Mustafa Ağatekin and the Concept of Belonging
Survival and the instinct to hold on to life, has kept man alert since the beginning of time. Belonging to a family, society, institution, or having an awareness of descendance, helps man feel safe, and can be summarized as “the feeling or awareness of the individual to a community, a part of society or a social group”. This feeling springs from the need for existence, being safe, holding tight to life; a resolve unchanged since primitive human beings lived on the planet. The harsh effects of natural catastrophes, and the war for individual survival, prompts people to live together combining their forces against nature and therefore providing support in numbers.
Although social structures have changed throughout the ages, everyone maintains his/her life through the ‘feeling’ or the ‘knowing’ of belonging. To ‘belong’ is an instinctive desire and an important aid to mental health and well-being. The need to feel safe from known or unknown uncontrollable external factors cause’s people to push further in search of ‘belonging’. Feelings of ‘not belonging’ often stem from relationships and/or childhood. For us to gain (or regain)
