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Moving and Not Moving: rhythm, flow and interruption in a sensory ethnography of urban cycling
Cox, Peter
Cox, Peter
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2015-09-16
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Recent work in sensory ethnography has drawn attention to the integration of both corporeal and cognitive dimensions in the experience of mobile practices. Drawing on fieldwork conducted in Munich and its immediate surroundings, together with comparative data from Munich and London, this paper follows on from work by Edensor (2010) in linking a Lefebvrian consideration of rhythm with a concern for the sensory dimensions of mobility. In this case, the central concern shifts towards a greater focus on an exploration of the intertwined physical and emotional sensations imposed on the mobile body by its immediate surroundings and the physical environments of movement. In the sensory world of journey-making by bicycle, a process reliant on repetitive, rhythmic physical motion restricted by the mechanics of the machine itself, stopping and starting has a significantly greater impact than it does for walking. The paper therefore considers the import of the not-moving experience for journey-making by the cycle commuter. By focusing on the sensory dimensions of travel, differentiation can be made between stillness, not moving, pausing and waiting. Consideration is given to how these relate to the sensory environments of non-motorised urban mobility.
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Cox, P. (2016, September). Moving and Not Moving: rhythm, flow and interruption in a sensory ethnography of urban cycling. Paper presented at The Future of Mobilities: Flows, Transport and Communication, T2M/ Cosmobilities joint conference Caserta, Italy.
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en