Ateneo - UPO

The course focuses on the study of tourism discourse in English, with particular attention to the linguistic and discursive practices through which destinations, places, cultural heritage and forms of tourist experience are represented, promoted and interpreted. Through the analysis of a range of genres and communicative contexts within the tourism sector—including promotional texts, websites, social media, informational materials, reviews and other digital content—students will explore the linguistic and communicative strategies employed to construct destination images and engage with different audiences.
Particular attention will be paid to the relationship between language, tourism and representation, including the promotion of tangible and intangible cultural heritage, intercultural dynamics and the transformations brought about by the digitalisation of the sector. The course will also examine how tourism discourse reflects and contributes to shaping contemporary tourism trends, practices and values, with consideration of issues such as sustainability, authenticity, responsibility and the ethical implications of tourism communication.

ESSENTIAL REFERENCE (compulsory): MACI, S. M. English Tourism Discourse. Insights into the Professional, Promotional and Digital Language of Tourism.Milano: Hoepli, 2020.
Further readings (optional): LAZZARETTI, C.,The Language of Museum Communication: A Diachronic Perspective. London: Palgrave, 2016; PAGANONI, M. City Branding and New Media: Linguistic Perspectives, Discursive Strategies and Multimodality. London: Palgrave, 2015.
NON-ATTENDING STUDENTS: references are the same as for attending students.

The course aims to develop students’ advanced linguistic and critical skills in the analysis of tourism discourse in English. By the end of the course, students will be able to:
- analyse the main linguistic, rhetorical and discursive features of English-language tourism discourse across different genres and media;
- critically examine how destinations, places, cultural heritage and tourist experiences are represented and constructed through language;
- apply appropriate discourse-analytical tools to authentic tourism-related materials and evaluate the communicative strategies used to address different audiences;
- critically discuss the role of English in contemporary tourism, particularly in relation to intercultural communication, sustainability, digitalisation and the promotion of cultural heritage.

Language skills at an advanced level: min. B2+ (CEFR). Please check the prerequisites for admission to the MA Lingue, Culture, Turismo.

Classroom-based instructional activities (Didattica Erogativa – DE) and interactive teaching activities (Didattica Interattiva – DI).

by contacting the University’s Staff for Career Development and Coordination and Student Services and consulting the dedicated section of the University website:
Services for Students with Disabilities and Specific Learning Disorders
After contacting the relevant University staff, students with disabilities, SLD or SEN may also contact the lecturer responsible for the course regarding the organisation and implementation of examination arrangements, particularly with regard to teaching and assessment-related matters.

Written exam: the assessment consists of the analysis of a tourism-related text and a set of open-ended questions based on the course content. Candidates are expected to demonstrate not only a thorough understanding of the topics covered, but also critical thinking and the ability to offer original and well-structured reflections. The final grade is based on a weighted assessment of the intended learning outcomes. Grades are awarded according to the level of achievement demonstrated: 18–22/30: sufficient; 23–25/30: satisfactory; 26–28/30: good;
29–30/30: very good; 30/30 with honours (cum laude): excellent.

1. Introduction to Tourism Discourse – Tourism as a specialised and multidisciplinary field of communication; Key concepts in tourism discourse and English for Tourism; The relationship between language, tourism and the construction of meaning; Introduction to discourse analysis and critical approaches to tourism communication
2. Tourism Genres and Communicative Practices – Characteristics of tourism-related genres and text types; Promotional and informational discourse; Travel brochures, destination websites, guidebooks and itineraries; news articles; online reviews, blogs and user-generated content; The shift from traditional to digital tourism communication
3. Representing Destinations, Places and Tourist Experiences – Linguistic strategies in destination representation; The construction of place image and tourist identity; The representation of authenticity, heritage and local culture; Storytelling and the construction of tourist experiences; The role of evaluative language and persuasive strategies
4. Tourism, Culture and Intercultural Communication – Representing cultural identities and cultural difference; The linguistic construction of the “tourist” and the “local”; Stereotyping, othering and the negotiation of cultural meanings
5. Digital Tourism Discourse – Tourism communication in websites and social media; Multimodality and the interaction between verbal and visual resources; User-generated content and participatory tourism discourse; Reviews, ratings and digital word-of-mouth; Changing relationships between tourism providers, destinations and audiences
6. Contemporary Issues in Tourism Discourse – Sustainability and responsible tourism; Authenticity and commodification of culture and heritage; Overtourism and the representation of tourism impacts; Ethical dimensions of tourism communication; Emerging trends in tourism discourse and destination promotion
7. Applied Discourse Analysis – Analysis of authentic English-language tourism texts; Identification of linguistic, rhetorical and discursive strategies; Comparison of different tourism genres and communicative contexts; Critical evaluation of destination and heritage representations; Application of discourse-analytical approaches to tourism communication

Knowledge and understanding
By the end of the course, students will be able to describe and distinguish the main concepts, approaches and theoretical tools related to tourism discourse, and to identify the main linguistic, rhetorical and discursive features of English-language tourism texts.

Applying knowledge and understanding
Students will be able to analyse authentic English-language texts from a range of tourism-related genres and media, identifying linguistic, rhetorical and persuasive strategies and relating them to the genre, communicative purpose and target audience.

Making judgements
Students will be able to compare and critically evaluate different linguistic representations of destinations, places, cultural identities and heritage, recognising strategies of stereotyping, othering, the construction of authenticity and persuasion, and substantiating their evaluations with textual evidence.

Communication skills
Students will be able to present and discuss in English an analysis of an individual tourism text or a set of tourism texts, using appropriate specialist vocabulary and linguistic and discourse-analytical terminology, and presenting their analysis in a clear and well-structured manner.

Learning skills
Students will be able to independently select and apply discourse-analytical tools to tourism texts not previously examined during the course and adapt analytical approaches to different genres, media and communicative contexts within tourism.