Men and women tourists’ desire to see the world: ‘Curiosity’ and ‘a longing to learn’ as (self-) fashioning motifs (first–fifth centuries C.E.)

Abstract

Although tourism is often defined as characteristically modern, this article examines a series of Classical and early medieval texts (produced between the first and the fifth centuries C.E.) that challenge this view. After defining tourism as travel in the pursuit of enjoyment, the article demonstrates that touring for the sake of curiosity and desire was a familiar element of Roman life and a common component of popular discourse. Writers in Antiquity recognised curiosity and desire as catalysts for human movement. They characterised travellers as curiosity-seeking sightseers, a representation that was not without ambiguity as both male and female travellers were criticised for exhibiting restless behaviour if they lost sight of their entrusted primary tasks en route. Even so, there seems to have been a common perception in Roman Antiquity that travellers often felt a desire to see for themselves what they had previously only heard or read about.