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Ontologies and knowledges of autonomous resistances in Barcelona: An ethnographic analysis of Can Batlló

This research is born from a conscious reflection on the roles and judgements
that traditional scientific analyses imprint in its objects of study, especially in the
field of social movement theory. It aims to understand whether and, to which
extent, autonomous resistances knowledges constructed on the ground
challenge the academic interpretations of those movements. For this reason, the
first part of this dissertation focuses on unravelling how traditional ontologies
have been built and underpin majoritarian scientific analyses. Thus, I review most
current debates in the field. Traditional social movement research tends to focus
on dualist discussions related to new and old social movements, European and
American approaches, behavioural or cost-benefits views, structural and agency
approaches, identity-based interpretations, etc. In opposition to that, I argue for
an ontology breaking with dualist views, placing Deleuze’s concept of difference
at the centre of my argument and feminist ontologies of the body as the medium
affecting the political experience. I propose an autoethnographic method focused
on presenting a cartography of urban resistance movements composed by
difference and rhizomatic relationships in opposition to the homogenisation of
ideas and demands of academic research for pilling up patterns, variables or
categories. Deleuze and Guattari’s concept of the BwO is presented here as a
theoretical tool that helps to introduce the case study in relation with its contexts,
relationships, affects and networks.
The second part of this research narrates and analyses how the proposed
theory is unwrapped in the field. In doing so, I analyse my participation with and
from within one of those collectives, Can Batlló and, more specifically, a project
named La Fondona. Can Batlló is an autonomous and self-organised social centre in the neighbourhood of La Bordeta in Barcelona with which I worked
during six months between 2013 and 2014. Throughout this period, I participated
actively not only in Can Batlló but also in the actions and events that took place
in the neighbourhood of Sants-Montjuïc and Barcelona. Hence, I present an
analysis of the internal processes, relations and knowledge-practices as well as
the relationships that this collective maintains with the community, its sociopolitical
space and historical context. I argue those relations are constructed
through rhizomatic principles as well as drawing from feminist approaches which
put life and the body at the centre of their arguments. These outcomes will be
finally reflected in chapter IX of this dissertation under the lenses of the research
question posed in this thesis. That is whether current urban resistances challenge
majoritarian social movements’ analyses. / Marie Curie Fellow Program and University of Utrecth

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:BRADFORD/oai:bradscholars.brad.ac.uk:10454/17368
Date January 2018
CreatorsFerrer Sanz, Maria N.
ContributorsChesters, Graeme
PublisherUniversity of Bradford, University of Bradford, Faculty of Management, Law and Social Sciences
Source SetsBradford Scholars
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeThesis, doctoral, PhD
Rights<a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/"><img alt="Creative Commons License" style="border-width:0" src="http://i.creativecommons.org/l/by-nc-nd/3.0/88x31.png" /></a><br />The University of Bradford theses are licenced under a <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/">Creative Commons Licence</a>.

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