In his
A Sentimental Journey, Laurence Sterne notes that “an Englishman does not travel to see Englishmen” (Sterne 37). Of course, the reality of the Grand Tour—the trip through Europe undertaken by a young noblemen to complete his education—virtually ensured that an Englishman would meet dozens of his fellow countrymen in even the most exotic locales, as they, like him, were undertaking a duitful pilgrimage to the wellsprings of art. But what did they hope to see? The same statues and paintings that had been glimpsed—and written about—for countless generations? Bad inns and worse food? Or simply the outright robbery of the tourist trade? Many writers were understandably cynical about this cultural rite of passage, but none more so than Tobias Smollett, who had an absolute…
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Citation: Grasso, Joshua. "Travels Through France and Italy". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 20 December 2018 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=10089, accessed 31 October 2024.]
