Description
In this paper I will discuss my PhD research which investigates belonging in the British Army through the bodily and embodied experiences of service personnel, asking what to belong feels and means for those who serve.
I will discuss my analysis of belonging which examines the embodied corporeality of service personnel to showcase how focusing on the felt, physical, and embodied experiences of personnel can reveal the centrality of the physical body to military service and the tensions and demands service personnel encounter and navigate. My framework of embodied corporeality follows Nirmal Puwar’s (2004) examination of “space invaders” to call exclusionary military discourses into question through an exploration of the military bodies that serve the institution.
Focusing on the lived experiences of LGBTQ+, ethnic minority and female service personnel, this paper will outline my working definition of embodied corporeality to highlight the significance of and relationship between the body and belonging in military service. With the data collection for my research commencing in 2026, this paper will also discuss the challenges researchers encounter with the military institution more broadly to highlight the importance of expanding and developing our analyses of military service to continue to reinforce the prominence and authority of gendered and racialised inequalities and inequities in military institutions.
