Hope emplaced. What happens to hope after arrival: The case of Ecuadorian families living in Italy

In the literature, hope has been mainly analyzed as an emotional state linked to temporality. This stance has prompted criticism of hope as projecting promises, which may never be fulfilled, into an indefinite future. Whilst this is partly true, this paper aims to enlarge previous approaches by illustrating hope's connection with spatiality. The paper examines ‘hope’ among Italian families of Ecuadorian origin, through analysis of affective states produced by the place to which they have migrated. Hope emerges as a dynamic relation between the resources one has and the place one is in. The spatial dimension of hope mitigates criticisms of its evanescence; the paper emphasizes the political aspects of hope as a resource for migrants to realize their agency and interact with the world.