Travel Writing

This accessible and interdisciplinary guide offers a clear and concise overview of the long history of travel writing, from the ancient world to the present day. Considering a wide range of primary sources from Sir Walter Raleigh to Jenny Diski, this extensively updated second edition is an ideal primer to this prolific and popular literary genre.

The book introduces the genre and outlines key debates within the field, such as gender, sexuality, postcolonial studies, and visual culture. It explores travel writing's autobiographical dimensions and different approaches for depicting the self, while surveying a range of canonical and more marginal works. New discussions include refugee and migrant narratives and LGBTQ travel writing, offering fresh perspectives on the genre's evolving landscape.

A new chapter walks readers through recent developments in the genre, including online forms, environmentalism and ecocriticism, and travel writing as an increasingly transnational, multicultural genre. Complete with a comprehensive glossary and further reading, this second edition bridges the gap between distant times and distant places, making it essential reading for students and an invaluable overview of current debates for literary studies scholars.