Living history : magic kingdoms or a quixotic quest for authenticity?

Crang, M.

doi:10.1016/0160-7383(95)00070-4

Living history : magic kingdoms or a quixotic quest for authenticity? Thumbnail

Authors

Professor Michael Crang m.a.crang@durham.ac.uk
Professor

Abstract

This paper attempts to look at the practices of interpretation involved in heritage tourism. Instead of focusing on artefacts as images of the past, it investigates the interpretive and communicative work needed to make sense of built heritage. The examples used are a Tudor manor house in the southeast of England, where each year a living history event is staged, and a reenactment society that portrays the events of the British Civil War at historic properties. Participant observation provided the method to examine the activities of interpretation education and the production of a sense of realism and ''authenticity''. The paper argues that heritage is a much more self-reflexive activity than commonly portrayed.

Citation

Crang, M. (1996). Living history : magic kingdoms or a quixotic quest for authenticity?. Annals of Tourism Research, 23(2), 415-431. https://doi.org/10.1016/0160-7383%2895%2900070-4

Journal Article Type	Article
Publication Date	1996
Deposit Date	Apr 7, 2008
Publicly Available Date	Apr 7, 2008
Journal	Annals of Tourism Research
Print ISSN	0160-7383
Publisher	Elsevier Masson
Peer Reviewed	Peer Reviewed
Volume	23
Issue	2
Pages	415-431
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1016/0160-7383%2895%2900070-4
Keywords	Living history, Realism, Reflexivity, Performance.

Files

Accepted Journal Article (138 Kb)
PDF

Copyright Statement
NOTICE: this is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Annals of Tourism Research. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Annals of Tourism Research, 23, 2, 1996, 10.1016/0160-7383(95)00070-4.