AIM704 | Heritage and Tourism

Student Name
INSTITUTIONAL AFFILIATION(S)
AIM704 HERITAGE AND
TOURISM

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Introduction
Heritage is one resource which is diverse and rich and includes cemeteries,
monuments, landscapes, buildings, shipwrecks archaeological sites along with several places
of interest. Heritage often includes objects which contribute to liveability and attractiveness
of cities, regions and town. They also provide wider economic or extrinsic benefits along
with social or intrinsic values other than environmental advantages. According to Rappoport
(2017), commercial and social development due to heritage conservation have made many
country’s take critical steps to reserve them in true sense. People are now well aware that
benefits through heritage property is uncountable and serves as a basis of economic
development besides making the area popular through heritage significance which further
aids people who resides in it, living nearby or passes through and visits it thereby making
heritage property turn into a tourist spot. The intrinsic values behind it can prove extremely
difficult to be measured as they are static and applied differently to diversified areas or
heritage spots. Socially, heritage can contribute to areas liveability and identification. There
are several heritage places which focus on community activities like cultural institutes, public
halls, schools, religious worship places and landmarks. By conserving heritage projects,
social and community developments are enhanced besides raising public awareness regarding
the history behind heritage, enhancing community self-identity. In this light, this paper
proposes to discuss intrinsic values of heritage over extrinsic values and how heritage
generates countervailing dispositions and preferences which enables people to shape their
aspirations for the future.

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Critical discussions
Intrinsic values usually take pivotal place while making ethical reasoning and remain
as a centre pillar while answering how people should act and live. Compared to claiming
something which has an instrumental value that is pedestrian and inferior because it does not
have the value of its merit rather relates itself with extrinsic factors, intrinsic values primarily
focus on casual relation with something having true or moral value (Baard, 2019).
Similarly, community's perception towards their historic places is often deep-rooted in
folktales, spiritual associations, rituals and oral narratives which generates a specific and
localised kind of meaning for a property. This functions more like a memory practice as they
are actively engaged with working and creating meaning behind historic events in the
heritage site.
Social memory associated with heritage comprises a dynamic collection of several
fragmented stories which revolves around family events, history, myths and places of
significance which are reworked every day and passed on to next generations. Thus,
embedding a social relationship by providing a basis for power relations and identity
negotiations. One fine example that can be given here is The Exhibition Building and Carlton
Gardens in Melbourne, Australia which was completed in 1880 and is regarded as a heritage
product of optimism, energy and enthusiasm by people living in Melbourne. Today, the
Royal Exhibition building is embellished as one of the world’s oldest exhibition hall and
symbolises the international exhibition movement of the great 19th century. The meticulously
designed, opulent and expansive galleries with soaring dome offer a magnificent place for
cultural procedures, trade shows and community events (UNESCO, 2019).
Many pilgrims’ travel from one place to the other in search of sacred sites like
churches, holy wells, shrines and rivers. For example, in the medieval era, people from

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Scotland travelled in search of healing sites that were associated with spiritual beliefs. Such a
quest for well-being and healing developed not due to self-desire or to seek alleviation but
due to learnings and understanding gained of spiritual experience that sites could provide
them and aid mental and physical recovery. This signifies the relationship between heritage,
spirituality and people belief which continues as people seek travelling to such places, not for
merry-making but to encounter cultural and spiritual factors associated with the site. Some
places landscapes itself offers a retreat for human eyes as described by environmental
volunteers (Perriam, 2015). Heritage sites with spiritual practice are further expressed in a
specific way which differs from routinely practices such as weekly church attendance.
Heritage sites offer visitors and local communities with energy to make them
physically, spiritually and emotionally fit alongside making the feel greater dimension of life,
deeper level of historic significance and how every element of life is well-connected with
each other (Perriam, 2015). Glastonbury in England, also known as ‘Ancient Isle of
Avalon’ is one of the heritage sites which gives people with healing water retreats embodied
with love and compassion. The Glastonbury Tor is a hill atop that was built in the 14th century
and now constitutes as a site of spiritual importance for Christians. This place is believed to
visited by Jesus once and since then remains enchanted. Pilgrims drink water from a holy
well or climb Tor for self-healing purposes. Community present there are well aware of the
site features and lives there out of the desire to be close to their ancestor's spirits and live in
harmony along with supporting community which shares goodwill and values worldwide
(Rand, n.d.).
Community participation is one important factor which is considered by heritage
tourism policymakers. By involving the local community and people residing beside heritage
sites, sustainable tourism and successful tourism operations are ensured along with
ascertaining an acceptance or rejection for tourism development after measuring community