Identity Construction of Traveler from Vehicles in the Travelogue of Generation Y Writers

Abstract

The research aims to study the identity construction from the travelogue of Genertation Y travelers through travelling experiences of different vehicles like motorbike, car, and train. The findings show that the Generation Y writers constructed their traveler identities by reproducing various discourses, especially the typical travel discourses: traveling is a demonstrating masculinity and traveling is an acquisition of knowledge, in order to restore the meaning of travel before the era of tourism. However, Generation Y writers are a group of people who grew up in the context of modern society, so they have tried to construct traveler identities by negotiating with traditional discourses and integrating modern discourses, such as the discourse of modern masculinity, the discourse of simple and enjoyable life, and the discourse of warm family. This makes the traveler identity of this group of writers diverse and in line with the changes of the era. In addition, it was found that female Generation Y writers have tried to negotiate with the discourse of masculinity, which has been embedded in travelogues from the previous time, by telling travel stories in a feminine way and making femininity appear in this type of writing as well.