Episode Details

“Sometimes we do things for ourselves in the name of adventure, without thinking about how this affects other people.” – Suzanne Roberts

In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Suzanne discuss what it means to be a bad traveler, and the ethical quandaries that come with being a tourist (3:00); examples from Suzanne’s book about her interacting from a position of privilege with trekking guides during a mudslide in Peru, giving a Power Bar to a leper in India, or wanting to help underaged prostitutes in Nicaragua (12:00); burning-ghat tourism in Varanasi, and how places where death is more public make one confront the notion of death and “aliveness” in a more realistic way (23:00); sex, dating and relationships abroad (34:00); and the challenge of writing about sensitive cross-cultural topics, and the utility of “sensitivity readers” versus good on-the-ground reporting in travel writing (55:00).

Suzanne Roberts (@SuzanneRoberts) is a travel writer, memoirist, and poet. Her books include the 2012 National Outdoor Book Award-winning Almost Somewhere, her new travel memoir Bad Tourist, and four collections of poetry. For more about Suzanne, check out https://www.suzanneroberts.net/ 

Notable Links:

• A Small Place, by Jamaica Kincaid (book-length essay)
• Postcolonialism (academic critical theory)
• White savior complex (trope applied to some travelers)
• Aguas Calientes (place in Peru)
• Ghats in Varanasi (riverfront area along the Ganges)
• Memento mori (artistic or symbolic reminder of death)
• Thomas Merton (Christian writer / theologian)
• Attar of Nishapur (Sufi poet)
• Sholeh Wolpé (Iranian-American poet)
• Favela (type of slum in Brazil)
• Poverty porn (media stereotype)
• Souvenir, by Rolf Potts (book)
• AWP Conference (American literary event)

This episode of Deviate is brought to you by

Listen Now