Abstract
In his recent book, New Age Travellers: Vanloads of Uproarious Humanity, Kevin Hetherington (2000) provides us with a highly stimulating account of a social group who have for some time lived on the roads in Britain. However, in this article I argue that it has certain flaws. I argue that it is overly voluntaristic and does not take seriously the issues surrounding the question of whether Travellers have been forced to move onto the road, having previously faced social and economic hardship through, for example, unemployment and/or homelessness. In the conclusion, I liken Travellers to Bauman’s (1998) vagabonds who have been uprooted from a place that holds little promise. Hetherington’s account of Travellers, on the other hand, resembles more the experience of the tourist which is lived as postmodern freedom. I argue below that this stress on individual freedom of choice has political overtones. Importantly, though, Hetherington’s account also has implications for the discipline of sociology. Thus, I suggest that it might be considered part of the trend towards ‘decorative sociology’ (Rojek and Turner, 2000); as exemplified by the subheading of the book which conjures up images of playfulness, fun and the carnivalesque (Hetherington, 1998b). Hetherington’s work also romanticizes Travellers who are depicted as epic figures transgressing the rules of society. His portrayal of their lifestyle as tranquil and harmonious is regarded as romantic as well.
