Modern Travel in World History uses three themes-technology, mass
movements and travelers-to examine the history of the modern world from
the fifteenth-century transatlantic explorations to the impact of the
global COVID pandemic of the twenty-first century.
This book focuses on both the evolving nature of travel, from land and
sea routes in the 1500s to the domination of planes and cars in the
modern world, and the important stories of travelers themselves. Taking
a global perspective, the text places travel within the larger
geopolitical, social, religious and cultural developments throughout
history. It emphasizes not only the role of technology innovation in the
ways people travel but also how those changes affect social structures
and cultural values. Tom Taylor explores the journeys of well-known
travelers as well as ordinary people, each with different perspectives,
through the lens of gender, social class and cultural background, and
considers how fictional travelers define the importance of travel in the
modern world. Why people set out on the sojourns they did, what they
experienced, who they met and how they understood these cross-cultural
encounters are important to not only understanding the travelers
themselves but the world they lived in and the world their travels made.
Several maps help illustrate important routes and destinations.
This book will be of interest to students of world history and
literature.
