Abstract
Post-industrial societies are characterized by a high degree of mobility which manifests itself through waves of migration and affects all knowledge domains and all aspects of both individual and collective lives. This situation presents challenges under the pressure of a powerfully uniformizing globalization. However, the exponential increase of diversity linked to intensified mobility is also conducive to social transformations since, when the numerous languages and cultures of the migrants encounter the languages and cultures of the host countries, they act as catalyzers of change. This article considers such social transformation in the light of the concept of plurilingualism as distinct from multilingualism, explaining the advantages of the former over the latter in such contexts, and analyzes possible synergies between plurilingualism and creativity through the lens of complexity theories and the theory of affordances, with the related concepts of ‘affordance spaces’ and landscape of affordances. After a brief introduction of the main tenets of complexity theories and affordances, the article builds on three complementary models of creativity, using complexity theories as a framework and discusses the specific characteristics and potential of plurilingualism by explaining how it can transform diversity from an obstacle into an opportunity, a possibility for action. The triadic relationship between creativity, plurilingualism, and complexity is considered. As a result, the article suggests that plurilingualism can create conditions conducive to creativity thanks to its multiple and flexible nature that values all forms of cross-fertilization and the uniqueness of the resulting individual trajectories. Without claiming any causal relationship between plurilingualism and creativity, the paper explains the reasons why it is crucial to nurture and foster plurilingualism in order to provide favorable conditions for creativity and change. The article explains the characteristics and implications of plurilanguaging, and the potential for individuals to embrace a holistic, complex view of languages and cultures and to experience empowerment in the process of perceiving and exploring linguistic and cultural diversity, hybridity and interconnections, thus discovering and liberating their full creative repertoire.
Highlights
We live in “a highly dynamic social tapestry” (OECD, 2000, p. 8) despite the ubiquitousness of identical brands
I will not describe the differences among these perspectives, but rather focus on the core message that complexity theories convey, and the way they help us reason in terms of complex adaptive systems (CASs) when we investigate phenomena difficult to study from a classical, linear perspective
The new vision embedded in plurilingualism aligns with recent developments in the study of creativity, which is characterized by an increasing awareness of the complex nature of creative phenomena and the importance of the social and cultural dimensions, moving toward a paradigm of situated action and distributed cognition (Hutchins, 1995; Glavenau, 2012)
Summary
We live in “a highly dynamic social tapestry” (OECD, 2000, p. 8) despite the ubiquitousness of identical brands. Using a case study based on traditional Easter eggs-decoration in an Orthodox community in Eastern Europe, he shows how transgressing the norm, without violating it, has a creative force as it makes more affordances visible, and available, and eventually allows breaking some of these rules, even while still staying within the overall tradition This vision of affordances as enriched by ecological and socio-cultural psychologists fully aligns with the ecological view of language education (van Lier, 2004; Kramsch, 2008) and is relevant for conceptualizing the potential of plurilingualism. The new vision embedded in plurilingualism aligns with recent developments in the study of creativity, which is characterized by an increasing awareness of the complex nature of creative phenomena and the importance of the social and cultural dimensions, moving toward a paradigm of situated action and distributed cognition (Hutchins, 1995; Glavenau, 2012)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
