The Declarative Trans‑cultural Identity of European Adolescents – an Analysis of Texts Published in Trait d’Union

Abstract

Transcultural identity elaborated upon by Wolfang Welsch is, in my opinion, the answer to the following question: how identity of youth is transformed with regards to globalization, particularism and cosmopolitism. Cultural identity is comprised of a cosmopolitan component but it also includes local affiliation. It focuses on the individual right to create memberships not only based upon one’s national, ethnical or cultural affiliation but rather, it is a coalescence of all aforementioned elements defined from an individual perspective. The membership is subordinate only to individual assessment. Transcultural identity is the awareness of adventure, irregularity and continuity. And it is in this way that European youth perceive and define their identity. They describe their identity as active, nomadic, cyber and performative. This kind of identity is a declarative identity which is also the subject of their writing. The following article aims to describe and define the identity of contemporary European youth and the subject of identity in articles published in The trait d’union – an on‑line journal created in 2004 with support of European Commission. The trait d’union is a platform of European youth communicating and exchanging opinions. It is also a tool used for intercultural teaching. Articles written by youth are an attempt to illustrate their daily experiences connected with globalization, European mobility and trans‑culturalism. These articles are also an interesting source used to analyze contemporary means of communication.

Keywords

• identity
• declarative
• transculturalism
• European identity
• on‑line platform