Lecture 11 Flashcards
(34 cards)
What is postmodernism?
Postmodernists emphasize subjective and negotiated characteristics
over more reductionist and rigid notions.
-there is negotiatioin about that the tourist iss
-tousits kinda seen as lesser than and a noussance, thiis is a trope and we need to get over it
What can locals refer to tourists as?
Fatuous…
Lazy…
Ignorant…
‘Dumb’…
- Easy stereotypes, you know your ciity and know where evrethiing iss compared to tourists
- Can be seen as ignorant local ways and in the way
Why is there such negative connotations towards tourists?
In part because of it’s wealth and power –
the USA gets the brunt of tourism stereotypes.
Why is it important to identify stereotypes of tourists?
-important to identiiy stereotypes to expose our biases
These stereotypes are perhaps more about the tourist than the American
What are the 7 tourist stereotypes?
Social Media addict guidebook Hugger Disillusioned old hand Package old hand Package tourist Backpacker Delux tourist Tour group Member
What is the social media addict?
“The Wi-fi-hogging, selfie-stick-wielding approval seekers of the tourist circuit…
…indexing, applying “glamour glow” filters and sharing the snaps across multiple social-media platforms keeps these smartphone obsessives so busy they have no idea where they are or what they are looking at.”
-modern stereotype, someone is more self absorbed, taking b=pics of themselves but have no interest as to where they are
What is the guidebook hugger?
“A highlighter-pen-clutching conformist seeking order in an uncertain world, the GH carries the latest Lonely Planet edition – with a Rough Guide for extra insurance…
…going off the beaten track fills them with dread although, as everyone else knows, the best places don’t appear in any tourist literature.”
-predate social media addict,
What is the disillusioned old hand?
“Usually male, usually middle-aged, they have been everywhere you have, but back when it was cool … DOHs remember when “it was all fields around here” and how amazing the town was until tourists ruined it…
…DOH is dismissive of … backpackers, with their smartphones and “save the planet” nonsense. The pampered youngsters don’t even party as hard as he used to, back in the day.”
What is the package tourist?
“The package tourist requires nothing more than a nice hotel, a sunbed near the poolside bar and a couple of restaurants within walking distance. PTs aren’t especially interested in reading about a holiday resort … so pre-trip preparation is limited to buying sunblock…
…they can be coaxed into joining a half-day cultural coach tour but only because it finishes at a shopping mall…”
-good if traveling alone, or older and don’t want to walk, or want to be shown around by a expert,
What is the backpacker?
“Near identical guidebook-dictated migratory patterns seem at odds with the backpackers’ mantra of being independent spirits. Contempt for package tourists “who make no attempt to understand the local culture”…
…status is gained by time on the road and “living like a local”, although this is less about embracing indigenous traditions and values and more about making the cheapest choices.”
-more authentic experience, judgemental
What is the deluxe tourist?
“The DT moves in a parallel travel universe of first-class departure lounges, opulent hotels and designer boutiques, which means the rest of us don’t bump into him very often … these sensual-pleasure seekers flit between luxury spa treatments and gourmet restaurants (preferably an all-glass undersea dining experience)… …well-heeled and immaculately dressed, DTs have all the gear but usually no idea.” -don’t have to wait with the rest of uss, they don’t go with the people in the street, taken around via luxery cars
What is the tour group member?
“Often misled by their travel agent, flag-following TGMs think they have booked an upmarket adventure, only to discover the sightseeing bus is on its last legs and the hotel is due for demolition…
…TGMs can’t remember the names of all nine countries they will be visiting in the next six days, preferring to be educated (bombarded with facts and figures) along the way.”
-common, if you have a sshort period of time
What does a stereotype do?
Like all stereotypes, they are oversimplified – taking the actions/traits of a few and placing them on the whole.
In the literature how are tourist portrayed?
in the academic study of
tourism, tourists have been represented in an overwhelmingly negative light…
…and often in critical or sociological studies in deference to more ‘superior’ forms of
travel, such as backpacking.
-find the same thing in the literature
What are the 4 developments in tourists experience research?
1
“…a reconsideration of the distinctiveness of tourism from our everyday life experiences.”
-toursm is disstinct from everyday life experience, living a different way than we do at home
2
“…a shift from homogenizing portrayals of the tourist as a general type
to pluralizing depictions that capture the multiplicity of the experience.”
-looknig at how every tourisst eens that world differently
3
“…a shifted focus from the displayed objects provided by the industry
to the subjective negotiation of meanings as a determinant of the experience.”
- no longer focusing on what tourism industry is provding, noow at the negotatoin of =meetins between tourist and host
4
“…and a movement from
decisive academic discourse, which conceptualizes the experience in terms of absolute truths, toward relative and complementary interpretations.”
-moved away from tryingi to find abolute truths,
How do we understand the wider social discourse of tourism?
-ask tourists what tourist thiink of tourists
How doe tourists layperson use of terms?
When tourists categorize, classify and
otherwise label people and leisure travel activities, is never neutral or meaningless.
People talk about their holidaying/travel/tourist experiences (and those of others) in reference to social/cultural discourses of holiday and social life.
People classify their own behaviour in relation to that of others and use terms and categories in specific associated ways.
According to Cohen what its the 4 tourists typologies ?
1) The organized mass tourist;
Not adventurous / little contact with locals /
stays in a bubble / ready-made packages
2) The individual mass tourist;
More flexible than OMT / still in a bubble with relatively little local contact / organised tours / more personal choice though
-itinierary and they tell them wht to see but they can also go wherever
3) The explorer;
Organises their own vacation / leaves typical tourist areas / seeks comfort in accommodation / willing to leave the bubble though
4) The drifter.
Does not use typical tourism industry / flexible in all ways including itinerary / mixes often with locals / outside of comfort zone of home
-miixing a lot with locals, want a very different experience
What is the difference between thee 4 tourist typologies according to Cohen?
ohen argued that the main differentiating factor consisted of the degree of familiarity/strangeness sought or experienced by people in a continuum of types of touristic experiences.
going from familiarity to strangeness as you go down the list
-going from institutional to inidividual as you go down the list
What are the 5 different tourist experience typologies according to Cohen?
The recreational tourist;
Looking for physical recreation. Will aim to ‘recreate’ as a form of escape from the strains and stresses of conformity.
-
The diversionary tourist;
Looking to forget their everyday life. An alternative to the boredom and routine of their own society but without any meaning itself.
-just looknig to get away from life
The experiential tourist;
Looking for authentic experiences. Actively seeks meaning and authenticity in the life of others through tourism. Aware of ‘otherness’.
-not justr traveling thorugh a space, and they want the authentic place, they are aware others are there and they are looking for them
The experimental tourist;
Looking for contact with local people. Looking for alternatives to their own society.
-want to finid something different
The existential tourist.
Looking for total immersion in a different culture. Alienated from their own society and more concerned with seeking an alternative.
-looking to change from their everyday life
What happens when we go from reecreeatoinal tourist to existential tourists ?
- Decreasingly attached to the centre of their own society as you go down the list
- Increasingly seeking authenticity as you go down list
What did Gottlieb say about tourism to challenge Cohn?
Gottlieb challenged Cohen’s view that tourist experience can be
‘meaningless’, or based on ‘false consciousness’ and found that…
“research should proceed from the premise that what the vacationer experiences is real, valid and fulfilling, no matter how ‘superficial’ it may seem to the social scientist”
-was treated as a suuperficial experience, but to vacationer it is very real for them
What unique idea did Gottlieb propose?
Proposed a unique idea that Americans often invert their class-based everyday and work roles in their holidays to become…
‘Peasant for a day’ (upper to lower class)
or
‘Queen/King for a day’ (low to up)
…depending on the class of person.
What are thee 2 polar types based on Gottlieb?
Higher-class individuals seek to invert to lower-class experiences. Lower/middle-class individuals seek to accentuate their status to a higher class.
