ABSTRACT
This chapter seeks to explore the interconnected positionalities of children and pets as members of transnational Polish families in Norway. It reflects on the role played by Western discourses of the neoliberal family and the ways they frame children both alone and in relation to animals. Such discourses show how children are often seen as being "like animals". Children, for instance, are framed not only as "passive dependents" but also as nothing more than "luggage". Fuelling the portrayal of victimization and vulnerability, such studies perpetuate the dominant view of children as migrants who are economically unprofitable. The chapter focuses on empirical material belonging to the Transfam Project, and the analysis combines two datasets collected through sub-studies in which interviews with 40 adult members of 30 Polish migrant households in Norway and 50 interviews with children of Polish migrants were conducted.
