Vail, Colorado, as a Voluntary Culture Region
Issue Date
2008-01-01Author
Fertig, Christopher Jost
Publisher
University of Kansas
Format
84 pages
Type
Thesis
Degree Level
M.A.
Discipline
Geography
Rights
This item is protected by copyright and unless otherwise specified the copyright of this thesis/dissertation is held by the author.
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Show full item recordAbstract
Abstract. Geographers considering the subjects of tourism and tourist destinations have by in large focused on inherent environmental and economic impacts. Culturally, areas of leisure and recreation, termed "pleasuring places" by Wilbur Zelinsky, are often dismissed as artificial and being devoid of any real meaning. Precious little has been written that builds upon or is in response to Zelinsky's theory of voluntary culture regions. Contrary to the prevailing outlook, honest reflection reveals that such places have a great deal to say about current the attitudes and direction of modern society. Thus, areas centered upon pleasure and the therapeutic provide a critical lens for the examiner of culture, and are likewise, dynamic cultural phenomenon. Vail, Colorado, in particular, has transcended place into becoming a potent cultural icon, exemplifying the unique values of pleasuring places in its history, singularity in purpose and function, material culture, and sense of place.
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