Description
Book SynopsisChina has a tourist industry, characterized by a style with deep roots in traditional Chinese culture. This title argues that China's brand of tourism is distinct from the traditions of both Western bourgeois tourism, which values authenticity, and Soviet tourism, with its emphasis on rugged and selfless experience.
Trade Review"In Scenic Spots, Pál Nyirí provides a highly readable overview of the emergence of commercial tourism in China's reform era. . . . I would certainly recommend Scenic Spots as an introduction to contemporary tourism in China. It also points the way for future research on Chinese tourism at home and abroad."
* Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute *
"Scenic Spots is a fascinating and cogently written short introductory book on Chinese tourism that brings up many questions for further study. . . . a timely book."
* Canadian Journal of History *
"This book is a welcome and timely analysis of the shape tourism has taken on in China.. the book comprehensively illuminates the state's various roles on a local level, and the provided comparison with tourism in different nation-states is a useful contribution to comparative studies of the development of nation-states."
* China Quarterly *
"A timely analysis of the significant increase in domestic tourism in China over the past decade and the role this plays in an ongoing state project of nation building and modernization. [A]n excellent introduction to an exciting field of study, organized and written in a way that makes the information accessible to nonspecialists and appropriate to undergraduate courses in contemporary China as well as to tourism studies."
* American Anthropologist *
"A useful insight into the complexities of the sociopolitical quagmire that is global tourism and a useful addition to the canon on tourists and tourism. Anthropologists cannot ignore tourism, and those not familiar with this particular intellectual terrain will find this book a useful introduction."
* American Ethnologist *
"Nyiri has undertaken a valuable comparison of Chinese with overseas tourism. He provides a useful methodology for the understanding of Chinese tourism today."
* The China Journal *
"Nyiri examines the growth of domestic tourism, the state's cafeful stewardship, and the cultural implications of the places that Chinese tourists are most willing to visit.. Scenic Spots.. provides a culturally informed look into an ever-growing industry in China."
* Asian Affairs *
Table of ContentsPreface
1. What's in a Site?: The Making of "Scenic Spots"
2. Two Sites and a Non-Site: Mounts Emei, Jiuzhaigou, and Songpan
3. Making Sense of Scenic Spots
4. Scenic Spots Beyond the Border: Migration, Tourism, and Cultural Authority
Notes
Bibliography
Index
