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5 Networks and shifting relations: Social and kinship networks and the formation of a network society Introduction The last two chapters showed how mobility and migration are not new and also how they are deeply engrained in human history. However what is new today is the form and dynamism that they have taken as a result of the advances in ICTs and transport networks. This has led to new mobile societies that are characterized by mobile flows and ‘miniaturized mobilities’ (Elliott & Urry 2010: 28). Secondly, ICT is what spins mobilities and reorganizes social structures, reconfigures existing relationships and builds new ones as well as maintaining existing ones. In the process, we see how everyday life is construed. Underpinning this is the fact that mobility and ICTs do not function in isolation but are inextricably linked to social relations of networks. In this respect, the formation of networking amongst mobile communities in the host country and with families in the home country is choreographed by ICTs (Thompson 2009; Horst 2006; Horst & Miller 2005). While face-to-face meetings are common and the preferred option in the host country given their daily mobility and hustling activities, they have come to be reliant on mobile-phone communication (including SMS & WhatsApp ), Skype, cheap-rate calls, emails and Facebook for most daily connections and linking up. As regards the family back home, networking is by mobile communication and once in a while face-to-face meetings when the migrant visits home or parents are brought over to visit. This chapter examines the plethora of social and kinship networks that together seam mobile communities and are characterized by negotiations and renegotiations . Until recently, studies on migration put social networks as the driv- Chapter 5: Networks and shifting relations 109 ing force behind migration, showing how social networks impact on migration at all stages in the process (Hagan 1998: 55). This chapter focuses on how Pinyin and Mankon mobile communities are able to draw on the various forms of social networks such as family, friends, associations , and legal1 and migration syndicates that are predisposed towards them in an attempt to establish how network ties work. It demonstrates how these networks constantly shift to accommodate new and relevant networks. In addition, the chapter explores whether mobilities have affected network ties and, if so, how. And if they do not, do these ties continue to adopt the norms that migrants have been brought up to respect, i.e. social cohesion? The chapter goes beyond cataloguing how these networks are being forged over time and focuses on how and under what conditions they are weakened. By the same token, I examine the role of weak ties in network flows and how they create bridges that link subsequent weak ties (Granovetter 1973). In summary, the chapter examines the multistranded networks that migrants accumulate, including strong and weak ties. Social networking, as such, is seen more as a dynamic process as a result of the emergence of flexible communities that reconfigure and are capable of producing and reproducing complex structures of communication to ascertain the unity of purpose and flexibility (Castells 2004). They are thus able to adapt to the host society. I attempt to understand not only the large presence of Pinyin in Cape Town in comparison with Mankon as well as the extent to which networks of family and friends and ethnic community ties play a role in the corporate sponsorship of migration. Given the dynamic nature of social networks, the gender structures of network are of interest given the differences between women’s and men’s everyday lives and the different types of networks they therefore leverage. Networks, as was discussed earlier (see Introduction) are a set of interconnected nodes that process flows (Castells 2004). Critical to our understanding of these flows and the reconfigurations that involve the inclusion and exclusion of networks are their organizational form (Castells 2004) and bonding approach (Putnam & Feldstein 2000). The strength of the weak ties (Granovetter 1973) will also shed light on why there are more Pinyin migrants here than other communities . The mobile communities involved see their daily interaction as one that is informed by the multi-stranded networks they navigate, and this network approach also illuminates the social gaming that occurs. The bonding approach will explain why particular groups of people tend to bond more than others. Weak ties, as noted by Granovetter (Ibid.), are practical bridges that link various nodes and are stronger than strong ties. Drawing from the notion of...

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