TY - BOOK N2 - The Taj Mahal has long been a subject for photography and poetry, but this book presents the first sociological analysis of the Taj as a cultural phenomenon. Tim Edensor examines the conflicting narratives which surround the site: postcolonial views of the monument as a symbol of love, of India and of splendid exuberance; and those which challenge this ethnocentricity, for whom the Taj is the symbolic center of Islamic power or a site of Moghul appropriation. He discusses many of the tourist practices around the Taj and considers the notion of tourism in a wider context. Clearly written and fascinatingly illustrated, this book describes tourism as "performance" and the tourist site as a "stage" on which tourists are directed and rehearsed, improvising cultural conventions in the complex production of leisure space.--Publisher description. AB - The Taj Mahal has long been a subject for photography and poetry, but this book presents the first sociological analysis of the Taj as a cultural phenomenon. Tim Edensor examines the conflicting narratives which surround the site: postcolonial views of the monument as a symbol of love, of India and of splendid exuberance; and those which challenge this ethnocentricity, for whom the Taj is the symbolic center of Islamic power or a site of Moghul appropriation. He discusses many of the tourist practices around the Taj and considers the notion of tourism in a wider context. Clearly written and fascinatingly illustrated, this book describes tourism as "performance" and the tourist site as a "stage" on which tourists are directed and rehearsed, improvising cultural conventions in the complex production of leisure space.--Publisher description. T1 - Tourists at the Taj :performance and meaning at a symbolic site / DA - 1998. CY - London ; CY - New York : AU - Edensor, Tim, CN - DS486.A3 CN - DS486.A3 PB - Routledge, PP - London ; PP - New York : PY - 1998. ID - 890069 KW - Taj Mahal (Agra, India) KW - Tourism KW - Popular culture KW - Architecture and state KW - Symbolism in architecture KW - Public opinion SN - 9780415167130 SN - 0415167132 SN - 9780415167123 SN - 0415167124 TI - Tourists at the Taj :performance and meaning at a symbolic site / ER -