Seite - 91 - in Mobile Culture Studies - The Journal, Band 3/2017
Bild der Seite - 91 -
Text der Seite - 91 -
Mobile Culture Studies. The Journal 3 2o17
Samantha Wilkinson, Catherine Wilkinson | Night-Life and Young Peopleâs Atmospheric Mobilities 91
his friends and other club-goers experiencing. Contrary to Jayne and Valentineâs (2016, 74)
findings, whilst consuming alcohol, Charlie did not âfeel-at-homeâ in this commercial venue.
This relates to Edensorâs (2015) contention that certain constituents that shape atmospheres may
pre-exist a personâs entrance into the space. A personâs response to atmospheres is also shaped
by their current mood and prior experiences, and this has the potential to feed back into the
on-going production of atmosphere. The example from Charlie illustrates that his feeling of
nervousness was a powerful actant in his drinking assemblage, overpowering the positive effects
of alcohol and the affective atmosphere of the club-space, preventing him from getting in the
âzoneâ. This example stresses the importance of considering how sensual atmospheres do not
seduce all people; as Taylor and Falconer (2015) recognise, whilst they can affectively pull some
young people into place â those who experience disconnection â in terms of their embodied
drunkenness and the space they find themselves in (MacLean and Moore 2014), are, in effect,
pushed out of space. There are of course other aspects that can prevent young people from get-
ting involved in, and hinder, positive drinking atmospheres, which warrant further attention.
For instance, age (being too young, or feeling too old), the type of alcohol consumed, and food
intake may preclude some people from accessing particular drinking atmospheres.
Conclusions
This paper has analysed the ways that atmospheres impact on, form, and alter experiences of
mobility, with a focus on vehicular mobilities, and suburban commercial drinking spaces. This
paper has demonstrated that the enmeshed theoretical lenses of atmospheres and mobilities can
enable an appreciation that drinking spaces are relative and are not solely valued on their own
merit, but also how they are part of a larger (sub)urban tissue (Cele 2013). Through exposing
a variety of drinking spaces (e.g. taxis and buses), this paper goes some way towards departing
from the alcohol studies literatureâs preoccupation with alcohol as a city centre issue (Holloway
et al. 2008), typified by a large body of work on the night-time economy (e.g. Chatterton and
Hollands 2002; Hollands 2002; Roberts 2006).
Findings in this paper show that, for young people from Chorlton and Wythenshawe,
transport enables them to break away from the place temporalities typical of their suburban
locales. Young people often consume alcohol when on the move, in order to sustain their em-
bodied feelings of drunkenness, with minimal further spending on alcohol. Thus, on young
peopleâs alcohol-related nights out, travel time is not âwasted time in-between ârealâ activitiesâ
(Lyons and Urry 2005, 257). Rather, young people use travel time productively as activity time
(Lyons and Urry 2005). Consuming alcohol on the move is not only economically beneficial,
it is also emotionally important â young people create enjoyable affective atmospheres in taxis
and buses to share with friends. This paper thus shows that vehicular mobilities are not only a
means to get to nights out; they are fundamental constituents of nights out.
This paper has also shown how music, lighting, and other bodies were all materials acting
on young people, influencing their corporeal experiences of space, and making a difference to
the social experiences of alcohol consumption (Duff 2012). For instance, âgoodâ music and
appropriate lighting can propel young peopleâs bodies into movement, facilitating dancing mo-
bilities. Equally, in opposition to findings in the existing literature (e.g. Forsyth 2009), this
paper has shown how young people use moments when unfamiliar, or unpopular, songs are
Mobile Culture Studies
The Journal, Band 3/2017
- Titel
- Mobile Culture Studies
- Untertitel
- The Journal
- Band
- 3/2017
- Herausgeber
- Karl Franzens University Graz
- Ort
- Graz
- Datum
- 2017
- Sprache
- deutsch, englisch
- Lizenz
- CC BY 4.0
- Abmessungen
- 21.0 x 29.7 cm
- Seiten
- 198
- Kategorien
- Zeitschriften Mobile Culture Studies The Journal