%+'&een&'@cen&-r* En%+'&en.en&" rad%ca* d%))eren& no&%ons o) seaspace prea%ed. B* e6a.%n%n+ c'an+ed %n &'e es&ern ocean%c %.a+%na&%on" I seek&o s'ow no& on* &'a& a&erna&%e %ews are poss%,e ,-& &'a& s-c' a&erna&%e

%s%ons can conce%a,* s'ed %+'& on cer&a%n +eo+rap'%ca pa&&erns and processes


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&'a& are o,sc-red ,* o-r cons&r%c&ed and na&-ra%s&%c ass-.p&%ons a,o-& .ar%&%.espace. /hree 4aor variations in the concept8aliBations of sea space can be seen over the cent8ries. ?irst is &'e .anner%n w'%c' &'e ocean%c rea. as a w'oe 'as ,een d%%ded %n&o %&s .a>or cons&%&-en&-n%&s" now caed #oceans( Second is the changing way in which the hierarchy of oceanic divisions and s8bdivisionshas been arrayedA Aeas" )or e6a.pe" are now cons%dered cons&%&-en& -n%&s o) &'e ar+eroceans" ,-& &'%s 'as no& awa*s ,een &'e case( /hird is &'e .a&&er o) no.enca&-re"

&'e c'an+%n+ na.es ass%+ned &o &'e .ore or ess= sa.e ,od%es o) wa&er( &'o-+'na.%n+ %s see.%n+* &'e eas& co.pe6 %ss-e a& 'and" %& can 'ae s%+n%)%can&po%&%ca and %deoo+%ca ra.%)%ca&%onsE the de4ise of the Dthiopian %cean in the nineteenth cent8ry, fore3a4ple, perhaps reflects the denigration of 'frica that occ8rred with the rise of racist pse8doscience (Fernal "!@).


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%ew%n+ &'e ocean as a ser%es o) %n&erconnec&ed ,od%es &err%&or%a%0es

&'e ocean &'ro-+' %nes o) d%%s%on( T'%s re%n)orces E-rocen&r%ccon&ro oer &'e oceans as &'e es& -&%.a&e* con&ros &'e %nes o)d%%s%ons %n &'e ocean &o sere cap%&a%s& ends(A&e%n,er+ 33. (Philip D. Steinberg in """, Ph.-. &lar: University ""


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declining global fish stoc:s. 1 concl8de by s8ggesting that scholars and practitioners who design ocean;governance sche4esrecogniBe the fle3ibility inherent in the stewardship nor4 while ac:nowledging that stewardship is b8t one possible nor4 available

for g8iding ocean governance. 2%nes .a* ,e drawn@or erased@%n order &o pro.o&e a ran+e o)

soc%a a&erna&%es %n +o,a ocean space(

Ocean spa&%a%&* perpe&-a&es" ocean %.per%a%s." -n%a&era

%n&eren&%on%s." .an%p-a&%on" and do.%na&%on o) &'e T'%rd ord(A&e%n,er+ 1. (Phillip Steinberg, Ph.-. &lar: University. /he Social &onstr8ction of the%cean, P8blished by the &a4bridge University Press in $55. Page $+;$6.) MMG

'rtic8lation theory infor4s this st8dy of the social constr8ction of the ocean;space in two ways, one general and one 4ore specific.

Li:e world;syste4s theorists, artic8lation theorists s8ggest that &'e spa&%a%&* o) &'e .odern word" )ar)ro. ,e%n+ con&%n+en& &o )-nda.en&a cap%&a%s& processes" %s a necessar*

co.ponen& o) cap%&a%s.. 2oca&%ons o) par&%a %ncorpora&%on pa* an essen&%a roe

%n reprod-c%n+ cap%&a%s. . While this theory does not directly address ocean;space, it raises the possibility that

ocean@space" as ano&'er area &'a& acks de)%n%&%e cap%&a%s& processes ,-& seres acr-c%a roe %n &'e +o,a econo.*" %s %n so.e .anner a necessar* and -n%;-e

GpaceG w%&'%n &'e cap%&a%s&@do.%na&ed word econo.*. More specifically, the artic8lationists showhow F%rs& ord Cap%&a%s&s en&er a non@cap%&a%s& re+%on and seec&%e* ,-&&ressee.en&s o) &'e non@cap%&a%s& soc%a )or.a&%on so &'a& &'e re+%on" w'en %n&e+ra&ed%n&o &'e +o,a &rad%n+ s*s&e." %s o) e6cep&%ona ser%ce &o &'e cap%&a%s&s w'odo.%na&e &'e word econo.*(Dven as capitalists transfor4 a /hird World region so as to be co4patible with ?irstWorld interests, seec&%e non@cap%&a%s&s c'arac&er%s&%c o) &'e re+%on are e.p'as%0ed

,o&' %n rea%&* and %n represen&a&%on( T'%s seec&%e e.p'as%0%n+ o) non@cap%&a%s&"

Gnon@F%rs& ordG c'arac&er%s&%cs ,o&' seres &o )ac%%&a&e do.%na&%on and &o

>-s&%)* %& . 1n the narrative presented here, an analogo8s process is revealedA F%rs ord cap%&a%s&s 'ae

cons&r-c&ed &'e ocean %n a .anner &'a& seec&%e* reprod-ces and e.p'as%0es %&se6%s&ence as a space apar& )ro. and@,ased cap%&a%s& soc%e&*. T'%s cons&r-c&%on 'as

,een ad>-s&ed oer &%.e &o sere spec%)%c s&a+es o) cap%&a%s." .-c' as &'e&ec'n%;-es o) %.per%a%s. 'ae s'%)&ed oer &%.e )ro. pan&a&%ons and &rad%n+pos&s &o coon%es &o pos&@coon%a do.%na&%on. 9et thro8gh all the different definitions and socialconstr8ctions of ocean;space, &'e ocean cons%s&en&* 'as ,een a crea&%on o) cap%&a%s. even as it haslac:ed so4e of the capitalis4Is essential characteristics, 8st as the /hird World contin8ally has been (re)constr8cted to servecapitalis4 even as it has re4ained i448ne fro4 the labor syste4 that is paradig4atic of the capitalist 4ode of prod8ction. 1ndeed,

%n ,o&' &'e T'%rd ord and &'e ocean" &'e des%+na&%on o) &'ese spaces asG%nco.pe&eG or Gess deeopedG= >-s&%)%es )-r&'er %n&eren&%on and.an%p-a&%on(

T'e a&erna&%e %s &o re%.a+%ne &'e %nes o) d%%s%on %n &'e ocean as anac& o) re>ec&%on o) Ocean s&ewards'%p and &err%&or%a%0a&%on(A&e%n,er+ 33. (Philip D. Steinberg in """, Ph.-. &lar: University ""


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opera&%ona%0ed ,* one ac&or oer a known ocean space" ,* %nd%%d-a ac&ors %n

&'e%r d%scre&e" parceed do.a%ns" and coec&%e* ,* a co..-n%&* o) ac&ors ( I& 'as

,een %.pe.en&ed )or a ran+e o) ends" )ro. .%%&ar* .o,%%&* &o &'e consera&%on

o) &'e oceans %%n+ reso-rces( ?inally, a cons%dera&%on o) .ar%ne s&ewards'%p@and

&'e %nes &'a& o)&en ena,e %&@s'o-d re.%nd -s &'a& s&ewards'%p %s no& necessar%*

&'e on*" or ,es&" .eans o) +oern%n+ ocean space and o) preser%n+ %&s )-nc&%on asa space o) connec&%on" a &'r%%n+ ecos*s&e." a space o) %nd%%d-a or coec&%eescape )ro. &erres&r%a 'ards'%ps" or a reso-rce )or '-.an s-r%a( %ther societies havedeveloped ocean governance syste4s o8tside the stewardship paradig4, fro4 those that have viewed the sea as f8nda4entallypossessible, li:e land space, s8ch as the island societies of Micronesia, to those that have viewed the sea as a p8re space ofconnection ins8lated fro4 e3ertions of social power by land;based entities, li:e those of the societies bordering the 1ndian %cean,

prior to the arrival of D8ropeans (Steinberg ""


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2%nks


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esearc'/Ac%ence

T'e sc%en&%)%c .ana+er%a%s. &'a& c'arac&er%0es ocean deeop.en&re)ec&s a des%re &o re+-a&e and con&ro &'e -npred%c&a,e

Bear e& a( 11(&hristopher Fear * 1nstit8te of Geography and Darth Sciences, 'berystwyth University, and Jacob F8ll *&entre for Gender 0esearch, Uppsala University, Water 4attersA agency, flows, and frictions, Dnviron4ent and Planning ' ($5),vol. +=, pp. $$


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I@2aw

Co..on aw4s a&&e.p&s &o care -p ocean space )or. &'e ,as%s )or%.per%a%s& e6pans%on and .%%&ar%0a&%on

M%&ropo-os 1L('ngela Mitropo8los * writes on border policing and class co4position, &ontract and &ontagionA ?ro4Fiopolitics to %i:ono4ia, Minor &o4positionsA a series of interventions N provocations drawing fro4 a8tono4o8s politics, avant;garde aesthetics, and the revol8tions of everyday life ($5$), pp. 55;5$ KK JJ)

1n any case, it is little wonder that both Falibar and Montag, in reading SpinoBa to this point, begin to thin: abo8t the trans;'tlantic slave trade. /here is, very si4ply, no way to thin: of se38al econo4ies witho8t spea:ing, also, of the organisation of race,tho8gh the connection is less 4etony4ic or ho4ologo8s than that they are both cr8cial to the inscriptions of genealogy, thelegiti4ate trans4ission of property thro8gh na4e. More c8rio8s is Hardt2sarg84ent that the Left sho8ld not abandon the clai4to identifying its legacy in the Jeffersonian tradition. #ot >8ite a dis4issal of the criticis4s of Jefferson, Hardt nevertheless setsaside their specificity * his ownership of slaves, his 8nac:nowledged se38al relationship with one of those slaves, his drive forwestward e3pansion that e3tended plantation slavery and 8s8rped #ative '4erican lands=@ * as if they are not all abo8t thea8thentication of inheritance, legacy, legiti4ate filiation. /he ostensible perfor4ativity of gender and se38ality * redefined byHardt and #egri as proof of the prod8ctive power of the 48ltit8de * finds its li4it;point and f8nda4ent in genealogical conditionsof political legibility, it wo8ld see4. Undo8btedly, Jefferson can see4 progressive. He defended inter;racial se3. F8t it is notsi4ply that, for Jefferson as for others, the distinction between the 4aster2s legal and bastard children (and its a8thorisation ofproperty) re4ained intact. More significantly, for Jefferson racial 4i3ing a4o8nted to 4odernisation * that isA the c8ltivation ofproperly '4erican gender roles a4ong natives and slaves.=! P8t another wayA the ho8sehold (reprod8ctive) architect8re of a

Jeffersonian do4estic econo4y re>8ired co44on law2s e3peri4ental inclination and its scalable contracts. 1n the frontier,sovereignty and canonical law gave way to fraternal de4ocracy and co44on law. T'%s e.p%re was cons&%&-&ed"a,oe a" ,* %&s .oe.en& across &'e -npred%c&a,e en%ron.en& o) &'e )ron&%er"and %& was &'e con)-ence o) &'e 'o-se'od and )ron&%er )%nance w'%c' sered as%&s .os& e))ec&%e .ac'%ner* o) %n&ens%e and e6&ens%e ea,ora&%on( Moreover,con&rar* &o -nders&and%n+s o) e.p%re w'%c' %.a+%ne %& a.os& en&%re* &'ro-+' a

con&%nen&a E-ropean .ode o) do.%na&%on or 'o.o+en%sa&%on" &'e e.p%re &'a&

p-s'ed &'ro-+' )ron&%er spaceswas )or+ed ,* ocean%c e6pans%on and co..on

aw " ,* a er* spec%)%c .%6 o) .%%&ar* s&ra&e+* and e+a )or. (-e Br%&ann%a

,orrowed )ro. p%rac* and .ade e+%&%.a&e p%ra&es o) so.e= %n order &o sec-re %&sr-e o) &'e waes( Co..on aw" w%&' %&s re%ance on case aw" -n)ods &'ro-+' a

s-,&e pa* ,e&ween preceden& and appro6%.a&%on or" p-& ano&'er wa*" co..onaw na%+a&es power &'ro-+' repe&%&%on and ar%a&%on(/he frontier f8rnished the ho8sehold as theelaboration of an architect8ral and inti4ate dyna4ic thro8gh which li4its were escaped and restored. Sit8ated across the hyphenbetween politics and econo4ics (which is to sayA as the 4eans by which law 4a:es 4ar:ets), in the frontier, the ho8seholdattained a plasticity and portability that confo8nd D8ropean 8nderstandings of e4pire and flight. F8t it is the heteronor4ativeho8sehold that deter4ined, thro8gh precedent and appro3i4ation in co44on law2s 8nfolding, the e3tent to which property,contract and credit were recogniBed, considered as heritable and therefore g8aranteed across ti4e. 1t is this con8nct8re * perhaps

since Willia4 Flac:stone artic8lated e.p%re4s 'or%0on as &'a& o) an %ncreas%n+* #%ncorporea'ered%&a.en&$ &'ro-+' w'%c' #+rand ends$ are so-+'& ,* #s&ead%* p-rs-%n+

&'a& w%se and order* .a6%." o) ass%+n%n+ &o eer* &'%n+ capa,e o) owners'%p a

e+a and de&er.%na&eowner $=" at the 4o4ent of its greatest ontological 8ncertainty.


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Mapp%n+

T'e .ap and &'e .%%&ar* ,-epr%n& are one and &'e sa.e &'eprac&%ce o) car&o+rap'* ena,es %.per%a%s. and e6po%&a&%on

Cra%, 3(0ay4ond F. &raib * 'ssociate Professor in the -epart4ent of History, &ornell University, 0elocating cartography,Postcolonial St8dies ($55"), vol. $ no. +, pp. +!;+"5, httpAKKhistory.arts.cornell.ed8KrelocatingO$5cartograhy.pdf KK JJ)/he s844ation is a powerf8l and i4portant oneA e.p%res and na&%on@s&a&es'ae )or &oo on+ ,een'o.o+en%0ed and cons&r-c&ed as .ono%&'%c and'e+e.on%c en&erpr%ses, r8nning 8ndertheir own 4o4ent84 and co4posed ofan array of e>8ally co4plicit b8rea8crats, officials and scientists. 9etwes'o-d no&ose s%+'& o) &'e )ac& &'a& &'e o,>ec& o) a&&en&%on %s s&% pr%.ar%*" %)no& soe*" &'es&r-c&-re o) power %den&%)%ed as &'e %.pe&-s &o &'e car&o+rap'%cprocess %n &'e )%rs&pace, an iss8e to which 1 will ret8rn again shortly.T'ethird cr%&%ca %n&eren&%on was &'e ;-es&%on%n+o) &'e narra&%e o)e.anc%pa&%on and pro+ress assoc%a&ed w%&' &'e E-ropeanEn%+'&en.en& and.odern%&*"4 e6&end%n+ &o &'e '%s&or* o) car&o+rap'* &'e pos&@coon%acr%&%;-es o) &'e s&andard '%++%s' narra&%es o) sc%ence" pro+ress"and.odern%&*(Here &'e %ss-e was ess a,o-& a+en&s &'an &'e er*

)o-nda&%onaca&e+or%es -pon w'%c' a narra&%e o) es&ern E-ropean

e6cep&%ona%s. andpro+ress 'ad ,een ,-%& and w'%c' )-nc&%oned as

>-s&%)%ca&%ons" %n&eec&-ae6c-pa&%ons" )or &'e e6erc%se o) power and %.per%a

e6pans%on( /a:ing?o8ca8lt to his logical concl8sion, D8ropean e3plorers, 4ap4a:ers, andscientists were neither heroes

nor villains b8t relatively irrelevant to anarrative that so8ght to draw o8r attention (not 8n8stly) to &'e)-nda.en&awa*s %n w'%c' '%s&or%ca* and +eo+rap'%ca* spec%)%c prac&%ces and)or.s o)represen&a&%on were %ne6&r%ca,* en&w%ned w%&' c'an+%n+ concep&%onso)proper&*" &'e r%se o) cap%&a%s& rea&%ons" new )or.s o) encos-reandcass%)%ca&%on" and &'e e6pans%on o) s&a&e power(


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eeop.en&

Ocean deeop.en& po%c* re%es on &'e s&ra&%)%ca&%on o) &'e ocean as acond-%& )or &rade and s&a&e power

A&e%n,er+ 39(Philip D. Steinberg ; -epart4ent of Geography, ?lorida State University, /he 4ariti4e 4ysti>8eAs8stainable develop4ent, capital 4obility, and nostalgia in the world ocean, Dnviron4ent and Planning -A Society and Space("""), vol. @, pp. +5=;+$< KK JJ)'nalyBing these factors, F8n:er and &iccantell (""6E forthco4ing) have s8ggested that the one distinct characteristic of this earlyperiod of capitalis4 was that the pri4ary 4eans for capital acc848lation was control of trade, or channeled circ8lation, and they

have s8ggested that the era be rena4ed the age of transport capitalis4. 1t follows that %n a s*s&e. %n w'%c'econo.%c power was ,ased -pon con&ro%n+ d%scre&e c'annes o) &rade" &'es-r)ace -pon w'%c' .-c' o) &'%s &rade was carr%ed o-& &'e ocean= wo-d e.er+e

as a s%&e )or e6erc%s%n+ power and %.pe.en&%n+ s&a&e %oence( /h8s, &'e con&ro o)

&rade ro-&es rap%d* ,eca.e con)a&ed w%&' po%&%ca do.%na&%on and .%%&ar*

.%+'&" and &'e deep seas ,eca.e cons&r-c&ed as a )orce@)%ed )or e6erc%s%n+ &'ese

)or.s o) power (Mollat d8 Jo8rdin, ""=), and %nnoa&%ons %n &'e .eans )orcross%n+ %&s

e6panse were a.on+ &'e dr%%n+ )orces %n .odern &ec'noo+%ca pro+ress(H8gilU""=).Dven as the sea beca4e an essential arena for the gathering and e3pression ofsocial power, nascent international law clearlyplaced the ocean o8tside the real4 ofstate territoriality. 1ncorporation of ocean space within the borders of the state co8ldinterfere with its f8nction as a circ8lation s8rface, and d8ring this era circ8lation wasthe do4inant 4eans by which statesacc848lated wealth. /h8s, altho8gh the +"= PapalF8ll and the +"+ /reaty of /ordcsillas are often described as dividing the seasbetweenSpain and Port8gal (sec Gold, "!, page =6E Groti8s, "8e ($K$K$55"), vol. 65 no. $, pp. $!";=56 KK JJ)


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Ena,ed and s-s&a%ned ,* &an&%c word saer*" soere%+n .ar%ne power &-rned&'e oceans %n&o d%%s%ons known as &err%&or%a wa&ers" &'e '%+'seas" r%+'&s o)passa+e and &'e r%+'& &o &rade &'a& s'aped %.per%a e6per%enceand cos& .an* %es%n &'e process(Feginning with the rec:oning of longit8dein @6", new* acc-ra&e c'ar&s" .aps"na%+a&%on &a,es and dep&' so-nd%n+so) &'e seascape were &'e rend%&%on o)%.per%a ,o-ndar%es" e6pans%ons andca%.s &'a&, as Mar3 and Dngels highlighted in /he &o448nist

Manifesto,en+endered a +o,a Free Trade4(Mar%ne ,%opower e.er+ed %n &'e n%ne@&een&' cen&-r* as a %.%& and reso-rce )or se&&er coon%es and &'e c%rc-a&%ono)%nd-s&r%a cap%&a( I& was &'e prod-c& o) '-.an %n&erac&%on w%&' &'e.ar%neen%ron.en&" &'e a&&e.p&s &o +oern and pro)%& )ro. &'a& e6c'an+e" and&'e res-&%n+ s-,>ec&%%&%es( s an %ns&r-.en& o) +o,a .odern%&*".ar%ne,%opower a& once s-s&a%ns c%rc-a&%on %n &'e ne&works o) power and%nd%ca&es%&s per%od%c ep%sodes o) cr%s%s(/he present crisis of neoliberal circ8lation hasnow beco4einteractive with the cli4ate crisis to prod8ce diBBying e3changes between real2 and 4etaphorical2 floods and sea levels./hisregi4e has created and s8stained its own order of seeing2, which 1 will call i44ersion2. 144ersed s8bectivity has no o8tside2 b8tis constit8tedby the cos4ographic circ8lation between nat8re and c8lt8re, the West and itsD4pire, and the land and the sea. /hissec8lar cos4ogra4 also contains 4apsthe crisis of circ8lation below the line2, or 8nder water2 (a phrase 8sed todayto refer to aproperty whose 4ortgage e3ceeds its 4ar:et val8e). My concernhere is to s:etch (in necessarily preli4inary and abbreviatedter4s) a geneal;ogy of this 4arine biopower, 8sing tools derived fro4 W. J. /. Mitchell2s8nderstanding of the i4perial landscape,e4pire and obecthood, and pict8retheory. 1 pay special attention to its i44ersive crises of circ8lation, first viathe intersection of

John 08s:in2s criticis4 with Joseph /8rner2s 4arine paint;ingE then at its present 4o4ent of intensification by 4eans of Spi:eLee2sfo8r;ho8r fil4;doc84ent of Catrina When the Levees Fro:eA ' 0e>8ie4 for #ew%rleans ($55


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;-ac-&-re

T'e e6pans%on o) a;-ac-&-re %nd-s&r* cares &'e ocean %n&oneocoon%a pan&a&%ons o) )%s' and ,%o.ass

De.re%c' 7(Stefan Hel4reich * 'nthropology Progra4, Massach8setts 1nstit8te of /echnology, Fl8e;green &apital,Fiotechnological &irc8lation and an %ceanic 14aginaryA ' &riti>8e of Fiopolitical Dcono4y, FioSocieties ($55@), vol. $, pp. $!@;=5$ KK JJ)?al:ows:i po8red cold water on the 8s8al P0 for 4arine biotechnology, which e4phas;iBes the 8ni>8e bo8nty of the sea while alsotrading on a ro4antic, conservationist senti4ent.F8t 48ch as ?al:ows:i 4ight wish otherwise, 4arine biotech is diffic8lt to

disentangle fro4s8ch senti4ent. /he Maryland center is fo8nded on s8ch viewsE their 4ission state4ent arg8esthat &'e&oos o) ,%o&ec'noo+* aow researc'ers &o cone ((( +enes" reprod-ce &'e." andpro@ d-ce des%red s-,s&ances %n &'e a,ora&or*" ea%n+ &'e or+an%s.s w'ere &'e*

,eon+?%n &'een%ron.en&4(


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ener%c Ocean 2%nes/Apa&%a%&*

%ew%n+ &'e ocean as a ser%es o) %n&erconnec&ed ,od%es &err%&or%a%0es&'e ocean &'ro-+' %nes o) d%%s%on( T'%s re%n)orces E-rocen&r%c

con&ro oer &'e oceans as &'e es& -&%.a&e* con&ros &'e %nes o)d%%s%ons %n &'e ocean &o sere cap%&a%s& ends(A&e%n,er+ 33. (Philip D. Steinberg in """, Ph.-. &lar: University ""


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for g8iding ocean governance. 2%nes .a* ,e drawn@or erased@%n order &o pro.o&e a ran+e o)

soc%a a&erna&%es %n +o,a ocean space(

T'e de%nea&%on o) ,orders a.on+ ocean space represen&s a coon%a%.pos%&%on o) ,%opo%&%ca soere%+n&*" re+-a&%n+ &'e en&r* o)

#accep&a,e$ ,od%es a& &'e e6pense o) #-naccep&a,e$ onesande@Moon 18(Holly 0andell;Moon * Lect8rer in &o448nication and Media st8dies at the University of %tago,#ew ealand, What if the gro8nd beneath o8r feet t8rns o8t to be the sea, &ritical 0ace and Whiteness St8dies ($5=), vol. " no. KK JJ)1n the boo:2s first two chapters, Perera arg8es that ins8larity is the 8ni>8e gift the coloniBers bring to the land (=@) and traces the

ways &'e %sand%n wes&ern ep%s&e.oo+%esT does &'e work o) de.arca&%on"prod-c%n+ order ,e&ween and and ocean (=!). /he declarative colonial act establishing this order for'8stralia was thro8gh fiction of terra n8lli8s, land belonging to nobody (see 0eynolds ""


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#Oceans$

Cass%)*%n+ &'e spa&%a ,od* o) wa&er as separa&e oceans -&%.a&e*re%n)orces E-ropean and es&ern spa&%a or+an%0a&%on( T'e

a))%r.a&%e a&&e.p&s &o co.par&.en&a%0e space as %& seres &'e%r.eans&'a& sp%s oer %n&erna&%ona*(2ew%s 33. (Martin W. Lewis, Professor of global historical geography at Stanford University.Geographical Review, ol. !", #o.$, %ceans &onnect ('pr., """), pp. !! * $+. -ividing the%cean Sea. JS/%0. MMG.

T'e conen&%ona na&-re o) ocean%c d%%s%ons %s per'aps .ore o,%o-s &'an &'a& o)con&%nen&s" )or &'e s%.pe reason &'a& a o) &'e word4s oceans" -n%ke a o) &'econ&%nen&s" are %n&erconnec&ed ,* ,road passa+ewa*s.5e& a&ases" a.anacs"enc*coped%as" and o&'er s&andard so-rces o) +eo+rap'%ca %n)or.a&%on %nar%a,*presen& an ass-r%n+* e6ac& dep%c&%on o) eac' ocean4s area e6&en& . 1n Goode2s World 'tlas,for e3a4ple" we are %n)or.ed &'a& &'e Pac%)%c coers 8"9" s;-are .%es" as %) %&

were an -na.,%+-o-s* ,o-nded ,od* &'a& one co-d s%.p* .eas-re(Goode ""5, $65).Where the Pacific ends and the 1ndian or 'tlantic %cean begins7a far fro4 obvio8s 4atter7is rarely addressed in s8ch so8rces. 9etdifferent geographical reference wor:s evidently e4ploy different bo8ndaries, for as they disagree profo8ndly abo8t how large thePacific act8ally is. /he World Almanac2s Pacific, a precise;so8nding or cons&%&-en&-n%&s" now caed #oceans( Second is the changing way in which the hierarchy of oceanic divisions and s8bdivisions


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has been arrayedA Aeas" )or e6a.pe" are now cons%dered cons&%&-en& -n%&s o) &'e ar+eroceans" ,-& &'%s 'as no& awa*s ,een &'e case( /hird is &'e .a&&er o) no.enca&-re"&'e c'an+%n+ na.es ass%+ned &o &'e .ore or ess= sa.e ,od%es o) wa&er( &'o-+'na.%n+ %s see.%n+* &'e eas& co.pe6 %ss-e a& 'and" %& can 'ae s%+n%)%can&po%&%ca and %deoo+%ca ra.%)%ca&%onsE the de4ise of the Dthiopian %cean in the nineteenth cent8ry, fore3a4ple, perhaps reflects the denigration of 'frica that occ8rred with the rise of racist pse8doscience (Fernal "!@).


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Car&o+rap'*/Ocean Mapp%n+

T'e .ap and &'e .%%&ar* ,-epr%n& are one and &'e sa.e &'eprac&%ce o) car&o+rap'* ena,es %.per%a%s. and e6po%&a&%on

Cra%, 3(0ay4ond F. &raib * 'ssociate Professor in the -epart4ent of History, &ornell University, 0elocating cartography,Postcolonial St8dies ($55"), vol. $ no. +, pp. +!;+"5, httpAKKhistory.arts.cornell.ed8KrelocatingO$5cartograhy.pdf KK JJ)/he s844ation is a powerf8l and i4portant oneA e.p%res and na&%on@s&a&es'ae )or &oo on+ ,een'o.o+en%0ed and cons&r-c&ed as .ono%&'%c and'e+e.on%c en&erpr%ses, r8nning 8ndertheir own 4o4ent84 and co4posed ofan array of e>8ally co4plicit b8rea8crats, officials and scientists. 9etwes'o-d no&ose s%+'& o) &'e )ac& &'a& &'e o,>ec& o) a&&en&%on %s s&% pr%.ar%*" %)no& soe*" &'es&r-c&-re o) power %den&%)%ed as &'e %.pe&-s &o &'e car&o+rap'%cprocess %n &'e )%rs&pace, an iss8e to which 1 will ret8rn again shortly.T'ethird cr%&%ca %n&eren&%on was &'e ;-es&%on%n+o) &'e narra&%e o)e.anc%pa&%on and pro+ress assoc%a&ed w%&' &'e E-ropeanEn%+'&en.en& and.odern%&*"4 e6&end%n+ &o &'e '%s&or* o) car&o+rap'* &'e pos&@coon%acr%&%;-es o) &'e s&andard '%++%s' narra&%es o) sc%ence" pro+ress"and.odern%&*(Here &'e %ss-e was ess a,o-& a+en&s &'an &'e er*

)o-nda&%onaca&e+or%es -pon w'%c' a narra&%e o) es&ern E-ropean

e6cep&%ona%s. and pro+ress 'ad ,een ,-%& and w'%c' )-nc&%oned as

>-s&%)%ca&%ons" %n&eec&-a e6c-pa&%ons" )or &'e e6erc%se o) power and %.per%a

e6pans%on( /a:ing?o8ca8lt to his logical concl8sion, D8ropean e3plorers, 4ap4a:ers, andscientists were neither heroes

nor villains b8t relatively irrelevant to anarrative that so8ght to draw o8r attention (not 8n8stly) to &'e)-nda.en&awa*s %n w'%c' '%s&or%ca* and +eo+rap'%ca* spec%)%c prac&%ces and)or.s o)represen&a&%on were %ne6&r%ca,* en&w%ned w%&' c'an+%n+ concep&%onso)proper&*" &'e r%se o) cap%&a%s& rea&%ons" new )or.s o) encos-reandcass%)%ca&%on" and &'e e6pans%on o) s&a&e power(


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Trade o-&es/Ocean on%n+ M%%&ar* on%n+=


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1slands. Whereas 1ndian and 'rab navigators 8nderstood the sea in ter4s of danger and distance (p8rely as ro8tes), the D8ropeansaw it as a territory (Steinberg, $55, pp. + * 6$). /he Port8g8ese na4ed the 1ndian %cean having constr8cted it as a politico;naval8nit partic8larly s8ited to their colonial a4bitions to e3ploit 1ndia. /he ocean 2 s siBe, its rese4blance to a large landloc:ed g8lf 2and its cho:epoints $ (fro4 a D8ropean perspective) contrib8ted to it beco4ing a space do4inated by Port8g8ese, -8tch Dast 1ndia&o4pany, ?rench and Fritish colonial tensions. /hese powers 4apped and too: control of the =5 straits and channels in, andadoining, the 1ndian %cean and the principal seaways fro4 'den and the Persian G8lf to Carachi, M84bai, Col:ata and Singaporeand onwards to Dast 'sia. /he Strait of Hor48B and Fab;al;Mandeb represented the 4ost i4portant lin: between the 'rabian Seaand the Persian G8lf for the transfer of oil. ?ro4 the Dast the 4ost strategically i4portant ro8te beca4e the Malacca Strait, being

the shortest, cheapest and 4ost convenient lin: between the 1ndian and Pacific %ceans 2 (Misra, "!


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E6pora&%on

%ew%n+ &'e ocean as so.e&'%n+ &o ,e e6pored -nder%nes ,order%n+and &err%&or%a%0es space as &'e ocean %s %ewed as an o,s&ace ,e&ween

&'e -s and w'a& we wan& &o d%scoer >-s&%)%es o&'er%0a&%on and,%opower oer &'e ocean(A&e%n,er+ 3( (Philip D. Steinberg, -epart4ent of Geography, ?lorida State University.

'nnals of the 'ssociation of '4erican Geographers, "". $55", pp. +ec&%ons o) power on&o space )oc-sed on ca%.%n+ r%+'&s o) access &o

ro-&es ra&'er &'an d%rec& con&ro oer swa&'s o) oerseas &err%&or*(Frotton ""!E Manc:e"""E Steinberg """a, $55E Gillis $55@). Lin:ed with this historical parado3 regarding the for4ation of the state syste47that theterritorial state e4erged conc8rrent with the deterritorialiBation of political econo4y and the geographical i4agination7 are theparado3es abo8t the processes of territoriality in the conte4porary world that are e3pressed in the >8otations that began this articleA

e %e %n a word %n w'%c' we a))%r. ,orders ,* cross%n+ &'e. C%))ord 1337H-,ens&e%n L1=H we cons&r-c& .*&'s o) s&a,e soc%e&%es de)%ned ,* ,o-nded&err%&or%es ,* %%n+ %n a word o) .oe.en& o-&s%de &'ose &err%&or%es(&arter ""8es established for 4oving across the p8tativelyplaceless sea (which, in t8rn, 4a:e reference to another abstract spaceA the s:yE Fohannan "


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soere%+n" &err%&or%a s&a&e: oppos%&%ons ,e&ween %ns%de and o-&s%deH ,e&ween -n%&and s*s&e.H ,e&ween and and seaH ,e&ween )%6%&* and .oe.en&H and ,e&weene6per%enced pace and rea&%e" a,s&rac& space(


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MD87

T'e searc' )or MD87 %s an a&&e.p& a& con&ro%n+ &'e ocean &'ro-+''-.an appropr%a&%on and e6pora&%on &'e a))%r.a&%e %ews &'e

ocean as a 'os&%e" [email protected]%n+ o%d &'a& asp'*6%a&es '-.an %)e"&'a& eads &o %.per%a do.%na&%on o) &'e ocean" endess .a&er%a%s."and cap%&a%s& co..od%)%ca&%on o) na&-ra reso-rces(ord%o 1. (Gaston Gordillo, Professor, -epart4ent of 'nthropology, University of Fritish&ol84bia. D3cept fro4 /he %ceanic oidA /he Dternal Feco4ing of Li>8id Space.httpAKKspaceandpolitics.blogspot.co4K$5+K5+Kthe;oceanic;void.ht4l. ) MMG

T'e .a%n pro&a+on%s& %n &'e searc' )or &'e .%ss%n+ Maa*s%an %r%nes pane 'as,een &'e e-s%e and %n&ense* .o,%e ocean%c space &'a& sa&e%&es" panes" ands'%ps 'ae ,een .e&%c-o-s* scr-&%n%0%n+ %n searc' )or &'e pane4s de,r%s, th8s far to noavail. ?or fo8r wee:s, the s8rveillance technology that is often very precise in locating obects anywhere on the planet has beenstr8ggling to pierce thro8gh the opacity of this h8ge 4ass of water that, in per4anently 4oving, rec8rrently 4a:es itself 8nreadable.

T'%s %s a as& %;-%d space w'ose a.,%en& &'%ckness and %n&ens%&* %s %n a per.anen&s&a&e o) ,eco.%n+: )od%n+" s'%)&%n+" arc'%n+" &w%s&%n+H awa*s %n .o&%on" awa*sd%spac%n+ %&s o-.e across as& d%s&ances" awa*s %nd%))eren& &o &'e %)e )or.seneoped ,* %&s .o,%e )ows. /en days after the planeIs disappearance, satellites pinpointed on the oceanic s8rfacerelatively large obects, over twenty 4eters long, that loo:ed li:e debris fro4 the plane. %ne day, however, the debris see4ed to behereE the ne3t day, it see4s to be five h8ndred :ilo4eters away. 'lways on the 4ove, the ocean carries anything floating on itelsewhere, partic8larly in the t8rb8lent waters of the so8thern 1ndian ocean. ' few days later, satellites and planes detectedh8ndreds of s4aller obects scattered over wide areas. F8t when finally reached by ships, these obects t8rned o8t to be part of thevast a4o8nts of ordinary debris drifting in oceanic space, the s8rpl8s of the i4perial for4s of connectivity that tho8sands of ships

loaded with co44odities leave behind in the oceanic void, t8rned into the 4ost decisive channel of global capitalis4. /he +o,apanop&%c-. 'as ,een d%sor%en&ed ,* &'%s .o,%e" &e6&-red" .-&%@a*ered spa&%a%&*o) &'e ocean" w'%c' .akes %&se) een .ore opa;-e ,* +e&&%n+ en&an+ed w%&' &'ede&r%&-s o) +o,a%0a&%on. So 4any &ransna&%ona and %.per%a reso-rces 'ae ,een p-&%n &'e searc'that debris fro4 the plane 4ay event8ally be fo8nd. Had the plane fallen on fir4 land, however, the global

panoptic84 of satelites and drones that control the at4osphere, and therefore loo: at the planet fro4 high above, wo8ld havealready located the debris. F8t &'e pane )e %n&o a %;-%d or&e6 &'a& swaows -p .os& o) &'e'ea* o,>ec&s &'a& )a %n&o it. /his is li>8id 4atter that, beca8se of its physical properties, lets the force of gravityp8ll those obects down toward a dar: abyss that the na:ed h84an body confronts as a physical environ4ent devoid of solid gro8nd

and breathable airA the oceanic void. We :now that the ocean covers two thirds of the planet2s s8rface. F8tw'a& &*pe o)space %s &'e ocean One wa* &o ,e+%n answer%n+ &'%s ;-es&%on %s &o ook a& &'oseareas w'ere &'e spa&%a%&* o) &'e ocean .ee&s &'a& o) %sands and con&%nen&s( /he4aterial co8nterpoint between both types of spaces is apparent and see4ingly self;evident. %n the one hand, the beaches,4o8ntains, or h84an;4ade b8ildings that define the coastline and e4erge fro4 above the oceanic s8rface constit8te the type of

spaces where the vast 4aority of h84ans are born, live, and die. T'ese +eo+rap'%es are de)%ned ,* a.-&%p%c%&* o) &e6&-res and )or.s ,-& s'are &'e so%d spa&%a%&* &'a& 'as s-s&a%ned'-.ans as and crea&-res adap&ed oer .%%ons o) *ears &o ,rea&'" ea&" .oe" andreprod-ce on )%r. and %n d%rec& con&ac& w%&' &'e a&.osp'ere . %n the other hand, beyond thecoastline, the body confronts a >8alitatively different spaceA fl8id, 4obile, li>8id. /his is a space whose 48ltiplicity is s8bs84ed to

the physical properties of waterA an inco4pressible fl8id that is per4anently in 4otion beca8se its 4olec8les can 4ove relative toeach other, adapting to the shape of its container, the Darth2s s8rface, and to the forces of the at4osphere. Shorelines, in short, area4ong the 4ost dra4atic thresholds in h84an e3periences of spaceA the point where the consistency and 4ateriality of spaceabr8ptly changes and the body faces the beginning of a li>8id world with flows, rhyth4s, and properties that are not those of land.F8t Zcoastlines,Z Steve MentB re4inds 4e, is not the right na4e the entangle4ent between these two spatial ecologies, which 1prefer to see as 4aterial sets, inseparable fro4 each other yet distinct and sing8lar. 1 wo8ld addA the 4aterial na4e for thisthreshold is edge. &oastlines are those areas where space folds to reveal the edge of a tr8ly i44ense li>8id void, planetary in scopeand nat8re. 's 1 arg8e in 08bble, one of the 4ost e3traordinary sections in Fadio8Is boo: on -ele8Be, /he &la4or of Feing, involveshis disc8ssion of the intense private e3changes that they had over several years thro8gh personal letters. %ne concept stood o8t in4y reading of Fadio8A one that he and -ele8Be approved of as part of their shared constellationA Zon the edge of the void.Z Fadio8says that -ele8Be interpreted the edge of the void as the intersection between the territory and the process of deterritorialiBation, the


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dissol8tion of the territory in the event. On &'e ed+e o) &'e ocean%c o%d" &'e d%sso%n+ ec&or o)de&err%&or%a%0a&%on %s &'e een& o) &'e -n+ro-nd%n+ crea&ed ,* a %;-%d word(

D-.ans 'ae on+ na%+a&ed and -sed ocean%c space w%&' '%+' de+rees o)

e6per&%se and sop'%s&%ca&%on. Many feel at ho4e there, at ease in that li>8id, 8nta4eable world. F8t they do so asland creat8res whose anato4y and physiology have evolved to 4ove and breathe on f ir4 gro8nd( T'e %;-%d space o)&'e ocean can er* ;-%ck* eneop and asp'*6%a&e &'e '-.an ,od%es &'a& en&-re%n %& w%&'o-& )o&a&%on de%ces( I& %s %n &'%s prec%se p'*s%ca sense &'a& &'e '-.an

,od* con)ron&s &'e ocean as a o%dA as li>8id 4atter that does not halt the p8ll of gravity toward the heart of theplanet the way fir4 land does and that, in sin:ing the body in a fl8id devoid of breathable air, negates and interr8pts land;based

for4s of 4obility and territoriality. T'%s %;-%d space" %n s'or&" %.poses on '-.ans ac'aen+%n+ spa&%a%&* &'a& can ,e soc%a* -sed ,-& canno& ,e )-* con&roed" )or %&)oows %&s own" power)- r'*&'.s(/hese rhyth4s are created by forces 4obiliBed by a planet in 4otionA by therotation of the Darth aro8nd its a3is and aro8nd the s8n, by the cyclical e3pos8re of the ocean and the at4osphere to the heat of thes8n, by the gravity of the 4oon, as well as by the friction between tectonic plates, which occasionally sha:e the depths of the ocean tocreate ts8na4is. /his vorte3 is far fro4 being e4ptyA it is inhabited by a p8re 48ltiplicity of intensities in 4otion and by a largebio4ass. F8t the ocean is a void in the physical sense of the ter4, si4ply beca8se alone in the ocean we drown in an instant,bringing to light what we tend two ta:e for grantedA o8r bodily ontology as land creat8res who breath air. 1n this essay, 1 arg8e that

ee-0e pro%des -s concep&s &'a& are par&%c-ar* %.por&an& &o e6a.%ne &'e %;-%dspa&%a%&* o) ocean%c space, s8ch as beco4ing, fold, 48ltiplicity, intensity, sing8larity, difference, repetition, eternalret8rn, virt8al, act8al, and s4ooth and striated space.

I& %s espec%a* %n &'e ana*s%s o) &'e repe&%&%e"r'*&'.%ca" and eer@)-%d spa&%a%&* o) &'e ocean &'a& ee-0e4s p'%osop'* reeas%&s power &o %-.%na&e o-r -nders&and%n+ o) space %n %&s %..anence"%ndependen&* o) '-.an appropr%a&%ons ,-& aso %n rea&%on &o &'e.. My analysis is indialog8e with a8thors li:e John Protevi and Levi Fryant, who also draw on -ele8Be to thin: the 4aterial beco4ing and gravitationalforces of non;h84an 4ade obects and forces. 'nd as Protevi arg8es, the beco4ing of water is partic8larly a4enable to -ele8BeIsphilosophy (Life, War, Darth, p. +6). 9et 4y analysis also goes beyond -ele8Be beca8se it p8ts hi4 in dialog8e with 'lain Fadio8 by

s8bs84ing the,eco.%n+ o) ocean%c space &o a )%+-re o) ne+a&%%&* s-c' as &'e o%d. /his 4aysee4 li:e a co8nterint8itive 4ove, given -ele8Be2s well;:nown hostility toward the negative and his p8blic disagree4ents with

Fadio8. 9et 1 see their thin:ing as creatively entangled in 48ltiple ways, and for starters 1 8nderstand &'e o%d no& as a)%+-re o) spa&%a e.p&%ness ,-& ra&'er" draw%n+ )ro. Bad%o-" as a )%+-re o) p-re.-&%p%c%&*: &'a& %s" a .-&%p%c%&* &'a& %s non@represen&a,e. T'e ocean4s spa&%a%&*)or.s an %..ense o%d no& ,eca-se %& %s e.p&* ,-&" on &'e con&rar*" ,eca-se %& %s apos%&%e presence &'a& %s a prod-c&%e and d%sr-p&%e .-&%p%c%&* o) %n&ens%&%es"

s%n+-ar%&%es" and r'*&'.s: a or&e6 &'a& o%ds %n&err-p&s" ne+a&es" d%sr-p&s= &'espa&%a%&* o) '-.an .o,%%&* on )%r. and. My analysis of oceanic space draws fro4 recent efforts in theh84anities to e3a4ine geo;physical forces in ter4s of their own 4ateriality and rhyth4s, witho8t red8cing the4 to their socialappropriations by h84an societies. /he literat8re on the social constr8ction of nat8re played an i4portant role in 8nder4ining the

d8alis4 between society and nat8re and in showing that society is not e3ternal to nat8re.5e& &'%s perspec&%e o)&enred-ces #na&-re$ &o &'e pass%e" .aea,e ,ack+ro-nd -pon w'%c' ac&%e" '-.an@cen&ered )orces opera&e. Phillip Steinberg2s /he Social &onstr8ction of the %cean is the best boo: devoted to analyBingthe geography of the oceans. Steinberg shows with great detail and sophistication how '-.an soc%e&%es 'ae .ade-se o) and concep&-a%0ed &'e ocean %n d%))eren& '%s&or%ca per%ods and %n d%))eren&par&s o) &'e word( De de.ons&ra&es &'a& )ar )ro. ,e%n+ a space #e.p&*$ o)soc%a%&*" &'e ocean 'as ,een soc%a%0ed a& .-&%pe ees and %s a cr-c%aco.ponen& o) +o,a c-rren&s o) &rade and rea&%ons o) &err%&or%a power . 'nd while the

boo: does not e3a4ine how &'e %;-%d na&-re o) ocean%c space escapes '-.an cod%n+ , Steinbergleaves the door open for a non;constr8ctivist view of the ocean when he writes, at the end of his boo:, that this re4ains an i4portantand pending >8estionA that in being a space of nat8re, so4e cr8cial di4ensions of oceanic space are not red8cible to their social8ses, 4ost notably the fact that the sea never stops 4oving (p. $5) 1n his essay, 1 ta:e this ever;4obile nat8re of oceanic space as4y starting point. /his is also a di4ension that SteinbergIs 4ost recent wor: on oceanic spatiality is e3ploring (as the conversationwe have in the co44ents below 4a:e clear). F8t 1 prefer to view the ocean not as a space of nat8re b8t as a spatial set within theterrain of planet Darth. 's several a8thors have noted, the notion of nat8re is too loaded with transcendental connotations to besalvaged as a 8sef8l analytic concept, even if we add the 8s8al disclai4ers abo8t the need to overco4e the society;nat8re d8alis4.

T'%s pro,e. %s cear %n &'e er* %dea &'a& &'e ocean %s a #na&-ra space"$ )or &'%s%.p%es &'a& paces .ade ,* '-.ans are no& na&-ra" &'ere,* re%n&rod-c%n+ &'ed%s&%nc&%on ,e&ween soc%e&* and na&-re &'a& %s p-,%c* d%saowed( /errain is the absol8te


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te4poral 4aterialiBation of what we abstract as Znat8re.Z Seas, 4o8ntains, roads, rivers, cities, far4s, bridges, forestsA they are thetype of sing8larities that envelope o8r ever;fleeting bodies as part of the terrain of planet Darth. 's 1 have arg8ed here, 1 see terrainas involving all e3isting, three;di4ensional 4aterial for4s (h84an 4ade or not) that are constit8tive of space as we :now itA that is,

the tangible space of this world. T'%s ana*s%s o) &'e ocean as a spa&%a se& w%&'%n &'e &erra%n

%.p%es a .a&er%a%s&" o,>ec&@or%en&ed" and a))ec&%e ens ,-& .ore %.por&an&* a

+eo.e&r%c e*e and percep&%on . /his is why a theory of terrain de4ands a SpinoBian sensibility b8ilt in critical

dialog8e with the two last philosophical titans of the worldA -ele8Be and Fadio8. /he starting principle of a theory of terrain is thatof its p8re 4aterial 48ltiplicity. /his 4eans that the 4ateriality of the terrain is not ho4ogeno8s, b8t the opposite. SpinoBa arg8edthat the body is 4ade 8p of hard, soft, and li>8id ele4entsA bones, flesh, and blood. Li:ewise, the planetary terrain is defined by a48ltiplicity of physical densities and te3t8res, involving hard, soft, gaseo8s, and li>8id ele4ents engaging in different degrees ofte4perat8re. /he ocean is certainly the largest e3pression of li>8id space on Darth. &o4prising over two;thirds of the s8rface of theplanet, the oceanic void has been one of the 4ost powerf8l and deter4ining spatial forces in h84an history. 1ts 4ost defining

feat8re is that, for the h84an body, it creates the generaliBed 8ngro8nding we call drowning. T'e '%s&or* o) %.per%aand cap%&a%s& e6pans%on %n&o &'e &o&a%&* o) &'e pane& 'as reoed" &o a +rea&e6&en&" aro-nd &ec'noo+%ca e))or&s &o co-n&er &'%s -n+ro-nd%n+ crea&ed ,* &'ee&erna" [email protected],%e ,eco.%n+ o) %;-%d space(

Qs'or&er ers%onR T'e searc' )or MD87 represen&s an a&&e.p& &os-re* and de%nea&e &'e ocean" ,-& &'e .o,%e na&-re o) ocean%c

space ens-res )a%-re &'a& &-rns caseord%o /8(Gast[nGordillo * Professor, -epart4ent of 'nthropology, University of Fritish &ol84bia, /he %ceanicoidA /he Dternal Feco4ing of Li>8id Space, %pa>8e PlanetA %8tline of a /heory of /errain, Space and PoliticsA Dssays on thespatial and affective p8lse of politics (+K=K$5+),httpAKKspaceandpolitics.blogspot.co4K$5+K5+Kthe;oceanic;void.ht4l KK JJ)

T'e .a%n pro&a+on%s& %n &'e searc' )or &'e .%ss%n+ Maa*s%an %r%nes pane 'as

,een &'e e-s%e and %n&ense* .o,%e ocean%c space &'a& sa&e%&es" panes" and

s'%ps 'ae ,een .e&%c-o-s* scr-&%n%0%n+ in search for the plane2s debris, th8s far to no avail. ?or fo8r

wee:s, the s-re%ance &ec'noo+*that is often very precise in locating obects anywhere on the planet 'as ,eens&r-++%n+ &o p%erce &'ro-+' &'e opac%&* o) &'%s '-+e .ass o) wa&er &'a&" %nper.anen&* .o%n+" rec-rren&* .akes %&se) -nreada,e( /his is a vast li>8id space whosea4bient thic:ness and intensity is in a per4anent state of beco4ingA folding, shifting, arching, twistingE always in 4otion, always

displacing its vol84e across vast distances, always indifferent to the life for4s enveloped by its 4obile flows. Ten da*s a)&er

&'e panes d%sappearance" sa&e%&es p%npo%n&ed on &'e ocean%c s-r)ace rea&%e*ar+e o,>ec&s" oer &wen&* .e&ers on+" &'a& ooked %ke de,r%s )ro. &'e pane( Oneda*" 'oweer" &'e de,r%s see.ed &o ,e 'ereH &'e ne6& da*" %& see.s &o ,e )%e'-ndred k%o.e&ers awa*( wa*s on &'e .oe" &'e ocean carr%es an*&'%n+ )oa&%n+on %& esew'ere, partic8larly in the t8rb8lent waters of the so8thern 1ndian ocean. ' few days later, satellites and planesdetected h8ndreds of s4aller obects scattered over wide areas. F8t when finally reached by ships, these o,>ec&s &-rnedo-& &o ,e par& o) &'e as& a.o-n&s o) ord%nar* de,r%s dr%)&%n+ %n ocean%c space" &'es-rp-s o) &'e %.per%a )or.s o) connec&%%&* &'a& &'o-sands o) s'%ps oaded w%&'co..od%&%es eae ,e'%nd %n &'e ocean%c o%d" &-rned %n&o &'e .os& dec%s%e

c'anne o) +o,a cap%&a%s.( T'e +o,a panop&%c-. 'as ,een d%sor%en&ed ,* &'%s

.o,%e" &e6&-red" .-&%@a*ered spa&%a%&* o) &'e ocean " w'%c' .akes %&se) een

.ore opa;-e ,* +e&&%n+ en&an+ed w%&' &'e de&r%&-s o) +o,a%0a&%on( So 4any transnational

and i4perial reso8rces have been p8t in the search that debris fro4 the plane 4ay event8ally be fo8nd. Dad &'e pane)aen on )%r. and" 'oweer" &'e +o,a panop&%c-. o) sa&e%&es and drones &'a&con&ro &'e a&.osp'ere" and &'ere)ore ook a& &'e pane& )ro. '%+' a,oe" wo-d'ae aread* oca&ed &'e de,r%s( B-& &'e pane )e %n&o a %;-%d or&e6 &'a& swaows-p .os& o) &'e 'ea* o,>ec&s &'a& )a %n&o %&( /his is li>8id 4atter that, beca8se of its physical properties,lets the force of gravity p8ll those obects down toward a dar: abyss that the na:ed h84an body confronts as a physical environ4entdevoid of solid gro8nd and breathable airA the oceanic void.


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I.pac&s


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I.per%a%s.

Ocean spa&%a%&* perpe&-a&es ocean %.per%a%s." -n%a&era%n&eren&%on%s." .an%p-a&%on" and do.%na&%on o) &'e T'%rd ord(

A&e%n,er+ 1. (Phillip Steinberg, Ph.-. &lar: University. /he Social &onstr8ction of the%cean, P8blished by the &a4bridge University Press in $55. Page $+;$6.) MMG

'rtic8lation theory infor4s this st8dy of the social constr8ction of the ocean;space in two ways, one general and one 4ore specific.

Li:e world;syste4s theorists, artic8lation theorists s8ggest that &'e spa&%a%&* o) &'e .odern word" )ar)ro. ,e%n+ con&%n+en& &o )-nda.en&a cap%&a%s& processes" %s a necessar*

co.ponen& o) cap%&a%s.. 2oca&%ons o) par&%a %ncorpora&%on pa* an essen&%a roe

%n reprod-c%n+ cap%&a%s. . While this theory does not directly address ocean;space, it raises the possibility that

ocean@space" as ano&'er area &'a& acks de)%n%&%e cap%&a%s& processes ,-& seres acr-c%a roe %n &'e +o,a econo.*" %s %n so.e .anner a necessar* and -n%;-eGpaceG w%&'%n &'e cap%&a%s&@do.%na&ed word econo.*. More specifically, the artic8lationists showhow F%rs& ord Cap%&a%s&s en&er a non@cap%&a%s& re+%on and seec&%e* ,-&&ress

ee.en&s o) &'e non@cap%&a%s& soc%a )or.a&%on so &'a& &'e re+%on" w'en %n&e+ra&ed%n&o &'e +o,a &rad%n+ s*s&e." %s o) e6cep&%ona ser%ce &o &'e cap%&a%s&s w'odo.%na&e &'e word econo.*(Dven as capitalists transfor4 a /hird World region so as to be co4patible with ?irstWorld interests, seec&%e non@cap%&a%s&s c'arac&er%s&%c o) &'e re+%on are e.p'as%0ed

,o&' %n rea%&* and %n represen&a&%on( T'%s seec&%e e.p'as%0%n+ o) non@cap%&a%s&"

Gnon@F%rs& ordG c'arac&er%s&%cs ,o&' seres &o )ac%%&a&e do.%na&%on and &o

>-s&%)* %& . 1n the narrative presented here, an analogo8s process is revealedA F%rs ord cap%&a%s&s 'ae

cons&r-c&ed &'e ocean %n a .anner &'a& seec&%e* reprod-ces and e.p'as%0es %&se6%s&ence as a space apar& )ro. and@,ased cap%&a%s& soc%e&*. T'%s cons&r-c&%on 'as

,een ad>-s&ed oer &%.e &o sere spec%)%c s&a+es o) cap%&a%s." .-c' as &'e&ec'n%;-es o) %.per%a%s. 'ae s'%)&ed oer &%.e )ro. pan&a&%ons and &rad%n+

pos&s &o coon%es &o pos&@coon%a do.%na&%on. 9et thro8gh all the different definitions and socialconstr8ctions of ocean;space, &'e ocean cons%s&en&* 'as ,een a crea&%on o) cap%&a%s. even as it haslac:ed so4e of the capitalis4Is essential characteristics, 8st as the /hird World contin8ally has been (re)constr8cted to servecapitalis4 even as it has re4ained i448ne fro4 the labor syste4 that is paradig4atic of the capitalist 4ode of prod8ction. 1ndeed,

%n ,o&' &'e T'%rd ord and &'e ocean" &'e des%+na&%on o) &'ese spaces asG%nco.pe&eG or Gess deeopedG= >-s&%)%es )-r&'er %n&eren&%on and.an%p-a&%on(

Terr%&or%a%&* re%n)orces po%&%ca and %.per%a o&'er%0a&%on -s%n+ocean space as a &oo )or '%erarc'%ca con&ro and do.%na&%on(A&e%n,er+ 1. (Phillip Steinberg, Ph.-. &lar: University. /he Social &onstr8ction of the%cean, P8blished by the &a4bridge University Press in $55. Page $+;$6.) MMG

With the rise of pre;4odern civiliBations, &err%&or%a%&* &ook on new )-nc&%ons appropr%a&e &o &'esoc%a s&r-c&-re o) &'ese soc%e&%es( Terr%&or%a%&* ,e+an &o ,e -sed ,* &'e r-%n+casses &o de)%ne w'%c' peope and reso-rces ,eon+ed -nder &'e%r con&ro and &ode)%ne e6ac&* w'a& &'e rea&%ons'%p o) con&ro s'o-d ,e(Terr%&or%a%&* was -sed &ocrea&e and en)orce '%erarc'%ca soc%a rea&%ons w%&'%n &'e soc%e&*( 2%.%&%n+ cer&a%npeope4s access &o cer&a%n spaces ca.e &o sere as a .eans &oward &'e end o)reprod-c%n+ soc%a '%erarc'*(/erritories were constr8cted as 4olds for other social relationships, not necessarilypertaining to the direct relationship between people and place. 'dditionally, &err%&or%a%&* ,e+an &o ,e -sed )or


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cass%)%ca&%on p-rposes: w'e&'er one %ed w%&'%n a soc%e&*4s &err%&or* and w'e&'erone con&roed owned= a por&%on a por&%on o) &'a& &err%&or*had social i4plications transcendingland;8se and land access iss8es. T'e deeop.en& o) &err%&or%a%&* con&%n-es w%&' &'e aden& o)cap%&a%s& and .odern%&*. 'lready 8nder hierarchical civiliBations, territoriality occasionally had been 8tiliBed to reifyi4personal b8rea8cratic relationships ant to obsc8re so8rces of power. T'ese -ses o) &err%&or%a%&* ,eca.e.ore preaen& and .ore re)%ned -nder cap%&a%s. . Most significant, tho8gh, was the way in which

&err%&or%a%&* -nder cap%&a%s. ,eca.e cons&r-c&ed %n s-c' a wa* as &o s-ppor& &'econcep& o) a,s&rac&" Ge.p&%a,eG space: T'e repeaed and consc%o-s -se o) &err%&or*as an %ns&r-.en& &o de)%ne" con&ro" and .od a )-%d peope and d*na.%c een&seads &o a sense o) a,s&rac&" e.p&%a,e space . 1t 4a:es co448nity see4 to be artificialE it 4a:es the f8t8reappear geographically as a dyna4ic relationship between people and events on the one hand and territorial 4olds on the other. 'nd

it 4a:es space see4 to be only contingently related to events... .odern -se o) &err%&or* %s ,ased .os& o)a -pon a s-))%c%en& po%&%ca a-&'or%&* o) power &o .a&c' &'e d*na.%cs o)cap%&a%s.: &o 'ep repea&ed* .oe" .od" and con&ro '-.an spa&%a or+an%0a&%onat vast scales.../erritory beco4es concept8ally and even act8ally e4ptiable and this presents space as both a real and e4ptiables8rface or stage on which events occ8r. (Sac: "!


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enoc%de S %oence

Terr%&or%a%&* >-s&%)%es +enoc%de and %oence as presera&%on o)soere%+n&* and power(

M,e., and enda LK. Joseph;'chille Mbe4beA He obtained his Ph.-. in History atthe University of Sorbonne in Paris, ?rance, in "!". He s8bse>8ently obtained a -.D.'. inPolitical Science at the 1nstit8t d2Dt8des Politi>8es. Steven 0endall st8died philosophy andche4istry at San ?rancisco State University, the &ollege of #otre -a4e and U& Fer:eley. 't theDdge of the WorldA Fo8ndaries, /erritoriality, and Sovereignty in 'frica.httpAKKp8blicc8lt8re.orgKarticlesKviewK$KKat;the;edge;of;the;world;bo8ndaries;territoriality;and;sovereignty;in;africa. MMG

?ro4 a philosophical point of view, +o,a%0a&%on .%+'& ,e co.pared w%&' w'a& De%de++ercaed #&'e +%+an&%c$ das %es%+e=( For a.on+ &'e c'arac&er%s&%cs o) &'e +%+an&%c as'e -nders&ood %& were ,o&' &'e e%.%na&%on o) +rea& d%s&ances and &'erepresen&a&%on7prod8cible at any ti4e7of daily life in 8nfa4iliar and distant worlds. F8t the gigantic was for hi4 aboveall that thro8gh which the >8antitative beca4e an essential >8ality. ?ro4 this point of view, the ti4e of the gigantic was that in

which &'e word pos%&s %&se) %n a space ,e*ond represen&a&%on" &'-s aoca&%n+ &o &'e%ncac-a,e %&s own de&er.%na&%on and -n%;-e '%s&or%ca c'arac&er. I) a& &'ecen&er o) &'e d%sc-ss%on on +o,a%0a&%on we pace &'e &'ree pro,e.s o) spa&%a%&*"cac-a,%%&*" and &e.pora%&* %n &'e%r rea&%ons w%&' represen&a&%on , we find o8rselvesbro8ght bac: to two points 8s8ally ignored in conte4porary disco8rses, even tho8gh ?ernand Fra8del had called attention to the4./he first of these has to do with te4poral pl8ralities, and, we 4ight add, with the s8bectivity that 4a:es these te4poralitiespossible and 4eaningf8l. Fra8del drew a distinction between te4poralities of long and very long d8ration, slowly evolving and lessslowly evolving sit8ations, rapid and virt8ally instantaneo8s devia;tions, the >8ic:est being the easiest to detect.$ He went on toe4phasiBe7and this was the second point7the e3ceptional character of what he called world ti4e (le te4ps d8 4onde). ?or hi4,ti4e e3perienced in the di4ensions of the world had an e3ceptional character insofar as it governed, depending on the period andthe location, certain spaces and certain realities. F8t other realities and other spaces escaped it and re4ained alien to it.= /hefollowing notes, altho8gh they adopt the notion of long d8ration and relativiBe the airtightness of the distinctions 4entioned above,nonetheless differ in several respects fro4 Fra8del2s theses. /hey are based on a twofold hypothesis. ?irst, they ass84e thatte4poralities overlap and interlace. 1n fact, Fra8del2s post8late of the pl8rality of te4poralities does not by itself s8ffice to acco8ntfor conte4porary changes. 1n the case of 'frica, long;ter4 develop4ents, 4ore or less rapid deviations, and long;ter4 te4poralities

are not necessarily either separate or 4erely 83taposed. ?itted within one another, they relay each otherE so4eti4es they canceleach other o8t, and so4eti4es their effects are 48ltiplied. &ontrary to Fra8del2s conviction, it is not clear that there are any Boneson which world history wo8ld have no reperc8ssions. What really differ are the 4any 4odalities in which world ti4e isdo4esticated. /hese 4odalities depend on histories and local c8lt8res, on the interplay of interests whose deter4inants do not alllead in the sa4e direction. /he central thesis of this st8dy is that in several regions considered7 wrongly7to be on the 4argins of

the world" &'e do.es&%ca&%on o) word &%.e 'ence)or&' &akes pace ,* do.%na&%n+space and p-&&%n+ %& &o d%))eren& -ses('en reso-rces are p-& %n&o c%rc-a&%on" &'econse;-ence %s a d%sconnec&%on ,e&ween peope and &'%n+s &'a& %s .ore .arked

&'an %& was %n &'e pas&" &'e a-e o) &'%n+s +enera* s-rpass%n+ &'a& o) peope . T'a&

%s one o) &'e reasons w'* &'e res-&%n+ )or.s o) %oence 'ae as &'e%r c'%e) +oa

&'e p'*s%ca des&r-c&%on o) peope .assacres o) c%%%ans" +enoc%des" ar%o-s

k%nds o) k%%n+= and &'e pr%.ar* e6po%&a&%on o) &'%n+s . T'ese )or.s o) %oence

o) w'%c' war %s on* one aspec&= con&r%,-&e &o &'e es&a,%s'.en& o) soere%+n&*o-&s%de &'e s&a&e" and are ,ased on a con)-s%on ,e&ween power and )ac& , between p8blicaffairs and private govern4ent.+ 1n this st8dy, we are interested in a specific for4 of do.es&%ca&%on and.o,%%0a&%on o) space and reso-rces: &'e )or. &'a& cons%s&s %n prod-c%n+

,o-ndar%es" w'e&'er ,* .o%n+ aread* e6%s&%n+ ones or ,* do%n+ awa* w%&' &'e.")ra+.en&%n+ &'e." decen&er%n+ or d%))eren&%a&%n+ &'e.( 1n dealing with these >8estions, we willdraw a distinction between 'frica as a place and 'frica as a territory. 1n fact, a place is the order according to which ele4ents aredistrib8ted in relationships of coe3istence. ' place, as Michel de &ertea8 points o8t, is an instantaneo8s config8ration of positions. 1t

%.p%es a s&a,%%&*( s )or a &err%&or*" %& %s )-nda.en&a* an %n&ersec&%on o) .o%n+
http://publicculture.org/articles/view/12/1/at-the-edge-of-the-world-boundaries-territoriality-and-sovereignty-in-africahttp://publicculture.org/articles/view/12/1/at-the-edge-of-the-world-boundaries-territoriality-and-sovereignty-in-africahttp://publicculture.org/articles/view/12/1/at-the-edge-of-the-world-boundaries-territoriality-and-sovereignty-in-africahttp://publicculture.org/articles/view/12/1/at-the-edge-of-the-world-boundaries-territoriality-and-sovereignty-in-africa


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,od%es( I& %s de)%ned essen&%a* ,* &'e se& o) .oe.en&s &'a& &ake pace w%&'%n %&(6Seen in this way, it is a set of possibilities that historically sit8ated actors constantly resist or realiBe.< %ver the past two cent8ries

the visible, 4aterial, and sy4bolic bo8ndaries of 'frica have constantly e3panded and contracted. T'e s&r-c&-rac'arac&er o) &'%s %ns&a,%%&* 'as 'eped c'an+e &'e &err%&or%a ,od* o) &'e con&%nen&(New )or.s o) &err%&or%a%&* and -ne6pec&ed )or.s o) oca%&* 'ae appeared . /heirli4its do not necessarily intersect with the official li4its, nor4s, or lang8age of states. #ew internal and e3ternal actors, organiBed

into networ:s and n8clei, clai4 rights over these territories, often by force. O&'er wa*s o) %.a+%n%n+ space and

&err%&or* are deeop%n+( Parado6%ca* " &'e d%sco-rse &'a& %s s-pposed &o acco-n&

)or &'ese &rans)or.a&%ons 'as ended -p o,sc-r%n+ &'e.( Dssentially, two theses ignore eachother. %n one hand, the prevailing idea is that the bo8ndaries separating 'frican states were created by colonialis4, that thesebo8ndaries were arbitrarily drawn, and that they separated peoples, ling8istic entities, and c8lt8ral and political co448nities that

for4ed nat8ral and ho4ogeneo8s wholes before coloniBation. T'e coon%a ,o-ndar%es are aso sa%d &o'ae opened &'e wa* &o &'e Bakan%0a&%on o) &'e con&%nen& ,* c-&&%n+ %& -p %n&o a.a0e o) .%cros&a&es &'a& were no& econo.%ca* %a,e and were %nked .ore &oE-rope &'an &o &'e%r re+%ona en%ron.en&. %n this view, by adopting these distortions in "


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&s


35/71

Un+ro-nd%n+

T'e a&erna&%e %s &o -n+ro-nd o-rsees -se &'e ,ao& &o a))%r. &'e.-&%p%c%&* o) Ear&'4s &erra%ns

ord%o /8(Gast[nGordillo * Professor, -epart4ent of 'nthropology, University of Fritish &ol84bia, /he %ceanicoidA /he Dternal Feco4ing of Li>8id Space, %pa>8e PlanetA %8tline of a /heory of /errain, Space and PoliticsA Dssays on thespatial and affective p8lse of politics (+K=K$5+),httpAKKspaceandpolitics.blogspot.co4K$5+K5+Kthe;oceanic;void.ht4l KK JJ)My analysis of oceanic space draws fro4 recent efforts in the h84anities to e3a4ine geo;physical forces in ter4s of their own4ateriality and rhyth4s, witho8t red8cing the4 to their social appropriations by h84an societies. /he literat8re on the socialconstr8ction of nat8re played an i4portant role in 8nder4ining the d8alis4 between society and nat8re and in showing thatsociety is not e3ternal to nat8re. 9et this perspective often red8ces nat8re to the passive, 4alleable bac:gro8nd 8pon whichactive, h84an;centered forces operate. Phillip Steinberg2s /he Social &onstr8ction of the %cean is the best boo: devoted to analyBing

the geography of the oceans. Steinberg shows with great detail and sophistication how '-.an soc%e&%es 'ae .ade-se o) and concep&-a%0ed &'e ocean %n d%))eren& '%s&or%ca per%ods and %n d%))eren&par&s o) &'e word. He de4onstrates that )ar )ro. ,e%n+ a space #e.p&*$ o) soc%a%&*" &'eocean 'as ,een soc%a%0ed a& .-&%pe ees and %s a cr-c%a co.ponen& o) +o,ac-rren&s o) &rade and rea&%ons o) &err%&or%a power. 'nd while the boo: does not e3a4ine how theli>8id nat8re of oceanic space escapes h84an coding, Steinberg leaves the door open for a non;constr8ctivist view of the ocean whenhe writes, at the end of his boo:, that this re4ains an i4portant and pending >8estionA that in being a space of nat8re, so4e

cr8cial di4ensions of oceanic space are not red8cible to their social 8ses, 4ost notably the fact that the sea never stops 4oving (p.$5) 1n his essay, I &ake &'%s [email protected],%e na&-re o) ocean%c space as .* s&ar&%n+ po%n& ./his is also a di4ension that SteinbergIs 4ost recent wor: on oceanic spatiality is e3ploring (as the conversation we have in the

co44ents below 4a:e clear). F8t I pre)er &o %ew &'e ocean no& as a space o) na&-re ,-& as a

spa&%a se& w%&'%n &'e &erra%n o) pane& Ear&' . 's several a8thors have noted, &'e no&%on o)

na&-re %s &oo oaded w%&' &ranscenden&a conno&a&%ons &o ,e saa+ed as a -se)-

ana*&%c concep& , even if we add the 8s8al disclai4ers abo8t the need to overco4e the society;nat8re d8alis4. /hisproble4 is clear in the very idea that the ocean is a nat8ral space, for this i4plies that places 4ade by h84ans are not nat8ral,thereby reintrod8cing the distinction between society and nat8re that is p8blicly disavowed. /errain is the absol8te te4poral4aterialiBation of what we abstract as Znat8re.Z Seas, 4o8ntains, roads, rivers, cities, far4s, bridges, forestsA they are the type of

sing8larities that envelope o8r ever;fleeting bodies as part of the terrain of planet Darth. 's 1 have arg8ed here, I see &erra%nas %no%n+ a e6%s&%n+" &'ree@d%.ens%ona .a&er%a )or.s '-.an .ade or no&=&'a& are cons&%&-&%e o) space as we know %&: &'a& %s" &'e &an+%,e space o) &'%s

word( T'%s ana*s%s o) &'e ocean as a spa&%a se& w%&'%n &'e &erra%n %.p%es a.a&er%a%s&" o,>ec&@or%en&ed" and a))ec&%e ens ,-& .ore %.por&an&* a +eo.e&r%ce*e and percep&%on(/his is why a theory of terrain de4ands a SpinoBian sensibility b8ilt in critical dialog8e with the twolast philosophical titans of the worldA -ele8Be and Fadio8. T'e s&ar&%n+ pr%nc%pe o) a &'eor* o) &erra%n %s&'a& o) %&s p-re .a&er%a .-&%p%c%&*( T'%s .eans &'a& &'e .a&er%a%&* o) &'e &erra%n%s no& 'o.o+eno-s" ,-& &'e oppos%&e( SpinoBa arg8ed that the body is 4ade 8p of hard, soft, and li>8idele4entsA bones, flesh, and blood. Li:ewise, &'e pane&ar* &erra%n %s de)%ned ,* a .-&%p%c%&* o)p'*s%ca dens%&%es and &e6&-res" %no%n+ 'ard" so)&" +aseo-s" and %;-%d ee.en&sen+a+%n+ %n d%))eren& de+rees o) &e.pera&-re( T'e ocean %s cer&a%n* &'e ar+es&e6press%on o) %;-%d space on Ear&'(&o4prising over two;thirds of the s8rface of the planet, &'e ocean%c

o%d 'as ,een one o) &'e .os& power)- and de&er.%n%n+ spa&%a )orces %n '-.an'%s&or*(I&s .os& de)%n%n+ )ea&-re %s &'a&" )or &'e '-.an ,od*" %& crea&es &'e

+enera%0ed -n+ro-nd%n+ we ca drown%n+. T'e '%s&or* o) %.per%a and cap%&a%s&

e6pans%on %n&o &'e &o&a%&* o) &'e pane& 'as reoed " &o a +rea& e6&en&" aro-nd

&ec'noo+%ca e))or&s &o co-n&er &'%s -n+ro-nd%n+ crea&ed ,* &'e e&erna" eer@

.o,%e ,eco.%n+ o) %;-%d space(


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On&oo+%ca epos%&%on%n+

T'e a&erna&%e %s &o reco+n%0e o-r ,od%* on&oo+* as and crea&-res -se &'e ,ao& &o a))%r. &'e )ac& &'a& we w% neer ,e a,e &o

-nders&and or con&ro &'e oceanord%o /8(Gast[nGordillo * Professor, -epart4ent of 'nthropology, University of Fritish &ol84bia, /he %ceanicoidA /he Dternal Feco4ing of Li>8id Space, %pa>8e PlanetA %8tline of a /heory of /errain, Space and PoliticsA Dssays on thespatial and affective p8lse of politics (+K=K$5+),httpAKKspaceandpolitics.blogspot.co4K$5+K5+Kthe;oceanic;void.ht4l KK JJ)We :now that the ocean covers two thirds of the planet2s s8rface. F8t what type of space is the ocean %ne way to begin answeringthis >8estion is to loo: at those areas where the spatiality of the ocean 4eets that of islands and continents. /he 4aterialco8nterpoint between both types of spaces is apparent and see4ingly self;evident. %n the one hand, the beaches, 4o8ntains, orh84an;4ade b8ildings that define the coastline and e4erge fro4 above the oceanic s8rface constit8te the type of spaces where thevast 4aority of h84ans are born, live, and die. /hese geographies are defined by a 48ltiplicity of te3t8res and for4s b8t share thesolid spatiality that has s8stained h84ans as land creat8res adapted over 4illions of years to breath, eat, 4ove, and reprod8ce on

fir4 land in direct contact with the at4osphere. %n the other hand,,e*ond &'e coas&%ne" &'e ,od*con)ron&s a ;-a%&a&%e* d%))eren& space: )-%d" .o,%e" %;-%d( T'%s %s a space

w'ose .-&%p%c%&* %s s-,s-.ed &o &'e p'*s%ca proper&%es o) wa&er: an%nco.press%,e )-%d &'a& %s per.anen&* %n .o&%on ,eca-se %&s .oec-es can.oe rea&%e &o eac' o&'er" adap&%n+ &o &'e s'ape o) %&s con&a%ner" &'e Ear&'4ss-r)ace" and &o &'e )orces o) &'e a&.osp'ere( A'ore%nes" %n s'or&" are a.on+ &'e.os& dra.a&%c &'res'ods %n '-.an e6per%ences o) space: &'e po%n& w'ere &'econs%s&enc* and .a&er%a%&* o) space a,r-p&* c'an+es and &'e ,od* )aces &'e

,e+%nn%n+ o) a %;-%d word w%&' )ows" r'*&'.s" and proper&%es &'a& are no& &'oseo) and(F8t Gcoas&%nes"GSteve MentB re4inds 4e, %s no& &'e r%+'& na.e &'e en&an+e.en&

,e&ween &'ese &wo spa&%a ecoo+%es" w'%c' I pre)er &o see as .a&er%a se&s"%nsepara,e )ro. eac' o&'er *e& d%s&%nc& and s%n+-ar( 1 wo8ld addA the 4aterial na4e for thisthreshold is edge. &oastlines are those areas where space folds to reveal the edge of a tr8ly i44ense li>8id void, planetary in scopeand nat8re. 's 1 arg8e in 08bble, one of the 4ost e3traordinary sections in Fadio8Is boo: on -ele8Be, /he &la4or of Feing, involveshis disc8ssion of the intense private e3changes that they had over several years thro8gh personal letters. %ne concept stood o8t in4y reading of Fadio8A one that he and -ele8Be approved of as part of their shared constellationA Zon the edge of the void.Z Fadio8says that -ele8Be interpreted the edge of the void as the intersection between the territory and the process of deterritorialiBation, the

dissol8tion of the territory in the event. On &'e ed+e o) &'e ocean%c o%d" &'e d%sso%n+ ec&or o)

de&err%&or%a%0a&%on %s &'e een& o) &'e -n+ro-nd%n+ crea&ed ,* a %;-%dword(D-.ans 'ae on+ na%+a&ed and -sed ocean%c space w%&' '%+' de+rees o)e6per&%se and sop'%s&%ca&%on(Many feel at ho4e there, at ease in that li>8id, 8nta4eable world. B-& &'e* doso as and crea&-res w'ose ana&o.* and p'*s%oo+* 'ae eoed &o .oe and

,rea&'e on )%r. +ro-nd( T'e %;-%d space o) &'e ocean can er* ;-%ck* eneopand asp'*6%a&e &'e '-.an ,od%es &'a& en&-re %n %& w%&'o-& )o&a&%on de%ces( I& %s%n &'%s prec%se p'*s%ca sense &'a& &'e '-.an ,od* con)ron&s &'e ocean as a o%d: asli>8id 4atter that does not halt the p8ll of gravity toward the heart of the planet the way f ir4 land does and that, in sin:ing the body

in a fl8id devoid of breathable air, negates and interr8pts land;based for4s of 4obility and territoriality. T'%s %;-%d

space" %n s'or&" %.poses on '-.ans a c'aen+%n+ spa&%a%&* &'a& can ,e soc%a*

-sed ,-& canno& ,e )-* con&roed" )or %& )oows %&s own" power)- r'*&'.s(

T'ese r'*&'.s are crea&ed ,* )orces .o,%%0ed ,* a pane& %n .o&%on A by the rotation ofthe Darth aro8nd its a3is and aro8nd the s8n, by the cyclical e3pos8re of the ocean and the at4osphere to the heat of the s8n, by thegravity of the 4oon, as well as by the friction between tectonic plates, which occasionally sha:e the depths of the ocean to create

ts8na4is. T'%s or&e6 %s )ar )ro. ,e%n+ e.p&*: %& %s %n'a,%&ed ,* a p-re .-&%p%c%&* o)

%n&ens%&%es %n .o&%on and ,* a ar+e ,%o.ass( B-& &'e ocean %s a o%d %n &'e

p'*s%ca sense o) &'e &er." s%.p* ,eca-se aone %n &'e ocean we drown %n an

%ns&an&" ,r%n+%n+ &o %+'& w'a& we &end &wo &ake )or +ran&ed: o-r ,od%* on&oo+*

as and crea&-res w'o ,rea&' a%r( 1n this essay, 1 arg8e that ee-0e pro%des -s concep&s


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&'a& are par&%c-ar* %.por&an& &o e6a.%ne &'e %;-%d spa&%a%&* o) ocean%c space"s-c' as ,eco.%n+" )od" .-&%p%c%&*" %n&ens%&*" s%n+-ar%&*" d%))erence" repe&%&%on"e&erna re&-rn" %r&-a" ac&-a" and s.oo&' and s&r%a&ed space(I& %s espec%a* %n &'eana*s%s o) &'e repe&%&%e" r'*&'.%ca" and eer@)-%d spa&%a%&* o) &'e ocean &'a&ee-0e4s p'%osop'* reeas %&s power &o %-.%na&e o-r -nders&and%n+ o) space %n%&s %..anence, independently of h84an appropriations b8t also in relation to the4. My analysis is in dialog8e with a8thors

li:e John Protevi and Levi Fryant, who also draw on -ele8Be to thin: the 4aterial beco4ing and gravitational forces of non;h84an4ade obects and forces. 'nd as Protevi arg8es, the beco4ing of water is partic8larly a4enable to -ele8BeIs philosophy (Life, War,Darth, p. +6). 9et 4y analysis also goes beyond -ele8Be beca8se it p8ts hi4 in dialog8e with 'lain Fadio8 by s8bs84ing thebeco4ing of oceanic space to a fig8re of negativity s8ch as the void. /his 4ay see4 li:e a co8nterint8itive 4ove, given -ele8Be2swell;:nown hostility toward the negative and his p8blic disagree4ents with Fadio8. 9et 1 see their thin:ing as creatively entangledin 48ltiple ways, and for starters 1 8nderstand the void not as a fig8re of spatial e4ptiness b8t rather, drawing fro4 Fadio8, as a

fig8re of p8re 48ltiplicityA that is, a 48ltiplicity that is non;representable. T'e ocean4s spa&%a%&* )or.s an%..ense o%d no& ,eca-se %& %s e.p&* ,-&" on &'e con&rar*" ,eca-se %& %s a pos%&%epresence &'a& %s a prod-c&%e and d%sr-p&%e .-&%p%c%&* o) %n&ens%&%es"

s%n+-ar%&%es" and r'*&'.s: a or&e6 &'a& o%ds %n&err-p&s" ne+a&es" d%sr-p&s= &'e

spa&%a%&* o) '-.an .o,%%&* on )%r. and(


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Ocean Ma&er%a%&*

T'e a&erna&%e %s &o reco+n%0e &'e a+enc* o) &'e ocean -se &'e ,ao&&o a))%r. &'e .a&er%a%&* o) wa&er

Bear e& a( 11(&hristopher Fear * 1nstit8te of Geography and Darth Sciences, 'berystwyth University, and Jacob F8ll *&entre for Gender 0esearch, Uppsala University, Water 4attersA agency, flows, and frictions, Dnviron4ent and Planning ' ($5),vol. +=, pp. $$


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Jo* o+er

T'e a&erna&%e %s &o a))%r. &'e s*.,o o) &'e Jo* o+er -se &'e,ao& &o ,reak down &'e s&r%a&ed space o) &'e ocean

K-'n 1(Gabriel C8hn * Ph.-. in philosophy with a specialty in poststr8ct8ralis4, University of 1nnsbr8c:, Life Under theJolly 0ogerA 0eflections on Golden 'ge Piracy, PM Press ($55), pp. 6";


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econs&r-c&%on

T'e a&erna&%e %s &o decons&r-c& &'e .ap -se &'e ,ao& &o reea &'ed%ssonance ,e&ween rea%&* and represen&a&%on

Dare* 93(J.F. Harley * geographer, cartographer, and 4ap historian at the 8niversities of Fir4ingha4, Liverpool, D3eterand Wisconsin*Milwa8:ee, -econstr8cting the Map, &artography (Spring "!"), vol. $< no. $, pp. ;$5 KK JJ)VVMod%)%ed )or a,e%s& an+-a+e ed%&ed &e6& %n ,racke&s/he pace of concept8al e3ploration in the history of cartography7searching for alternative ways of 8nderstanding 4aps7is slow.So4e wo8ld say that its achieve4ents are largely cos4etic. 'pplying conceptions of literary history to the history of cartography, itwo8ld appear that we are still wor:ing largely in either a Ipre4odern,I or a I4odernI rather than in a Ipost4odernI cli4ate of tho8ght.$Q ' list of individ8al e3plorations wo8ld, it is tr8e, contain so4e that so8nd i4pressive. %8r st8dents can now be directed towritings that draw on the ideas of infor4ation theory, ling8istics, se4iotics, str8ct8ralis4, pheno4enology, develop4ental theory,her4ene8tics, iconology, 4ar3is4, and ideology. We can point to the na4es in o8r footnotes of (a4ong others) &assirer, Go4brich,Piaget, Panofs:y, C8hn, Farthes and Dco. 9et despite these sy4pto4s of change, we are still, willingly or 8nwillingly, the prisoners

of o8r own past.My basic arg84ent in this essay is thatwe s'o-d enco-ra+e an ep%s&e.oo+%ca s'%)&

%n &'e wa* we %n&erpre& &'e na&-re o) car&o+rap'*( ?or historians of cartography, 1 believe a

.a>or road,ock &o -nders&and%n+ %s &'a& we s&% accep& -ncr%&%ca* &'e ,road

consens-s" w%&' rea&%e* )ew d%ssen&%n+ o%ces" o) w'a& car&o+rap'ers &e -s

.aps are s-pposed &o ,e( In par&%c-ar" we o)&en &end &o work )ro. &'e pre.%se

&'a& .appers en+a+e %n an -n;-es&%ona,* sc%en&%)%c or o,>ec&%e )or. o)knowed+e crea&%on(%f co8rse, cartographers believe they have to say this to re4ain credible b8t historians do not havethat obligation. I& %s ,e&&er )or -s &o ,e+%n )ro. &'e pre.%se &'a& car&o+rap'* %s sedo.

w'a& car&o+rap'ers sa* %& %s(s &'e* e.,race co.p-&er@ass%s&ed .e&'ods andeo+rap'%ca In)or.a&%on A*s&e.s" &'e sc%en&%s&%c r'e&or%c o) .ap .akers %s

,eco.%n+ .ore s&r%den&( T'e c-&-re o) &ec'n%cs %s eer*w'ere ra.pan&( We are toldthat the o8rnal now na4ed /he '4erican &artographer will beco4e &artography and Geographical 1nfor4ation Syste4s. %r, in astrangely a4bivalent gest8re toward the nat8re of 4aps, the Fritish &artographic Society proposes that there sho8ld be twodefinitions of cartography, Zone for professional cartographers and the other for the p8blic at large.Z ' definition Zfor 8se inco448nication with the general p8blicZ wo8ld be Z&artography is the art, science and technology of 4a:ing 4apsZA that forIpracticing cartographersI wo8ld be Z&artography is the science and technology of analyBing and interpreting geographic

relationships, and co448nicating the res8lts by 4eans of 4aps.Z =Q Man* .a* )%nd %& s-rpr%s%n+ &'a& ar&

no on+er e6%s&s %n pro)ess%ona car&o+rap'*( In &'e presen& con&e6&" 'oweer"&'ese s%+ns o) on&oo+%caschiBophreniaQd%ssonanceR can aso ,e read as re)ec&%n+ an-r+en& need &o re&'%nk &'e na&-re o) .aps )ro. d%))eren& perspec&%es( T'e;-es&%on ar%ses as &o w'e&'er &'e no&%on o) a pro+ress%e sc%ence %s a .*&' par&*crea&ed ,* car&o+rap'ers %n &'e co-rse o) &'e%r own pro)ess%ona deeop.en&( 1

s8ggest that %& 'as ,een accep&ed &oo -ncr%&%ca* ,* a w%der p-,%c and ,* o&'er

sc'oars w'o work w%&' .aps( +Q For &'ose concerned w%&' &'e '%s&or* o) .aps %&

%s espec%a* &%.e* &'a& we c'aen+e &'e car&o+rap'ers ass-.p&%ons( Indeed" %)&'e '%s&or* o) car&o+rap'* %s &o +row as an %n&erd%sc%p%nar* s-,>ec& a.on+ &'e'-.an%&%es and soc%a sc%ences" new %deas are essen&%a(T'e ;-es&%on ,eco.es'ow do we as '%s&or%ans o) car&o+rap'* escape )ro. &'e nor.a&%e .odes o)

car&o+rap'*How do we allow new ideas to co4e in How do we begin to write a cartographic history as gen8inelyrevisionist as Lo8is MarinIs I/he Cing and his Geo4eterI (in the conte3t of a seventeenth cent8ry 4ap of Paris) or Willia4FoelhowerIs I/he &8lt8re of the MapI (in the conte3t of si3teenth;cent8ry world 4aps showing '4erica for the first ti4e) 6Q /heseare two st8dies infor4ed by post4odernis4. 1n this essay 1 also adopt a strategy ai4ed at the deconstr8ction of the 4ap. /he notionof deconstr8ction


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ep%s&e.oo+* )or &'e '%s&or* o) car&o+rap'*( /he obective is to s8ggest that an a&erna&%e

ep%s&e.oo+*" roo&ed %n soc%a &'eor* ra&'er &'an %n sc%en&%)%c pos%&%%s." %s .ore

appropr%a&e &o &'e '%s&or* o) car&o+rap'*( 1t will be shown that een sc%en&%)%c .aps are a

prod-c& no& on* o) G&'e r-es o) &'e order o) +eo.e&r* and reason ,-& aso o) &'eGnor.s and a-es o) &'e order o) soc%a ((( &rad%&%on(G !Q O-r &ask %s &o searc' )or

&'e soc%a )orces &'a& 'ae s&r-c&-red car&o+rap'* and &o oca&e &'e presence o)power?and %&s e))ec&s?%n a .ap knowed+e(/he ideas in this partic8lar essay owe 4ost to writings by?o8ca8lt and -errida. My approach is deliberately eclectic beca8se in so4e respects the theoretical positions of these two a8thorsare inco4patible. ?o8ca8lt anchors te3ts in socio;political realities and constr8cts syste4s for organiBing :nowledge of the :ind that

-errida loves to dis4antle. "Q F8t even so,,* co.,%n%n+ d%))eren& %deas on a new &erra%n" %& .a*,e poss%,e &o de%se a sc'e.e o) soc%a &'eor* w%&' w'%c' we can ,e+%n &o%n&erro+a&e &'e '%dden a+endas o) car&o+rap'*(S8ch a sche4e offers no Isol8tionI to an historicalinterpretation of the cartographic record, nor a precise 4ethod or set of techni>8es, b8t as a ,road s&ra&e+* %& .a*'ep &o oca&e so.e o) &'e )-nda.en&a )orces &'a& 'ae dr%en [email protected]%n+ %n

,o&' E-ropean and non@E-ropean soc%e&%es(?ro4 ?o8ca8ltIs writings, &'e ke* reea&%on 'as,een &'e o.n%presence o) power %n a knowed+e" een &'o-+' &'a& power %s%n%s%,e or %.p%ed" %nc-d%n+ &'e par&%c-ar knowed+e encoded %n .aps anda&ases(-erridaIs notion of the rhetoricity of all te3ts has been no less a challenge. 5Q 1t de4ands a search for 4etaphor andrhetoric in 4aps where previo8sly scholars had fo8nd only 4eas8re4ent and topography. 1ts central >8estion is re4iniscent ofCorBybs:iIs 48ch older dict84 Z/he 4ap is not the territoryZ Q b8t deconstr8ction goes f8rther to bring the iss8e of how the 4ap

represents place into 48ch sharper foc8s.econs&r-c&%on -r+es -s &o read ,e&ween &'e %nes o) &'e.ap?G%n &'e .ar+%ns o) &'e &e6&G?and &'ro-+' %&s &ropes &o d%scoer &'e s%encesand con&rad%c&%ons &'a& c'aen+e &'e apparen& 'ones&* o) &'e %.a+e( e ,e+%n &oearn &'a& car&o+rap'%c )ac&s are on* )ac&s w%&'%n a spec%)%c c-&-ra perspec&%e(

e s&ar& &o -nders&and 'ow .aps" %ke ar&" )ar )ro. ,e%n+ Ga &ransparen& open%n+&o &'e word"G are ,-& Ga par&%c-ar '-.an wa* o) ook%n+ a& &'e word(G $Q 1n p8rs8ingthis strategy 1 shall develop three threads of arg84ent. ?irst, 1 shall e3a4ine the disco8rse of cartography in the light of so4e of?o8ca8ltIs ideas abo8t the play of r8les within disc8rsive for4ations. Second, drawing on one of -erridaIs central positions 1 wille3a4ine the te3t8ality of 4aps and, in partic8lar, their rhetorical di4ension. /hird, ret8rning to ?o8ca8lt, 1 will consider how 4apswor: in society as a for4 of power;:nowledge.


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e%.a+%na&%on

T'e a&erna&%e %s &o re%.a+%ne &'e %nes o) d%%s%on %n &'e ocean as anac& o) re>ec&%on o) Ocean s&ewards'%p and &err%&or%a%0a&%on(

A&e%n,er+ 33. (Philip D. Steinberg in """, Ph.-. &lar: University ""


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Cr%&%ca Car&o+rap'*

T'e a&erna&%e %s &o en+a+e %n a cr%&%;-e o) car&o+rap'* -se &'e,ao& &a

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Ocean Borders K - Michigan7 2014

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