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Historic Preservation Home > Syllabi > 400 Level Courses > HISP 471QQ-01 Heritage Tourism

 

UNIVERSITY OF MARY WASHINGTON
DEPARTMENT OF HISTORIC PRESERVATION

HISP 471QQ-01 Heritage Tourism
Fall Semester 2009

Mr. Stanton
TR 9:30am-10:45am
Combs Hall, 112

COURSE DESCRIPTION

HHeritage Tourism defines the modern market-centered approach to Historic Preservation. This seminar explores the larger issues that surround the evolving concepts of tourism—from the 19th century view embodied in Charles M. Doughty’s Travels in Arabia Deserta to heritage corridors and theme parks. Implicit in “heritage tourism” is the experience of interactions with people different than ourselves, not for their heroic qualities, but for their knowledge, values and aesthetic shared among the people of a community or culture and embodied in their artifacts.  The personal automobile and the democratization of leisure time transformed the tourist experience from an idle of the wealthy, to a passion of the working classes. As a multi-disciplinary study, Historic Preservation has staked its reputation with the public on the authenticity of its results. This seminar seeks to explore the formulas for presenting and representing heritage in an authentic experience to the public as crucial to our role as mediators between the objects of the past and the recreation industry that seeks to employ heritage as a tourism engine.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

(1)  Understand heritage tourism as a distinct and evolved form of travel-based learning and cultural representation.

(2)  Explore the categories of actors, zones of activity, and motives for the creation of heritage tourism.

(3)  Develop understanding of the distinct frames of analysis of tourism, including ethnographic, administrative, economic, cultural, and historical.

(4)  Understand how heritage tourism works at the national, state, and local levels in the United States.

This class is a seminar. Our discussion will flourish through your preparation for the topics of each class meeting.  Please come to class having read the assigned material and with your questions or opinions and evidence assembled for our topics.  The quantity of information on the subjects of heritage and tourism is simply staggering. Please feel empowered to bring in your other readings and suggestions for readings, analysis, or web sites that you have found in your class preparation.

CLASS REQUIREMENTS

TEXTS

Kirshenblatt-Gimblett, Barbara. Destination Culture: Tourism, Museums, and Heritage (Berkeley University of California Press, 1998.

In addition we will use the articles and and books available through the Simpson library on-line netlibrary, journal subscriptions of JSTOR and Project Muse. For example, Occasionally required readings will be available through the course webpage in the folder “Required Readings.”  The required reading is only a starting point for discussion. Students are encouraged to bring other resources from their reading and experience into the class discussion.

TESTS
The student is responsible for all required readings and discussion materials.  Any handouts in class with the exception of lecture summaries should be considered materials that will be tested.  Examinations will test your knowledge concerning basic terms, concepts or significant examples from in-class discussions, films, or required readings.  There will be two tests: Test 1, Tuesday October 6th and the Final Examination, Tuesday, December 8th from 8:30-11:00 a.m.

CLASS ASSIGNMENTS
In class assignments
      The most important assignment in class is to participate. 

Out of class Assignments
Two writing assignments are required for the course.  One is a short analysis of cultural presentation explaining the, sources, frame, and valuation through exhibition of a heritage tourist event.  The second paper is a description with discussion of the political, social, economic, and administrative development of one of the 40 NPS Heritage Areas.  Assignment one is due October 8th at the beginning of class. Assignment two is due on Dec 1st before sundown. Early papers always accepted.  I Honor the Code and insist that all written work include the Honor Pledge and be signed.

GRADING
In an effort to be open about the scoring of writing projects so that we are all clear about how a grade is achieved the following comments are provided:
Grades have two parts, (1) an evaluation of the content and the considerable intellectual effort that goes into the creation of a student project, and (2) the skill with which this material is integrated into a coherent thoughtful presentation that reflects student control of the subject.  Letter grade descriptions and quality point conversions are taken from the Academic Catalog.  This and the Dictionary of Academic Regulations should be consulted for further explanation of these and all other grading details and other academic regulations.
The Office of Disability Services has been designated by the University as the primary office to guide, counsel, and assist students with disabilities.  If you receive services through that office and require accommodations for this class, please make an appointment with me as soon as possible to discuss your approved accommodation needs.  Bring your accommodation letter with you to the appointment. I will hold any information you share with me in the strictest confidence unless you give me permission to do otherwise.
      If you need accommodations, (note taking assistance, extended time for tests, etc.), I would be happy to refer you to the Office of Disability Services. They will require appropriate documentation of a disability.  Their phone number is 540-654-1266.

FINAL GRADE
Please note: No passing grade can be achieved in this course without completion of all examinations and out-of-class graded assignments.  Your final grade will be based on the following scores—in-class participation, 20%; Test one 15%; Project One 15%; Project Two 15%; Final Examination 15%. The Out-of-Class Assignments will be marked down by ten (10 points) for each day later than the beginning of class on the date due.

MY OFFICE HOURS
Monday-Wednesday-Friday 2 p.m.
Tuesday and Thursday 1 p.m.

OFFICE
Combs 128
Phone: 654-1313
e-mail: gstanton@umw.edu

I will be in my office for set office hours (that is, I'll be there and you can drop in whether you have an appointment or not) every weekday, as noted above.  If I must attend a meeting with a faculty committee during one of those periods, I will announce this in class.  I will also be in the office at many other hours (including some evening hours each week). I am happy to make an appointment to see you at some specific time that suits your needs.

SCHEDULE OF CLASS MEETINGS, TOPICS AND ASSIGNMENTS

This class schedule tells you how we will proceed with our discussion of Heritage Tourism.  I reserve the right to alter the topic of any lecture, but the day on which tests, papers and books are scheduled will not be changed.

Tuesday 25 August 2009
      On the road to Heritage Tourism

Thursday 27 August 2009
      A History of Tourism and Tourism research
Required Readings:
Velene Smith. “Introduction.” Hosts and Guests. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1977.  Reserve
Nelson H. H. Graburn. “Tourism: The Sacred Journey.” Reserve

Tuesday 1 September 2009
      Heritage Tourism and the Tourism Industry
Required Readings:  John. C. Confer,  Deborah L. Kerstetter. “Past Perfect: Explorations of Heritage Tourism” Parks & Recreation, Feb, 2000. Reserve
The Festival Life Cycle and Tourism Strategies: The Case of the Cowboy Poetry Gathering. Festival and Event Tourism 2 (1994): 85-94. Reserve

Thursday 3 September 2009
      Understanding the frames of analysis of heritage tourism
            Required Reading: Smith, Laurajane. Uses of Heritage. London, New York Taylor & Francis Routledge, 2006. Chapter One discussion of the meaning of Heritage.

Tuesday 8 September 2009
      Heritage as a new mode of cultural production
      Required Reading: Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett, “Theorizing Heritage.” Pp. 131-170.

Thursday 10 September 2009
      Entertainment and Education in Heritage Tourism
      Required Reading:  Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett,“Confusing Pleasures.” Pp. 203-248.

Tuesday 15 September 2009
      The Invention of Tradition
      Required Reading: Royal Berglee, Recreated Heritage Villages of the Midwest. Southeastern Geographer, 46(1) 2006: 121-138. (Reserve)

Thursday 17 September 2009
      Contested Space and Places
      Required Readings:  William D. Estrada. “Los Angeles’ Old Plaza and Olvera Street: Imagined and Contested Space.” Western Folklore, Vol. 58, No. 2, Built L.A.: Folklore and Place in Los Angeles. (Winter, 1999), pp. 107-129.  (JSTOR)

Tuesday 22 September 2009
      Nostalgia or When The Exotic Comes To Town: The Tango
Required Reading: Chris Goertzen; María Susana Azzi. “Globalization and the Tango.” Yearbook for Traditional Music, Vol. 31. (1999), pp. 67-76. (JSTOR)

Thursday 24 September 2009
      Selling Art and Craft to Tourists
      Required Readings:  Lewis I. Deitch, “The Impact of Tourism upon the Arts and Crafts of the Indians of the Southwestern United States.” in Hosts and Guests, pp.173-184. Reserve

National Folk Heritage Awards at The Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, MD. Leave 5:30pm. Program begins at 7:00pm.

Tuesday 29 September 2009
      Hegemonic Exchange Systems in Heritage Tourism
      Required Readings:  Deidre Evans-Pritchard, “The Portal Case: Authenticity, Tourism, Traditions, and the Law.” JAF 100:397 (Jul-Sep 1987) 287-296. (JSTOR)

Thursday 1 October 2009
      Anarchistic Exchange Systems in Heritage Tourism
      Required Readings:  Dale Rosengarten, “Sea Grass Baskets of the South Carolina Lowcountry.” McKissick Museum, University of South Carolina, 1986. Pp. 5-46 Reserve

Tuesday 6 October 2009
Midterm examination

The evolving Federal Role in Heritage Tourism

Thursday 8 October 2009
      The National Parks Evolving Role of Conservator and Concessionaire
      Required Reading: Mackintosh, Barry. The National Parks: Shaping the System. Washington: National Park Service, 1991. http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/shaping/index.htm
see also Robin W. Winks, The National Park Service Act of 1916: "A Contradictory Mandate"? http://www.nature.nps.gov/winks/index.htm
Assignment #1 Due

MID-SEMESTER BREAK

Thursday 15 October 2009
      Heritage Tourism and the Historic Preservation movement
Required Readings:  Peter H. Brink, “Heritage Tourism in the U.S.A.: Grassroots Efforts to Combine Preservation and Tourism.” APT Bulletin, 29(3-4) 1998, 59-63. (JSTOR)
Christopher Koziol. “Historic Preservation Ideology: A Critical Mapping of Contemporary Heritage Policy Discourse.” Preservation Education & Research Vol 1 (2008): 41-50. (Reserve)

Tuesday 20 October 2009
      The Heritage Area
Required Reading: Sarah Peskin. “America's Special Landscapes: The Heritage Area Phenomenon.”  http://www.nps.gov/history/heritageareas/REP/HAPhenom.pdf
Paul M. Bray. "The National Heritage Areas Phenomenon--Where it is Coming From."
http://crm.cr.nps.gov/archive/17-8/17-8-1.pdf

Thursday 22 October 2009
      The National Park Service Response to Limited Resources: Heritage Areas
Reading:  Heritage Areas Toolbox http://www.nps.gov/history/heritageareas/HDI/toolbox.htm
National Heritage Area criteria http://www.nps.gov/history/heritageareas/REP/criteria.pdf
Charting a Future for National Heritage Areas. A Report by the National Park System Advisory Board, June 2006 (Reserve)

Tuesday 27 October 2009
The Importance of Partnerships
      Reading: NPS Partnership webpage http://www.nps.gov/partnerships/about.htm
      Ostrower, Francie. "The potentials and pitfalls of partnering."  Stanford Social Innovation Review, Spring 2005.  (Reserve)

Thursday 29 October 2009
      The National Trust and Heritage Tourism
      “Five Principles for Successful and Sustainable Cultural Heritage Tourism” http://www.culturalheritagetourism.org/fiveprinciples.htm

Tuesday 3 November 2009
      The Economics of Heritage Tourism
      Required Reading:  John Durel and Anita Nowery Durel. “A Golden Age for Historic Properties.” Reserve

Thursday 5 November 2009
      Tracking the Money
      Reading: Money Generation Model, Version 2 (http://web4.msue.msu.edu/mgm2/default.htm)
      Assessing the Qualities of Heritage Areas http://www.nps.gov/history/heritageareas/INFO/assess.pdf

Tuesday 10 November 2009
Management Planning for Heritage Tourism
Reading: Components of a Successful National Heritage Area Management Plan
http://www.nps.gov/history/heritageareas/rep/notebook.pdf

Thursday 12 November 2009
      Alternatives to Federal Heritage Areas: State Sponsored Heritage Tourism
      Required Reading: The Crooked Road: Virginia’s Music Heritage Trail http://www.thecrookedroad.org/
      Blue Ridge National Heritage Area
http://www.blueridgeheritage.com/musicofthemountains/index.html

Tuesday 17 November 2009
      Is Heritage Tourism Sustainable? Stakeholders in Preservation Heritage
Required Reading: Randall Mason "Theoretical and Practical Arguments for Values-Centered Preservation." CRM 3:2 (Summer 2006) (http://crmjournal.cr.nps.gov/97_Archive.cfm)

Thursday 19 November 2009
International Scientific Committee on Cultural Tourism
Tourism at World Heritage Cultural Sites: The Site Manager's Hand Book (1993) http://www.international.icomos.org/publications/93touris.htm

Tuesday 24 November 2009
Heritage Tourism and Geo-Tourism
Reading http://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/sustainable/about_geotourism.html

Thursday 26 November 2009
Thanksgiving Break

Tuesday 1 December 2009
      Stewarding the Future
      Required Reading: David Lowenthal, Stewarding the Future.” CRM: The Journal of Heritage Stewardship 2:2(Summer, 2005) 20-39. http://crmjournal.cr.nps.gov/97_Archive.cfm
Assignment #2 Due

Thursday 3 November 2009
What Have We Done? Course Review

Tuesday 8 December 2009
8:30-11:00 a.m.  Final Exam