Sojourner experiences and spatial repertoires

Abstract

Research on translingual repertoires has highlighted the diverse semiotic resources that individuals access in communication, but little research has considered how spatial factors permit or limit access to these resources. Furthermore, as translingual studies have predominantly focused on interactional analysis, there is a paucity of studies on how social networks shape the repertoires of users. To fill this gap, we examine the communicative practices of an international spouse temporarily living in the United States. Through interview data and mobility maps, we analyze the participant’s subject positioning and its relation to his use of spatial resources in different spaces. Despite the participant’s low English proficiency, he engaged in conversations in many spaces through strategic employment of semiotic resources, including multiple languages and material objects. He also adopted certain positionings that afforded him more opportunities to interact. Thus, we argue that the usefulness of semiotic resources is tied to the spaces in which they are employed and that access to these resources is shaped by subject positioning.