The discursive approach to place attachment explored through talk about places of residence produced by UK residents from Zimbabwe

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article uses accounts of (dis)connections to past, present, and imagined future places of residence produced by UK residents from Zimbabwe to demonstrate that when people talk about their relationships with particular places, they are doing far more than revealing a subjective sense of belonging. I argue the way the interviewees engage with prevailing tropes and narratives for talking about people-place bonds, and present themselves as certain kinds of people as they produce an account of their connections to places of residence, demonstrates that talk about place attachments is linguistic practice which is social in nature and effects.