Review by Choice Review
In this slim but expensive critique of tourism at Angkor, sociologist Winter (Univ. of Sydney) asserts that domestic and international actors vie to define Angkor's past, present, and future through competing definitions of its meaning. International efforts at monumental reconstruction and preservation impose what Winter claims to be a "colonial vision" of Angkor as an ancient ruin frozen in time, in which Angkor's proper function is that of a "global heritage space." Cambodian officials have sought to use Angkor for economic development, bureaucratic power, and popular political support. International tourism treats Angkor as a historically disjointed cultural product to be smartly marketed and quickly consumed. All of these definitions ignore Angkor's use by local Cambodians as an evolving social and physical space. Although Winter rightly points out Angkor's economic importance in a country as impoverished as Cambodia, he does not present data on the amount of foreign exchange Angkorean tourism has generated or the national or regional effects of such revenue on Cambodian living standards. Perhaps this lack of quantitative data is in line with his postmodern belief that rational, scientific approaches to history are not truly objective. Of particular interest to those who enjoy deconstructing the sociological or anthropological effects of tourism. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate and special collections. C. Raymond Salve Regina University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
