Chinese domestic tourism, the blogosphere, and travel writing: Assessing the literary and political status of Chinese travelogues in print and online

Abstract

By connecting among them the data concerning (1) China as a travel destination for domestic tourists, (2) the Chinese net population and (3) print and online travel writing, this article aims at exploring the potential of Chinese travel blogs as literary and political texts. In order to do so, the analysis draws upon, on one hand, Richard Strassberg’s study about classic Chinese travel writing – from Middle Ages to the 19th century – and, on the other hand, Michel Hockx’s findings concerning contemporary Chinese Internet literature. According to Strassberg, classic Chinese travel writing privileged a passive representation of the experience, focusing on either nature or the celebration of the country’s status quo. On his part, Hockx’s study suggests that, more strongly than the publishing sector, the Web constitutes a space where Chinese writers can renegotiate political and ethical boundaries. This article proposes the close reading of three contemporary Chinese travel books and travel blogs and implements it with interviews with authors and bloggers. The analysis shows that print travelogues are very politicized, thus departing sensibly from the tradition of the genre. By contrast, travel blogs, despite being published online, are chiefly focused on lights topics or the appreciation of the country’s natural beauties, more in line (paradoxically) with classic texts.