The Cosmopolitan Geopolitics of Sri Lankan Tourism
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Strange(r) Maps: the cosmopolitan geopolitics of Sri Lankan tourism Shelby E. Ward Dissertation submitted to the faculty of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy In ASPECT: The Alliance of Social, Political, Ethical, and Cultural Thought Katrina Powell, Chair Mauro Caraccioli Bikrum Gill Rohan Kalyan Peter Schmitthenner Blacksburg, VA Keywords: Autoethnography; Critical Cartography; Geopolitics; Identity Politics; Mapping; Postcoloialism; Sri Lanka; Tourism; Copyright 2019 Strange(r) Maps: the cosmopolitan geopolitics of Sri Lankan tourism Shelby E. Ward ACADEMIC ABSTRACT Concerned with the ongoing coloniality within the form and interactions of international relations, this project examines the legacy of colonial mapping practices on contemporary geopolitics. Specifically, I investigate Sri Lankan tourist maps as subversive examples of the politics of vision implicated within the historical formation of island-space under colonial mapping practices (i.e. Portuguese, Dutch, and British), and the contemporary political implications of the island geography as the state, including exclusionary identity politics during the the civil war (1983-2009). Using a mix-analysis approach, including interviews, participatory mapping, and autoethnography, as well as feminist, postcolonial, and critical theoretical lenses, I argue that Sri Lankan tourist maps serve as examples of the historically developed and continued right to space, mobility, representation, and resources between the Global North and South in what I term “cosmopolitan geopolitics.” As geopolitics can be identified as the relationship between territories and resources, cosmopolitan geopolitics is concerned with the power relations when such elements as culture, authenticity, history, and religion are marked in places, people, and experiences as valued resources within the international tourist economy, particularly in this project which connects the colonial histories of mapping, travel, and international relations. In order to address the imperial, masculine politics of vision this project is separated into two parts: the first is concerned with the ontology and colonial legacy the map (Chapters 1-3), the second with the politics of the map, including exclusionary politics of the nation state (Chapters 4-6). Chapter 1 investigates the politics of island space as represented on the tourist map, where the state serves as both a “treasure box” and “caged problem.” Chapter 2 argues that the cartoon images and icons serve as a resource map for contemporary geopolitics, and Chapter 3 indicates that this map simultaneously acts an invitation to the cosmopolitan, with assumed access and hospitality. Examining the various ways that the exclusionary politics of the Sinhala-Buddhist state are implicated in the representations on the tourist map, Chapters 4-6 look at cultural tourist sites, natural or wildlife sites, and former war zones, respectively. Overall, this is an interdisciplinary examination between postcolonial studies, critical tourism studies, critical geography, and Sri Lankan studies that examines the continued politics of vision and access to space with both international and domestic political-economic implications. Strange(r) Maps: the cosmopolitan geopolitics of Sri Lankan tourism Shelby E. Ward GENERAL AUDIENCE ABSTRACT This project takes a critical examination of tourist maps, as a cultural artifact in what has been called “coloniality,” or the ongoing colonial relations in contemporary relationships between nation states. I suggest that my taking into account the colonial history and development of mapping practices, tourism, and international relations that tourist maps serve as material intersection to examine such relations. The island state of Sri Lanka is an ideal case study for this project, as not only does it intersect colonial relations between the Portuguese, Dutch, and British, but because after ending nearly 30-year ethnic-religious civil war the country is looking to expand its tourism industry. Therefore, I argue that an understanding of what I term “cosmopolitan geopolitics” helps us to account for the ways in which culture and religious experiences become resources in contemporary geopolitics within the international tourist economy. Using a mix-analysis approach of interviews, participatory mapping, autoethnography, and theoretical perspectives, I organize the project into two main parts. The first questions “what a map is,” and the second questions “who gets to map.” Overall, this interdisciplinary investigation pulls from postcolonial studies, critical tourism studies, critical geography, and Sri Lankan studies in order to question the continued narratives and representations within cultural commodification and travel. Acknowledgments This seems a nearly impossible task to acknowledge and thank all of those in my life that have been apart of this process. So please forgive if the few lines here do not seem to do justice to the impact you have had, and for those names that I will inevitably . First, to my parents Donna and Alan Sigmon, and Matthew Ward you were always the first to believe and know what was possible for me. Mom, you always saw the value in opportunity, thank you for loving and supporting me as I chased mine. To my brother, Drew who taught me about navigating difference. For you comrade. To my husband, Alex thank you for all the love and sacrifice during this process in our lives, and for being a relief when these pages seemed too much. To my committee, each one of you have inspired me, pushed me, questioned me, and ultimately made me a better scholar. Thank you for those that were there from the beginning. Peter Schmitthenner your support and eye for detail always seemed to be there when needed. Rohan Kalyan I am so thankful I did not lose you as a reader, your analysis and comments continued to shape this project through the final edits. And thank you for those that agreed to join. Mauro Caraccioli your support here goes beyond just the dissertation, but you have taught me how to think of and navigate the spaces of academia. Bikrum Gill, thank you for coming on right as you yourself were joining Virginia Tech, and the time and energy you devoted, particularly to these final drafts. I don’t know what this project would like without you. To my chair, Katrina Powell I could not imagine going through this process with anyone else at the lead. From the years here at Virginia Tech as your student, researcher, and advisee, there is perhaps no one who knows my writing and work better than you, both its strengths and weaknesses. Whatever happens from here, I will to continue to have you in my head on how to negotiate both. Looking back, it is perhaps only fitting that we met in an airport on our way to Sri Lanka. To other faculty members and mentors that have been apart of this process, thank you. François Debrix, I have benefited from and am grateful for your mentorship and advocation. It is impossible to think of ASPECT without you. Bob Siegel, from my introduction to theory to working in C21S you were foundation to where I am now. To colleagues, friends, and teachers, Mario Khreiche, Rob Flahive, Jordan Laney, Linea Cutter, Brett L. Shadle, Timothy W. Luke, Aaron Ansell, Thomas Gardner, Karen Hult, Alexander Stubberfield, Scott G. Nelson, Emily M. Satterwhite, Tamara Sutphin, Komal Dhillon-Jamerson, Danna Agmon, Desirée Poets, thank you. Last and certainly not least, thank you Caroline Alphin, Leigh McKagen, and Mary Ryan without your friendship, support, and laughter I would have been lost. Table of Contents Part I Introduction 1. Introduction: Tourism After Empire............................................................................................1 2. The Historical and Contemporary Geopolitics of Travel in Sri Lanka........................................7 3. The Politics of the Geospatial Imaginary of the Island-State......................................................9 4. The Political Silences of the Tourist Map..................................................................................14 5. The Privilege and Access of the Cosmopolitan Tourist and Researcher...................................19 6. Overview of Project...................................................................................................................26 Chapter 1: The Island State 1. Introduction: the tourist map as resource map...........................................................................29 2. The State as Treasure Box- Icons of Desire in Tourist Maps....................................................35 3. The State as Caged Problem- Containing the Problem in Response to or as Violence.............45 4. The historical and contemporary geopolitical lessons from Sri Lanka, the island-state...........60 Chapter 2: The Resource Map 1. Introduction: the tourist map as resource map...........................................................................66 2. The Geopolitical Textual Re-productions and Implications in Cultural Mining.......................75 3. Parallels between Sri Lanka’s gem and tourist industry............................................................87 4. The dialectical temporality of the postcolonial tourist map......................................................98 Chapter 3. The Invitation 1. The Invitation: the Sri Lankan tourist map as assumed hospitality.........................................105