The Ethnography of Tourism: Edward Bruner and Beyond

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What does it mean to study tourism ethnographically How has the ethnography of tourism changed from the 1970s to today What theories, themes, and concepts drive contemporary research Thirteen leading anthropologists of tourism address these questions, focusing on the experience-near, interpretive-humanistic approach to tourism studies that emerged in the 1990s and continues to be prominent today. Widely associated with the work of American anthropologist Edward Bruner, this perspective is characterized by an attentiveness to representation, imagination, interpretation, meaning, and the inherent subjectivity of both ethnography and tourism as social practices. Contributors draw on their ongoing fieldwork to illustrate, critically engage, and build upon key concepts in tourism ethnography todayfrom experience, encounter, and emergent culture to authenticity, narrative, contested sites, the touristic borderzone, embodiment, identity, and mobility. Using Bruners work as a lens for delving into the past, present, and future of interpretive-humanistic tourism ethnography, these scholars provide a critical introduction to the state of the art. With its comprehensive introductory chapter, keyword-based organization, and engaging style, this volume will appeal to students of anthropology and tourism studies, as well as scholars in both fields and beyond.

Reviews

This is a state-of-the-art book on the value of ethnography in understanding the complex cultural and economic phenomenon of 21st century tourism. The approaches discussed in this collection show that tourism is not the wrecking ball of traditional culture, as was widely held to be the case in the 1960s and 1970s, and how ethnographical approaches, which are increasingly collaborative in this modern and connected world, can provide us with nuanced and even positive accounts of traditional actors as cultural strategists. The book is of multi-disciplinary interest in the arts and social sciences, not least in subjects such as business management, tourism planning, and marketing. -- Michael Hitchcock, Goldsmiths, University of London

Author Bio

Naomi M. Leite is lecturer of social anthropology at the University of London. Quetzil E. Castaeda is senior lecturer of Latin American and Caribbean studies at Indiana University. Kathleen M. Adams is professor of anthropology at Loyola University Chicago.