June 3rd, 2018
The fist week in Rome has come to a close, and it has been an intense ride thus far. The others on the trip are interesting and we all get along very well. We've seen some museums, some historical sites, and some churches so far, all of which have been incredible. The heat I could do without, but it has been a great experience otherwise. Today was exceptionally exciting as a few of us went to mass at Saint Peter's Basilica. It was a Latin sung mass, which I had never experienced before, I received communion from a Cardinal and we got to see the Papal address afterwards. It's an early start tomorrow as it is Vatican day, which I am very much looking forward to. I must say the thing I miss most from home is time to rest, and Cookie [my cat]. Things move very fast here, and I often find myself wishing I could have more down time to collect my thoughts.
This was the only entry I wrote in my journal during my entire three week trip to Rome through my university's Study Travel Program last summer. Looking back, I could have said so much more about the amazing things I had seen over the first week and, as I had written, I truly wish I had had more time to sit down and write about all of the amazing things I had seen during my trip. This short passage is my only experience writing in the genre of travel writing.
Travel blogs, travel guidebooks and such written are common place in 2019, however this form of writing is not unique to the 21st century. In fact, the tradition dates back to Ancient Greece, and although there have been changes within the genre, many elements can be found in ancient examples of travel literature.
Percy G. Adams discusses the evolution of travel literature and of the novel, examining how the two forms developed in his book Travel Literature and the Evolution of the Novel. Adams explains that there are many different types of travel literature and that these forms have all evolved since the beginning of the form. He outlines the main categories of travel literature as being part of either two groups:
guidebooks (38), which much like today contained maps and information on landmarks that were located in the area which had been explored in a more formal manner; or
personal notes, which were often taken during travels by a second party to be sent to family members, religious groups or publication houses depending on the content (42-43).
These two categories are further divided into three types of writing:
letters, which the traveller would write to second parties to share their experiences with others, either patrons to their voyage or family members mostly (43);
journal entries, which would begin as short summaries much like my example of a journal entry and would be expanded upon and edited by the author or a second party prior to publication (43-44); and
simple narrative, which are written in a way that is more formal, giving dates and names of areas while describing them as they appear in the journey while also containing some reflection on travel (44).
These are not the only types of forms in travel writing according to Adams, however. The forms used in travel literature are numerous, from pure to partial dialogue, to autobiographical and biographical, to poetic (44).
Guidebooks date as far as Ancient Greece, the oldest of which is Pausanias’ Description of Greece, which was transcribed some time in the fifteenth century, though his original text long predates this. According to Adams “Pausanias set high standards for accuracy, liveliness, and credibility” when it came to this version of travel writing (Adams 39). His travel writings are even more interesting, as they were written at a time when ancient cities were standing in all their glory rather than in the ruins we would see today if you were to visit the location he describes in his works, as Maria Pretzler explains in her book Pausanias: Travel Writing in Ancient Greece, an excellent look at Pausanias’ travel writing if you want to learn more about this fascinating figure and his contribution to the form, and on travel in Ancient times.
By the 1800s, there were several guidebooks, ranging from the Ancient to the more contemporary Grand Tour Guides, which described the trips many young British aristocrats took to gain worldly experience through travel that took place from the mid sixteenth century to the mid nineteenth century and these guides would provide guidance in terms of travel routes, inns, costs, warnings and recommendations (Adams 38). The most important example of guidebooks leading up to the nineteenth century were pilgrimage guides, which would provide directions to various shrines that could be visited along the way, churches, along with other general travel information as seen in other guidebooks (39).
While Adams looks at the forms in which travel literature manifests itself, Andrew Hadfield explores “what is the purpose of writing about other lands or recounting one’s experiences of foreign travel” (1) in his book Literature, Travel, and Colonial Writing in the English Renaissance, 1545-1625 through the assessment of the content within travel writing. Hadfield primarily examines the political nature of Travel literature, as he argues that, through the sharing of other cultures experienced by travel, the author themselves reflect on their own cultural experience.
In some cases these reflections find themselves inscribed in the writing through an “allegorical representation of a foreign setting” (Hadfield 1), which allows for criticisms of their own culture in a way that provides a certain level of security from being labelled as a treasonous. Other writers may be more open with their criticisms, which sometimes lead to problems with their government; such was the case of William Thomas, who was executed in 1554, who wrote of his time in Italy, criticising King Edward VI’s rule for being inefficient. Although Thomas was not killed for this written work specifically, he was part of a Rebellion, presumably following a rise in criticism he may have developed through his experience outside of England (1-2).
Travel writing was not only influenced by the author’s reflections on their own cultures, but also would depict the political environments in which the author found themselves. Because of the complicated political landscapes of the 16th and 17th century, travel writing was considered suspicious by some members of the aristocracy and upper members of society, and it did occur that travel writing could very quickly turn into something that resembled captivity narratives, or would bring an end to the narrative all together (Hadfield 3).
Through his examination of the intent behind writing travel literature, Hadfield addressed the issue of fact versus fiction in Medieval and Renaissance writing. He uses The Travels of Sir John Mandeville as an example of blending factual elements with fictional flair, relying on both observations and the author's own apparent affinity towards Medieval romances (6).
Thomas More's 1516 Utopia is another example of this blending of fact and fiction. As the title itself signifies, it depicts a Utopia, which is in its name, meaning no where, not a real place, never to be attained (7). This text was used, however, as a strong basis for writing about colonisation for years after its publication. Although these texts, Hadfield argues, clearly blend both fact and fiction, they have each impacted their societies in their times, some impacts which are still present in some modern ideas.
Travel literature is a complex genre that, in its beginnings, set a precedent for all travel writing that was to follow. Not only did it evolve, but its role in society leading up to the nineteenth century formed other literary genres and even societal ideas and ideals. Although one may not think that there is a link between a guidebook on where to find the best gelato in Italy with the top pick on Good Reads for fiction, there were many elements between the two leading up to the development of the novel.
----
Works Cited
Adams, Percy G.. Travel Literature and the Evolution of the Novel, University Press of Kentucky, 2014.
Hadfield, Andrew. Literature, Travel, and Colonial Writing in the English Renaissance, 1545-1625, Oxford University Press, 1998.
Pretzler, Maria. Pausanias : Travel Writing in Ancient Greece, Bristol Classical Press, 2007.