Advances in critical heritage studies trends and geography of heritage: Paradigms and issues
Received date: 2024-08-23
Online published: 2025-12-15
Supported by
National Natural Science Foundation of China(42401283)
National Natural Science Foundation of China(42271240)
Philosophy and Social Sciences Foundation of Guangdong(GD25YGG09)
Philosophy and Social Sciences Foundation of Guangzhou(2024GZYB16)
Copyright
Amid the accelerating forces of globalization and modernity, worldwide discourses and practices of heritage have given rise to complex political, social, cultural, and spatial phenomena at community, national (region), and global scales. As the most recent paradigm in global heritage studies, critical heritage studies, a profound reflection on the phenomenon and nature of heritage, re-examines the subjectivity of heritage and investigates the political-economic and socio-cultural mechanisms that shape heritage construction from multiple perspectives. Drawing on its strong tradition of exploring human-environment relationships, human geography has contributed significantly to the theoretical advancement of critical heritage studies—particularly through an emphasis on the interactive processes of heritage-making and the spatiotemporal heterogeneity among heritage, place, and subjectivities. This paper offers a systematic review of the interwoven trajectories of critical heritage studies and heritage research in human geography, demonstrating that geography of heritage has developed two emerging research paradigms: constructivist and relational approaches. It further synthesizes key academic debates on four core themes: heritage identity and governance, heritage tourism and heritage authenticity, everyday life and living heritage, and the hybridity of natural and cultural heritage. The study argues that the parallel evolution of critical heritage studies and heritage geography aligns closely with geography’s “cultural turn” and “relational turn”, thereby fostering the formation of a more expansive interdisciplinary framework for heritage research. The interweaving of critical heritage trends and heritage geography research has had a profound impact on essential heritage issues and revealed that an increasing number of heritage practices demonstrate various possibilities. Heritage protection is no longer just about avoiding potential “risks”, but rather an active commitment to shaping a diverse and inclusive “future of heritage”. It should be noted that the differences in the humanistic environment, urban-rural development background and political and economic systems between China and the West have resulted in heritage geographical phenomena emerging in China that differ from those in the Western context. When applying critical heritage studies to examine the geography of heritage in China, the right of different cultures to coexist and the importance of local culture should be emphasised. Looking ahead, the geography of heritage in China should deepen its engagement with issues of cultural diversity, social equity, and sustainable development as shaped by heritage practices, thereby contributing a robust scientific basis for China’s people-centered heritage conservation in the new era.
Key words: critical heritage studies; geography of heritage; subjectivity; place
Lu Jun , Cai Haohui , Tao Wei . Advances in critical heritage studies trends and geography of heritage: Paradigms and issues[J]. GEOGRAPHICAL SCIENCE, 2025 , 45(11) : 2531 -2542 . DOI: 10.13249/j.cnki.sgs.20240867
表1 批判性遗产研究思潮下遗产地理研究的理论基础与范式转变Table 1 Theoretical basis and paradigm shift of the geography of heritage under critical heritage studies trends |
| 主要理论 | 表征理论与话语理论 | 非表征理论 | 关系理论 |
| 主要观点 | a. 解读空间或景观背后的文化意义与文化政治 b. 文化遗产话语所体现的社会不公平与权力关系 | a. 从现象学角度挑战话语与表征的霸权 b. 追求尽可能地呈现鲜活、生动的生活世界 c. 关注日常经验、人类身体与情感的经历对遗产的共同创造 | a. 打破文化与物质、主体与客体的二元论 c. 转向文化遗产的关系性本体论 b. 认为非人类的物质能动性(影响人类的情感感知能力) |
| 范式归属 | 建构主义范式 ①采取相对主义的本体论和主观主义的认识论 ②对当时社会语境下的历史与遗产之间关系的探讨 ③从表征的角度,尝试探究遗产的空间与景观的文化意义与文化政治 | 关系主义范式 ①采取关系性的本体论和互动的认识论 ②从非表征的角度,尝试分析主体与遗产互动中的感知与体验 ③从行动者网络和集合理论的角度,探究遗产的物质能动性以及遗产与人类/非人类行动者之间关系的新观点 | |
| 研究方法 | 民族志、扎根理论、批判话语分析 | 展演性的民族志方法、参与者旅行日志、眼动实验、神经科学方法等 | 多点民族志、集合理论方法、物质追踪方法 |
| 关注重点 | 考察围绕遗产营造的社会背景和权力结构 | 关注于人与遗产互动中情感、身体、实践、展演和日常生活等意义涌现 | 理解人类与非人类作为双重主体对遗产的建构,探求人类与非人类、文化与自然和谐共存的可能性 |
表2 1996年以来西方批判性遗产研究思潮下遗产地理研究的共被引文献和关键词Table 2 Co-cited literature and key words of the geography of heritage under western critical heritage studies trends since 1996 |
| 共被引文献 | 关键词 | ||||||
| 频次 | 中心性 | 发表年份 | 文献作者 | 频次 | 中心性 | 关键词 | |
| 注:表内数据根据Web of Science数据库(https:// webofscience.clarivate.cn/ wos/woscc/summary/ b1638d48-d1ac-4edd- | |||||||
| 45 | 0.10 | 2001 | Harvey D C | 34 | 0.59 | cultural heritage | |
| 39 | 0.04 | 2007 | Logan WS | 15 | 0.25 | heritage tourism | |
| 35 | 0.05 | 2010 | Gibson L | 12 | 0.17 | politics | |
| 31 | 0.06 | 2004 | Ashworth G | 12 | 0.06 | critical heritage studies | |
| 25 | 0.02 | 2014 | Bicknell J | 9 | 0.02 | local heritage | |
| 22 | 0.02 | 2006 | Poria Y | 9 | 0.01 | heritage value | |
| 22 | 0.10 | 2006 | Laurajane S | 5 | 0.02 | biocultural heritage | |
| 19 | 0.03 | 2010 | Waterton E | 5 | 0.06 | everyday heritage | |
| 18 | 0.13 | 2013 | Winter T | 4 | 0.10 | cultural practice | |
| 15 | 0.05 | 2019 | Gentry K | 2 | 0.03 | perceptions | |
| 15 | 0.1 | 2015 | Harrison R | 2 | 0.02 | future | |
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