‘I with an[other]’, otherness and discourse: Reconstructing ‘democracy’ through intercultural education?

In this chapter, the author takes the stance that along with the critical work on interculturality and intercultural communication in understanding culture as a fluid intersubjective process rather than a fixed state. She argues that democracy, also, should be problematised and critically reflected upon from these positions rather than being stated or defined. The excerpt hints at ways democracy would be used to modify/change someone’s culture based on the fact that they are a migrant or newcomer to Europe. Such discourses can mark cultural assimilation strategies thus it is important to develop counter-narratives to combat such ideologies. The discourses contained within the Inglehart–Welzel Cultural Map mark cultural essentialism and potential racism as the other is stigmatised and labelled as being inferior to predominantly white European countries. The critical work on intercultural education and intercultural communication show the ways fluid notions of identity (national and self) are constructed through discourse.