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. 1. Why does Chambers feel that tourism is an obvious topic of study for anthropology, but one which took a shift in the anthropological concept of culture to elicit much attention? 2. Why does Chambers argue that an over-emphasis on Western tourist practices and history is likely to lead to a misunderstanding of travel and tourism more broadly? Be prepared to discuss his critique of the four commonly-held "notions" that he identifies. 3. What distinctive trends in modern tourism does Chambers see as growing mainly out of Western history and culture? How did these shape the nature of tourism as an industry? 4. The two Urry chapters help us see how the tourist gaze has changed over time. How does his analysis help us explain the rise and (partial) fall of seaside resorts? How were such resorts part of the "democratization" of travel? 5.What is postmodernism and what are its implications for tourism? Who and what is the "post-tourist"? Think about how Urry's discussion relates to Franklin's (last week). 6. How do societies differ in holiday time and consumption, according to Richards? How can the broad differences among societies be classified? What factors explain the differences both between and within societies? What does it mean to say that Richards sees both convergence and polarization of tourism consumption within European nations? How may such trends be connected to globalization? 7. Is holiday time a "social right"? Should it be? Should societies have a "leisure policy" in the way they have broad policies towards other things? 8. The threat threat to planetary ecology and the problem of world poverty might seem a world apart from leisure and tourism. How does Juliet Schor link them? What is her argument? What do you think of it? Considering as well Schor's short "Real Vacations for All" piece along with Landler's "Slaves for Vacation," is the call for more leisure and longer vacations in line with or in conflict with the imperatives of globalization? |