Being There, But How?: On the Transformation of Presence in (Post-)Pandemic Times - Paperback

by Sebastian Dümling (Editor), Zhenwei Wang (Editor)

In phenomenological tradition, presence has been understood as fundamental for human experience: I experience the world as my lifeworld because I am present in this world. Even more, I experience myself as I only in the physical presence of the other. However, this concept of presence has become fragile through processes of medialization - especially in (post-)pandemic everyday life. Presence can no longer be experienced exclusively in physical proximity, but also digitally or virtually. With global case studies alongside theoretical discussions by both students as well as junior and senior researchers, the volume launches a conversation between social sciences and humanities on how this change affects human experience.

Author Biography

Sebastian Dümling (PD Dr.) is a cultural anthropologist and historian. He works as a Lecturer at the Chair of European Ethnology/ Empirical Cultural Studies at the University of Würzburg (Germany) and is affiliated as a Privatdozent at the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Basel (Switzerland).
Zhenwei Wang is a PhD candidate in sociology and a member of the Institute for World Society Studies at Bielefeld University (Germany). Her research interests include migration, gender, aging and family transition in China and in East Asia. Her PhD dissertation investigates translocal kinning and caregiving practices in contemporary China.