What Was the Grand Tour - Assignment Example

Introduction Europeans has discovered the potential in some countries in Europe and they therefore planned a tour that took place in the early sixteenth century, seventeenth and eighteenth century. However, this involved the wealthy elites who were also aristocrats. The aim of the travels was to expand their horizons but it also resulted in interest in the resources of the travelled countries. This desire however led to European imperialism as is discussed in this essay. The Grand Tour The grand tour was a traditional trip taken in Europe by men and women of higher social hierarchy in Europe. It took between two and four years for the tourists to travel across cities in Europe. The idea of the grand tour began in the sixteenth century but its popularity increased in the seventeenth and eighteenth century. Initially, the tour was made by the British nobility and the prosperous among the landed gentry. Then other prosperous people from the Protestant Northern Europe countries started making similar tours. Towards the end of the eighteenth century, other Americans and young men from overseas also became part of the travelling group. This became a tradition and it even extended from the nobility to the middle class due to ease of travel that came with rail and steamship. The areas that were travelled during the grand tour included Paris, Venice, Florence and Rome in Italy. They could therefore move from one city to another, spending several weeks in the small cities and months in the main cities of Rome, Venice, Paris and Florence1. The Grand tourists of the grand tour were young English elites, mainly the aristocrats due to the love affair that had developed between Britain and Italy. Their most popular city was Paris since most British elites could speak French. Most politicians were against the grand tour since the tourists could spend a lot of money outside England. However, they used not to carry a lot of money due to fear of highway robbery. On their arrival in Paris, they could rent apartments and make daily trips to other cities. They could only rent apartments in the major cities since inns in other smaller cities were dirty. From Paris, they could proceed to Italy through the Mediterranean. Other areas included in the grand tour were Portugal, Spain, Germany and Eastern Europe2. The main purpose of the Grand Tour was for the tourists to broaden their perspective and gain more knowledge on culture, language, geography and architecture. The grand tourists were therefore more interested in visiting cities that were considered to be the main cultural centres during that time. The main goal of the tour was therefore educational although much of the tourist time was spent in leisure activities such as drinking and gambling, and some intimate affairs. It was believed that the tour could expose the aristocrats to the cultural legacy of that period and to the European society that is fashionably polite. The grand tour was mainly an experience for the young people who were wealthy and from the upper class. The idea grew out of need to create awareness in the seventeenth century of the previous times and of other places. It then became a passage rite for men into maturity. The travel was most important for the young men, who were preparing to take up diplomatic careers which required one to have knowledge on languages, culture, political systems of other countries, the men in the top hierarchy and their geography. It was therefore travelling for the sake of learning and leisure. However, apart from offering the young aristocrats with liberal education, it gave them an opportunity to shop for those things that were not available in their home country. They could go back home with books, sculptures, pictures and other items that signify culture which would be kept in libraries for display. It was therefore a sign of wealth and freedom among the young elites3. Edward Said's theory Orientalism Edward Said explains orientalism as a collection of untrue assumptions concerning the attitudes that people from the west has towards Middle East. Studies in Orientalism are based on the prejudices due to Europeanism against the people of Middle East and their culture. He states that the westerns have had long time images of Asia and Middle East which has justified the colonial and imperial plans for Europeans and Americans. He therefore criticized the practice of Arab elites who took up the ideas of British and US orientalists concerning the Arab culture4. The Orient described by Said is a place adjacent to Europe and that contains most of Europe’s oldest and richest colonies. Orient is like an imagination of the East in relation to Europe. It is described as the source of Europe’s civilization and its languages and its always recurring image of the ‘other’. However, the material basis of the imperialists and their exploitation due to struggle for power, Orientalism has just been underpinned. Said says that orientalism only occurs between the west does to the East but it is not common among all societies5. This theory can be useful in analyzing the history of European travel. The travel was mostly made by the young and wealthy and the main interest was culture. This could have been due to Orientalism that had been fed into their minds of the ‘other’ culture such that they could feel their difference. The western felt that their culture was superior to other cultures and could be a center for interest by their young elites. It is due to this feeling that Europeans could travel to the Middle East just to learn the culture. The history of these travels was therefore based on the feeling of existence of the ‘other’ that must be different from theirs. European Imperialism European imperialism explains the European countries that extended their rules to other countries. This was however very successful to many known European countries and had become a way of life for many countries being under their rule. However, those countries later liberalised themselves and are to day governing themselves. The main aim of the imperialism was to have access to the armies of the ruled countries, gain control over their exports, their finances and also take advantage of their strategic location. Generally, they were aiming at having access to their other countries’ resources. An example of a successful European imperialism was by the Roman Empire. This empire expended its rule to a large proportion of Europe and a great portion of land outside Europe. However, the Romans achieved this control by force but ultimately they contributed to development in the countries that they ruled. They helped in road construction, desirable temples and cathedrals. European imperialism therefore resulted in arise of other countries cultures and also an entry of other languages for example Latin in Europe6. European Imperialism however increased during the age of travel and it also during this time that colonial empire of Portugal, France, Britain and Spain were formed. The Grand Tour may have therefore contributed to European Imperialism. This is because it is during these tours the aristocrats discovered the countries with desirable resources and culture. Therefore, in strategising their invasion, they therefore had clues of the resourcefulness. During the European travel, the aristocrats were also interested in meeting the politicians in their countries of travel and also in understanding their governance. The age of exploration during the fifteenth and the sixteenth century had various motives which included trade and wealth. The first travellers intended to bypass trade routes in the West Africa that could allow passage of gold across the Sahara desert. They left laid techniques that enabled other Europeans to travel to India and finally to the Americans7. European imperialism was also contributed to by the political stability that most of the European nations had acquired. This resulted in increased involvement of Britain to colonialism. It was due to political, military, and economic stability that made them to dominate other countries in the world. This gave birth to the ‘white man’s burden’, an idea that justified to them that they have an obligation to share their ideas and institutions forcibly with other countries. This therefore justified their intentions of imperialism. Nevertheless, the whole idea of idealism rose from the European travels that revealed the resources in other countries and also created a relationship with other countries’ political leaders8. Gender difference in European Imperialism Women were also involved in the European travel but unlike men, they had a different motive. While men were interested in colonial power and the resources, women were interested in socialising. Women were anti racists during those times and did not play an active role in imperialism. Women were very much against the treatment of Britain towards Africans and they really criticized it. This was also witnessed during the colonialism in Africa. Most British men resolved their issues in conflict but women formed friendship with the Africans9. Gender difference was therefore seen in European imperialism where women did not acquire the advantages of colonialism as men did. Men got acquainted to the African language and use of fire arms when dealing with Africans. But women on the other hand, were travelling under the protection of askaris due to their vulnerability. They appeared in friendly manner and this discouraged the Britain men from getting involved in bloodshed with the colonies10. Conclusion The grand tour resulted in great discoveries of the wealth and trade routes among the European countries. This then led to the desire by some European countries to expand their rules to other countries with the intentions of creating access to resources in those countries. However there was gender difference in imperialism where men had intentions of colonising and exercising power while women were interested in helping other women and socialising with people from other nations. Bibliography Chaudhuri, N. (1992). Western women and imperialism: complicity and resistance. Indiana: Indiana University Press. Elizabeth B. & Duncan, I. (2005). Travel Writing 1700-1830: An Anthology. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Chaney, E. (2000).The Evolution of the Grand Tour: Anglo-Italian Cultural Relations since the Renaissance, London: Routledge. Trease, G. (1997). The grand tour, Volume 8. Boston: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Moore, T. (2002). The Grand Tour: The European Adventure of a Continental Drifter. New York: St. Martin's Press. Tilley, H. & Gordon, R. (2007). Ordering Africa: anthropology, European imperialism and the politics of knowledge. Manchester: Manchester University Press. Smith, W. (2002). European imperialism in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Michigan: Nelson-Hall. Porter, A., (2004). European imperialism, 1860-1914. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. Ghazoul, F. (2007). Edward Said and critical decolonization. Cairo: American Univ in Cairo Press. Kennedy, F. (2000). Edward Said: a critical introduction. New York: Wiley-Blackwell. Read More