Reflections on the mobility turn and the relationality of (im)mobilities

The notion of dwelling/staying was once an important concept for explaining the existential conditions of human beings. The mobility turn in the mid-2000s signaled a paradigm shift in understanding movement and the ways in which movement influences the formation of material and social entities, space, networks, and knowledge. In the context of such growing influence of the umbrella concept of mobility, this paper seeks to examine mobilities at different speeds and directions. Specifically, the paper undertakes a comprehensive examination of four pivotal dimensions of mobility that have been extensively discussed within the domain of mobility studies: walking, travel, the mobility of non-humans (objects/knowledge/ideas), and migration. The discussion then delves into the ethical and political dilemmas that the mobility engenders, employing the case of Afghan refugees in Korea as an illustration. Thereby, the paper contemplates the political and ethical dilemmas of subsuming different forms of movement under a single concept of mobility. Rather than categorizing different types of movements under the concept of mobility, this paper suggests that its conceptual considerations should reflect the different contexts that shape different types of movements and include immobility to heighten the nature of movements that are deeply embedded in political, economic, social, and psychological contexts.