Anthem Press Interpersonal Encounters in Contemporary Travel Writing: French and Italian Perspectives (Anthem Studies in Travel)

This critical study examines the theme of interpersonal encounter in a range of late twentieth- and early twenty-first-century travel writing written in French and Italian. Structured typologically, each chapter focuses on a typical activity that brings traveller-protagonists into contact with other people. Drawing on literary critical studies of travel writing, sociological and anthropological approaches to tourism, as well as research in French and Italian area studies, ‘Interpersonal Encounters in Contemporary Travel Writing’ locates the concept of encounter within the context of modern tourism. Review ‘This book brings together some of the best known names of the French and Italian postwar traditions with a new generation of writers whose work is still waiting to be discovered in the Anglophone world. It illuminates aspects of travel writing which go well beyond any specific writer or national context.’ —Loredana Polezzi, University of Warwick ‘Mee’s thoughtful study details how writers working in French and Italian depict interpersonal encounters. Their difficulty, she rightly concludes, shows us “what makes a journey a story”. ’ —Stacy Burton, University of Nevada, Reno Book Description A critical study on the theme of interpersonal encounter in late twentieth- and early twenty-first-century French and Italian travel writing. About the Author Catharine Mee is an independent researcher. She completed her DPhil at the University of Oxford in 2009, writing her thesis on French and Italian travel writing.