Representation and Conflict
Intangible Cultural Heritage as a Tourism Attraction: The Case of Oman
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Galal Afifi
Oman is currently achieving an apparent expansion in its tourism sector, which is not limited to the continuous growth in tourists' numbers (i.e. 2.3 million in 2017), but also evident in its contribution to the Omani GDP and the development happening in tourism investment, legislation, education, etc. In this regard, Oman's cultural features have always represented a major part of its attractiveness, allowing Oman to have a place on the list of most evolving tourism destinations in 2017. Comparing to countries such as Egypt, Italy or China, it is hard to claim that Oman is overabundant with archaeological sites; however, Oman is surely one of very few Middle Eastern countries where tourists can still see and live an authentic cultural experience. Unlike other countries, this experience is not artificially created, enhanced or even maintained for tourism purposes, but it is actually the daily life of the majority of the Omani people, who are simply living their traditional cultural and social life until today without major changes. The continuity of this traditional life style has resulted in maintaining a tremendous treasure of intangible heritage including folkloric arts, myths, rituals, traditions and festive events which offers a unique opportunity for tourists to have such live experience. In this context, this paper aims to highlight the uniqueness of the Omani Intangible heritage and examine the cons and pros of inserting it as a major component of the Omani tourism business from different point of views including public and private entities, community and tourists.
The Conflict of Life and Forms: Social Change, Contestation and Heritage Tourism
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Jeff Wahl, Tazim Jamal
The commemoration of cultural heritage through monuments and statues is a facet of the heritage tourism industry that tangibly represents the past for public consumption. However, beyond being sites of commemoration, commemorative spaces are also ideological sites where certain narratives can be privileged over others. Recently, some sites, such as American Civil War memorials, have become highly contested spaces where diverse, divergent social interests have clashed over their continued existence in public places. These conflicts have raised new issues for heritage tourism. Specifically, how are conflicts changing the way that tourists and other heritage stakeholders view such sites of commemoration? And how can these conflicts be mitigated? Simmel’s (1918) essay, The Conflict in Modern Culture, offers a lens to view social conflict and commemoration. Simmel draws a distinction between life, which refers to the diverse lived experiences of different people in society, and forms, which refers to representations of life that convey order and knowledge through the promotion of particular narratives. In this understanding, social conflict is inevitable as commemorations promote static and fragmented narratives of cultural heritage that obstruct or deny alternative perspectives in a world of continuous mobility and change. Yet, to Simmel, such conflict may be beneficial, as it challenges the narrow meanings of existing forms, and strives to better reflect life itself. This study uses Simmel to explore stakeholder conflicts and emergent solutions related to the commemoration of cultural heritage in an iconic destination the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, Montana, USA.
