Geisha Fever: Changes in the Traditional Entertainment Districts in Kyoto in Response to Excessive Attention from Western Tourists

In the popular discourse, geiko districts are described as places where traditional culture is preserved in a living form. Although this statement may be considered as true, the geiko community is a part of Japanese society as a whole and does not exist in complete isolation. Being able to survive...

Descripción completa

Guardado en:

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor principal:	Magdalena Grela-Chen
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN PL
Publicado:	Ksiegarnia Akademicka Publishing 2020
Materias:	maiko geiko Kyoto stereotypes commercialisation Ethnology. Social and cultural anthropology GN301-674
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/7e0e830158614fc9a14124675e3a491c
Etiquetas:	Agregar Etiqueta Sin Etiquetas, Sea el primero en etiquetar este registro!

id	oai:doaj.org-article:7e0e830158614fc9a14124675e3a491c
record_format	dspace
spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:7e0e830158614fc9a14124675e3a491c2021-11-27T12:55:15ZGeisha Fever: Changes in the Traditional Entertainment Districts in Kyoto in Response to Excessive Attention from Western Tourists10.12797/RM.02.2019.06.072544-21392544-2546https://doaj.org/article/7e0e830158614fc9a14124675e3a491c2020-02-01T00:00:00Zhttps://journals.akademicka.pl/relacje/article/view/1255https://doaj.org/toc/2544-2139https://doaj.org/toc/2544-2546 In the popular discourse, geiko districts are described as places where traditional culture is preserved in a living form. Although this statement may be considered as true, the geiko community is a part of Japanese society as a whole and does not exist in complete isolation. Being able to survive as guardians of the Japanese tradition, in the 21st century geiko are discovering new opportunities, such as using new media to promote themselves in order to protect their lifestyle. However, outside world has forced them to change the way they manage their business in the districts. By using their own Internet sites, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts to reach new customers, they display their daily routine, one in which traditional culture meets modern ideas. This paper shows the reception of usage of the Internet in traditional entertainment districts of Kyoto and the response of Western tourists to the geisha phenomenon. It appears that overwhelming attention on the part of tourist industry, as well as commercialisation, are becoming a threat to the values which have cemented relationships between customers, geiko and teahouses owners. For instance, while during the so-called “geisha hunting”, tourists often try to take photographs of them at all costs. Considering the aspects of geiko life and processes mentioned above it is worth analysing how the image of the geiko is perceived by Westerners. Magdalena Grela-ChenKsiegarnia Akademicka PublishingarticlemaikogeikoKyotostereotypescommercialisationEthnology. Social and cultural anthropologyGN301-674ENPLRelacje Międzykulturowe, Vol 3, Iss 2(6) (2020)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN PL
topic	maiko geiko Kyoto stereotypes commercialisation Ethnology. Social and cultural anthropology GN301-674
spellingShingle	maiko geiko Kyoto stereotypes commercialisation Ethnology. Social and cultural anthropology GN301-674 Magdalena Grela-Chen Geisha Fever: Changes in the Traditional Entertainment Districts in Kyoto in Response to Excessive Attention from Western Tourists
description	In the popular discourse, geiko districts are described as places where traditional culture is preserved in a living form. Although this statement may be considered as true, the geiko community is a part of Japanese society as a whole and does not exist in complete isolation. Being able to survive as guardians of the Japanese tradition, in the 21st century geiko are discovering new opportunities, such as using new media to promote themselves in order to protect their lifestyle. However, outside world has forced them to change the way they manage their business in the districts. By using their own Internet sites, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts to reach new customers, they display their daily routine, one in which traditional culture meets modern ideas. This paper shows the reception of usage of the Internet in traditional entertainment districts of Kyoto and the response of Western tourists to the geisha phenomenon. It appears that overwhelming attention on the part of tourist industry, as well as commercialisation, are becoming a threat to the values which have cemented relationships between customers, geiko and teahouses owners. For instance, while during the so-called “geisha hunting”, tourists often try to take photographs of them at all costs. Considering the aspects of geiko life and processes mentioned above it is worth analysing how the image of the geiko is perceived by Westerners.
format	article
author	Magdalena Grela-Chen
author_facet	Magdalena Grela-Chen
author_sort	Magdalena Grela-Chen
title	Geisha Fever: Changes in the Traditional Entertainment Districts in Kyoto in Response to Excessive Attention from Western Tourists
title_short	Geisha Fever: Changes in the Traditional Entertainment Districts in Kyoto in Response to Excessive Attention from Western Tourists
title_full	Geisha Fever: Changes in the Traditional Entertainment Districts in Kyoto in Response to Excessive Attention from Western Tourists
title_fullStr	Geisha Fever: Changes in the Traditional Entertainment Districts in Kyoto in Response to Excessive Attention from Western Tourists
title_full_unstemmed	Geisha Fever: Changes in the Traditional Entertainment Districts in Kyoto in Response to Excessive Attention from Western Tourists
title_sort	geisha fever: changes in the traditional entertainment districts in kyoto in response to excessive attention from western tourists
publisher	Ksiegarnia Akademicka Publishing
publishDate	2020
url	https://doaj.org/article/7e0e830158614fc9a14124675e3a491c
work_keys_str_mv	AT magdalenagrelachen geishafeverchangesinthetraditionalentertainmentdistrictsinkyotoinresponsetoexcessiveattentionfromwesterntourists
_version_	1718408996326473728

Geisha Fever: Changes in the Traditional Entertainment Districts in Kyoto in Response to Excessive Attention from Western Tourists

Ejemplares similares