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History of the English literature early 20th century in England
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A Commentary on the Travel Writing of Pierre Jean Grosley and Ramond de Carbonnières
Each summer, for the past five years, I have traveled to Savary Island, B.C. to "repose my wearied spirit" on the mountains, the ocean, and especially on the absence of civilization and the regular amenities thereof. The island is divided: the western half submits to residents who wish for large homes and tennis courts while the eastern half (Indian Point) supports those who want to escape from those very things. There are only a handful of permanent residents on the eastern half and they have built their homes and gardens with a respect and reverence for nature that is rarely found in the city, or Savary Shores (the western half). The visitors to the island fit, generally, into the same western and eastern categories; all escaping the city, but only some willing to leave the city behind. It is a modern distinction between the tourist and the traveler. It is impossible to engage with nature without engaging with the people on Savary Island. I have found that encounters with both visitors and residents, negative or positive, have influenced my experience of nature and, in turn, knowledge of myself. Therefore, the effects of our Romantic Travelers' encounters with people (tourists, travelers or native residents) on their experience of nature have interested me greatly. Pierre Jean Grosley and Ramond de Carbonnières' travel writing provides two perspectives (the tourist and the traveler) of both nature and its human inhabitants. How each man engages with the people he meets mirrors the way he engages with his natural surroundings. My desire to blend in with the residents of Indian Point place my traveling experiences on par with de Carbonnières...
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...gages with nature beyond his initial scientific attempts. He accesses nature, and in turn increases his knowledge of self by engaging with the people he encounters, specifically the shepherds of the Pyrenees. I find I am able to relate my own experiences on Savary Island with both of these travelers, although more so with Ramond de Carbonnières.
Works Cited
de Carbonnières, Ramond. Travels in the Pyrenees; containing a description of the principal summits, passes, and vallies. Trans. F. Gold. London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Browne, 1813. (Original work: Observations faites dans les Pyreneés, 1789)
Grosley, Pierre Jean. New Observations of Italy and its Inhabitants. Trans. Thomas Nugent. London: L.Davis and C. Reymers, 1769. Vol.1
Noyes, Russell. English Romantic Poetry and Prose. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1956. Introduction, xxii.
Both writers register powerful emotion at seeing the Alps for the first time. Both also make an effort to give this important moment a particular context. Williams stresses the subjective, that is, the importance of the Alps in her own personal 'narrative,' and in this way contextualizes for the reader the emotional rapture, or 'transport,' which she relates to us of the moment of the first view: "It was not without the most powerful emotion that, for the first time, I cast my eyes on that solemn, that majestic vision, the Alps! - how often had the idea of those stupendous mountains filled my heart with enthusiastic awe! - so long, so eagerly, had I desired to contemplate that scene of wonders, that I was unable to trace when first the wish was awakened in my bosom - it seemed from childhood to have m...
Ginsborg P (1990). ‘A History of Contemporary Italy: Society and Politics: 1943-1980’ Published by Penguin; Reprint edition (27 Sep 1990).
Traveling the world can expand the human experience. The intricate details of what life in nature has to offer are often referred as breathtaking, beautiful, and awe-inspiring. The novel Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, Chris McCandless is a transcendentalist and his actions are justified because everyone should be able to find meaning beyond the normal societal “boundaries” of life as seen through Jan Burres’ reasoning and the refuted reasoning of his mother, Billie McCandless.
Najemy, John M. Italy in the Age of the Renaissance. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004.
Urry, John, The tourist gaze: Leisure and Travel in Contemporary Societies 2nd Ed (London, 2002).
The Pilgrim’s guide to Saint James de Compostela provides guidance to pilgrims while also serving as a cultural travelogue for the surrounding environment. The author of the text provides the reader with instructions and information’s about the passage of the pilgrim. Tips and tricks are provided on how to avoid dangers, the people that the pilgrims will encounter, a description of the landscape, relics along the pilgrimages, and descriptions of
In Jamaica Kincaid’s A Small Place she describes the island of Antigua to a tourist. In the passage that is discussed on this paper Kincaid is explaining to the tourist how they are seen by the locals on the island. She writes in the second person to directly address the tourist but there is a lot of nuance in her writing that reveal her true feelings to the reader. In the passage Kincaid use language as a tool to dehumanize the tourist. She paints them as more of a creature than a person.
Whatever pain is displayed in the passages that follow, the authors ground their characters through this shared location, which shows in the landscape and nature’s influence that happens to be prevalent in a number of the works chosen for this anthology in particular. It is a common theme, it seems, that Newfoundland is the one solid, concrete location, while it is the humans that are flimsy with their dedications. Being an island, Newfoundland is often portrayed as a concrete entity that will never disappear except by the occasional water erosion, but instead it is always the humans that leave as is mentioned in Cedar’s Cove by John
Durant, W. (1953). The Renaissance: A history of civilization in Italy from 1304-1576 A.D. New York: Simon and Schuster.
The idea of seeking refuge from a problem or conflict is not a recent development in society. All throughout history people have left their comfortable surroundings for various reasons to forge a better path for themselves in the unknown. Reflective of this continuity is the appeal that nature holds among people hoping to escape their everyday life for personal improvement. Often, despite many apparent dangers, the image of the wilderness is heavily romanticized with it being seen as a place of simple living that breeds self-reliance and personal reflection for those who choose to immerse themselves within it.
Since 1840 the Hawaiian Islands have been an escape to a tropical paradise for millions of tourists. People all over the world encounter alluring, romanticized pictures of Hawai'i's lush, tropical vegetation, exotic animals, beautiful beaches, crystal clear water, and fantastical women. This is the Hawai'i tourists know. This is the Hawai’i they visit. However, this Hawai'i is a state of mind, a corporate-produced image existing on the surface. More precisely, it is an aftermath of relentless colonization of the islands' native inhabitants by the United States. These native Hawaiians experience a completely different Hawai'i from the paradise tourists enjoy. No one makes this as clear as Haunani-Kay Trask, a native Hawaiian author. In her book, From a Native Daughter: Colonialism and Sovereignty in Hawai'i and through her poetry in Light in the Crevice Never Seen, Trask provides an intimate account of the tourist industry's impact on native Hawaiian culture. She presents a negative perspective of the violence, pollution, commercial development, and cultural exploitation produced by the tourist industry. Trask unveils the cruel reality of suffering and struggling through a native Hawaiian discourse. Most of the world is unaware of this.
Being in the wild is a great experience, it opens doors and bridges inside one’s mind. It allows people to be inspired, to find hope. It gives people a sense of direction and helps people conquer challenges that they never thought they would achieve. The example left behind by a young man named Christopher McCandless in Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer demonstrates how living on the road and surviving off the land can prove to be a pilgrimage and help enlighten others to go out in search of their own philosophical ideals. Whether it is being away from home and travel all across America, not settling down in one place, but staying long enough in one place and have an affect on someone else, or being with your family hiking up a mountain and be able to look at the scenery that nature brought forth.
The work is outwardly aggressive towards the typical tourist equating them to trash. Kincaid does not stop here, her critique of the tourist is present not only in this description, but also in the parenthetical direct address to the reader. While the narrative tone shifts throughout, these parenthetical jabs persistently convey a confrontational and abrasive tone and are present throughout the work. If the goal of the piece is to inform and entice tourists, the use of this tone makes the work largely ineffective; however, this tone does allow for a more effective social
Cole, Bruce. Masaccio and the Art of Early Renaissance Florence. Bloomington: Indiana UP, 1980. Print.
Introduction: Some would argue that the Italian culture is conceivably one of the strongest and most exquisite cultures in all of southern Europe. Italy has a very rich history in regards to its traditions, foods, customs, architecture, art, etc. It is also argued, and I have come to discover for myself while living in Rome that most of the citizens are extremely welcoming, and friendly, especially towards foreigners. Italian lands offer such an exciting, and delightful beauty in which the locals hope to excite outsiders into sharing the same passions they have for their country, as we Americans do. The country serves such elegance and variety with its 94 provinces, and 20 regional cultures.