Tourists and vagabonds: heroes and victims of postmodernity

Abstract

"The opposition between the tourists and the vagabonds is the major, principal division of the postmodern society. We are all plotted on a continuum stretched between the poles of the “perfect tourist” and the “vagabond beyond remedy” – and our respective places between the poles are plotted according to the degree of freedom we possess in choosing our life itineraries. Freedom of choice is in the postmodern society by far the most seminal among the stratifying factors. The more freedom of choice one has, the higher is his or her rank in the postmodern social hierarchy." [author's abstract]