Reading
Discussion Questions Note: these questions do not by any means exhaust the discussion potential of the readings. They are intended to orient you towards some of the issues, but I encourage you to identify other issues as well. Note: one thing we didn't take into account last week in our discussion of leisure is the connection between leisure and the life course. Youth tend to have more leisure than working adults, and one manifestation of that is the "backpacker" culture referenced in some of this week's readings. But older and retired people--who also tend to have higher incomes--are the most disproportionately age group among tourists, and their tastes and interests have a huge impact worldwide. Accordingly, we'll start class on Feb. 10th with a short film on Elderhostel, which operates a hugely-successful travel program for people over 55. Older adults have traditionally been the mainstay of cruise tourism, a form of tourism of particular interest for exploring the relationship between tourism and globalization. I suggest starting with the Pattullo chapter in T&T and then turning to my forthcoming book chapter on cruise tourism as a paradigmatic case of globaliation, available at the WebCT website. 1. Why is cruise tourism booming? What "fundamental questions" have been begun to be asked about it, especially in the Caribbean, according to Pattullo? 2. Cruise ships are often called floating resorts. Why have land-based resorts had trouble competing? 3. What does the growing popularity of cruises say about the changing tastes of tourists? 4. What is meant by the distinction between globalization as a process and globalization as a project? How does this distinction apply to cruise tourism? 5. In what senses is the cruise ship industry a uniquely deterritorialized one? 6. How does cruise tourism constitute what might be called a "paradigmatic" case of neoliberal globalization? How does the flag of convenience system work? What are its consequences for environmental regulation, labor costs and crewing strategies, vessel maintenance, and the issue of a "level playing field" between land-based and sea-based enterprises? What possible lessons about both tourism and globalization can be drawn from this paradigmatic case? 6. The Phipps chapter in T&T is dense and complex, and requires careful reading to grasp its wide-ranging arguments. Some of them may seem a bit far out, but there's a lot of food for thought here. Keep in mind that the original version of this article was published in 1999, two years before 9-11.
7. What are the characteristics of "danger-zone" tourism, according to Adams? What motivations and values appear to lie behind it? 8. Despite its small size, what unique consequences may come out of danger-zone tourism?
|