Journal of the Korean association of regional geographers (한국지역지리학회지)
- Volume 19 Issue 1
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- Pages.130-146
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- 2013
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- 1226-7392(pISSN)
Abstract
This study aimed to analyze the authenticity of dark tourism, and to discuss the possibilities and limitations of disaster tourism as an alternative type of tourism in post-modern society. For this purpose, disaster tourism related with the Great East Japan Earthquake was analyzed. After the disaster occurred, the boundaries between guests (tourists) and hosts (residents) dissolved and disaster communities emerged temporarily. This was followed by social contributive tourism, in which both guests and hosts shared their matter of life-and-death experiences, so existential authenticity became the most important motive and experience for tourism. As time passed, however, existential authenticity was reconstructed ideologically in the socioeconomic political context of disaster recovery, and replaced constructive authenticity. After all, the possibilities of disaster tourism as an alternative type of tourism based on the introspection of modernity were restricted. To discuss the underlying ethical issues of the commodification of disaster tourism, further researches should conducted to consider dark tourism as an alternative type of postmodern tourism.
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Acknowledgement
Supported by : 한국연구재단