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Thesis Title Death, Dying and Dark Tourism in Contemporary Society: A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis by Philip R.Stone A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment for the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the University of Central Lancashire October 2010 Student Declaration I declare that while registered as a candidate for the research degree, I have not been a registered candidate or enrolled student for another award of the University or other academic or professional institution I declare that no material contained in the thesis has been used in any other submission for an academic award and is solely my own work Signature of Candidate: Philip R.Stone Type of Award: PhD School: School of Sport, Tourism & The Outdoors Abstract Despite increasing academic and media attention paid to dark tourism – the act of travel to sites of death, disaster and the seemingly macabre – understanding of the concept remains limited, particularly from a consumption perspective. That is, the literature focuses primarily on the supply of dark tourism. Less attention, however, has been paid to the consumption of ‗dark‘ touristic experiences and the mediation of such experiences in relation to modern-day mortality. This thesis seeks to address this gap in the literature. Drawing upon thanatological discourse – that is, the analysis of society‘s perceptions of and reactions to death and dying – the research objective is to explore the potential of dark tourism as a means of contemplating mortality in (Western) societies. In so doing, the thesis appraises dark tourism consumption within society, especially within a context of contemporary perspectives of death and, consequently, offers an integrated theoretical and empirical critical analysis and interpretation of death-related travel. The study adopts a phenomenological approach and a multiple case studies design with integrative and complementary methods of covert participation observation, semi-structure interviews (n = 64) and survey research (n = 419), as well as a focus group and a diarist account. As a result, the thesis explores the fundamental interrelationships between visitors and sites that offer a representation of death. In particular, the research examines these relationships at Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum & Memorial (Oświęcim, Poland), WTC Tribute Visitor Centre at Ground Zero (New York), Body Worlds exhibition at the O2 Arena (London), and the Dungeon visitor attractions (York and London). The research finds that in a contemporary secular age where ordinary and normal death is sequestered behind medical and professional façades, yet abnormal and extraordinary death is recreated for popular consumption, dark tourism plays a mediating role between life and death. Ultimately, therefore, the thesis argues that dark tourism is a (new) mediating institution within secularised death sequestered societies, which not only provides a physical place to link the living with the dead, but also allows the Self to construct contemporary meanings of mortality, and to reflect and contemplate both life and death through consuming the Significant Other Dead. Contents Page No Volume One List of Figures vii List of Tables xiii List of Plates xv List of Appendices xix Acknowledgements xx A Personal Preface xxii CHAPTER ONE: Shining Light on Dark Tourism Research 2 1.0 Introduction 3 1.1 Research Rationale, Aim and Objectives 5 1.2 Thesis Structure 7 1.3 Research Publications 10 CHAPTER TWO: Dark Tourism: Themes, Issues and Consequences 12 2.0 Introducing Dark Tourism Themes, Issues & Consequences 13 2.1 Researching Dark Tourism 20 2.2 Dark tourism: diversity, scope and associations 24 2.3 Dark tourism: theoretical perspectives 30 2.4 Chapter Two Summary 37 CHAPTER THREE: Dark Tourism – Towards a Typology 39 3.0 Typological foundations: a need for dark tourism classification 40 3.1 Dark Tourism Typologies: concepts and debates 42 3.1.1 Dark tourism as experience 43 3.1.2 Dark tourism as play 43 3.1.3 Dark tourism as integration 43 3.1.4 Dark tourism as classification 44 3.2 Shades of Dark Tourism: a matrix approach 45 3.3 Dark Tourism: a spectrum of supply 47 3.4 Dark Tourism Products – ‗Seven Dark Suppliers‘ 54 3.4.1 Dark Fun Factories 54 3.4.2 Dark Exhibitions 55 3.4.3 Dark Dungeons 56 3.4.4 Dark Resting Places 58 3.4.5 Dark Shrines 60 3.4.6 Dark Conflict Sites 61 3.4.7 Dark Camps of Genocide 62 3.5 Chapter Three Summary 64 CHAPTER FOUR: Dark Tourism: Morality and New Moral Spaces 66 4.0 Dark Tourism and Moral Quandaries: an introduction 67 4.1 Secularisation, individualism and moral confusion 72 4.2 Revitalisation of Morality: Moral Panics and New Moral Spaces 75 4.3 Chapter Four Summary 83 CHAPTER FIVE: Dark Tourism: Death and Mortality 86 5.0 Death, Taboo and Mortality Moments: an introduction 87 5.1 Thanatology: an interdisciplinary approach 91 5.2 Conceptions of the Deathbed: a short history 93 5.2.1 The Tame Death 96 5.2.2 The Death of Self 98 5.2.3 The Remote Death 98 5.2.4 The Romantic Death 99 5.2.5 The Invisible Death 100 5.3 Death and Contemporary Society 101 5.3.1 Ontological Security: Meaning and Mortality 103 5.3.2 The Sequestration of Death: An Absent-Present Paradox 106 5.4 Making Absent Death Present: Dark Tourism and De-sequestration 114 5.5 Chapter Five Summary 119 5.5.1 ‗The Story So Far‘: a synopsis 121 Volume Two CHAPTER SIX: Methodology 2 6.0 Introduction 3 6.1 Research Philosophy 4 6.1.1 Grounded Theory Principles 6 6.1.2 (An Integrated) Qualitative Research Strategy 7 6.1.3 Epistemological and Ontological Considerations 11 6.2 Research Design 13 6.2.1 Case Study Selection 15 6.3 Research Methods 18 6.3.1 (Covert) Participant Observations 23 6.3.2 Semi-Structured Interviews 27 6.3.3 Focus Group 30 6.3.4 Diary Account 31 6.3.5 Questionnaires 31 6.4 Research Analysis 37 6.5 Research Determinants, Conduct and Ethical Considerations 39 6.6 Chapter Six Summary 41 CHAPTER SEVEN: Analysis – Ethnographic Research 43 7.0 Empirical Illustrations: an introduction to the case studies 44 7.1 The Dungeon Visitor Attractions - ‗Dark vs. Light‘ 46 7.1.1 A Dark Fun Factory: The Dungeon Visitor Attraction Context 49 7.2 The Dungeon Visitor Attractions Ethnography – ‗Recreating Death‘ 56 7.2.1 Consumer Expectations vs. Consumer Experiences 57 7.2.2 Death Designs 61 7.2.3 Perpetuation of Death Narratives 64 7.2.4 Ethical Dimensions and Psychosocial Connections 67 7.2.5 Mortality and Relevancy to Life-Worlds 69 7.3 Summary of Ethnographic Research – The Dungeon Visitor Attractions 71 7.4 The Body Worlds Exhibition - ‗From Plastination to Fascination‘ 73 7.4.1 A Dark Exhibition: Body Worlds Context 79 7.5 The Body Worlds Exhibition Ethnography – ‗Real Death‘ 80 7.5.1 Marketing the Macabre 81 7.5.2 Promoting Life Narratives 83 7.5.3 Death / Life Reflections 87 7.5.4 Moral Conversations: Art of Dying vs. Death Education 92 7.6 Summary of Ethnographic Research – The Body Worlds Exhibition 97 7.7 The Tribute WTC Visitor Centre – ‗Ground Zero‘ 99 7.7.1 A Dark Shrine: The Tribute WTC Visitor Centre Context 106 7.8 Tribute WTC Visitor Centre and Ground Zero Ethnography – ‗Reality 110 Death‘ 7.8.1 Spatial Scale and a Meditation of Mortality 110 7.8.2 Semiotics: Signs of Life (through Death) 115 7.8.3 Consuming Death and Disaster: Ethical Codes 125 7.9 Summary of Ethnographic Research – Tribute WTC Visitor Centre and 132 Ground Zero 7.10 Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum – ‗A Residence of Death‘ 135 7.10.1 A Dark Camp of Genocide: Auschwitz-Birkenau Context 137 7.11 Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum and Memorial Ethnography 143 – ‗Manufactured Death‘ 7.11.1 Death (Pre)conditioning 143 7.11.2 Constructing a Narrative of Death (and Moral Tales) 156 7.11.3 Mortality: Personal Connections, Reflections & Associations 170 7.12 Summary of Ethnographic Research – Auschwitz-Birkenau State 174 Museum and Memorial 7.13 Ethnographic Themes: Mapping Concepts of Meaning, Morality and 177 Mortality 7.13.1 The Mapping Process 178 CHAPTER EIGHT: Analysis - Survey Research & Discussion 187 8.0 Survey Analysis – An Introduction 188 8.1 Demographic Data 189 8.1.1 Gender Profile 190 8.1.2 Age Profile 190 8.1.3 Geographic Profile 190 8.1.4 Religious Profile 191 8.1.5 Purpose & Duration of Visit 191 8.2 Survey Context: 192 Secularisation, Mortality Anxiety and Death Sequestration 8.2.1 Secularisation 192 8.2.2 Mortality Anxiety and Issues of Morbidity 202 8.2.3 Sequestration 207 8.3 Visitor Experiences & Site Representations 210 8.3.1 Importance of Site 210 8.3.2 Ethical (Re)presentations 211 8.3.3 Purpose of (Site) Existence 213 8.3.4 Pre-Visit Motivations 217 8.3.5 Post-Visit Feelings 219 8.3.6 Emotional Engagement & Embodiment 223 8.3.7 Perceptions of ‗Darkness‘ 224 8.3.8 Promoting (Touristfied) Death 225 8.4 Moral Conversations 227 8.4.1 Moral Guidance 227 8.4.2 Ethical Conduct of Others 228 8.4.3 Moral Discourse 229 8.5 Meanings of Life and Living 231 8.5.1 Empathy 231 8.5.2 Relevancy 232 8.5.3 Ordinariness 233 8.5.4 Reflection 234 8.5.5 Fortitude 239 8.5.6 Hope 239 8.5.7 Security 240 8.5.8 Fear 241 8.6 Contemplating Mortality 242 8.6.1 Contemplating Death of the Other 242 8.6.2 Contemplating Death of the Self 243 8.7 Summary of Primary Research 252 8.8 Relating to Mortality: Sequestration and the Revival of Death 252 8.9 The Role of ‗Other‘ (Significant) Death 257 8.10 Mediating with the Dead 259 CHAPTER NINE: Conclusion 262 9.0 Introduction 263 9.1 Resurrecting the Dead: Dark Tourism as a New Mediating Institution 263 9.1.1 Information 267 9.1.2 Education 267 9.1.3 Entertainment 268 9.1.4 Haunting (Memories)
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