- Title
- The mirror of the sea : Narrative identity, sea kayak adventuring and implications for outdoor adventure education
- Creator
- Miles, Beau; Wattchow, Brian
- Date
- 2015
- Type
- Text; Journal article
- Identifier
- http://researchonline.federation.edu.au/vital/access/HandleResolver/1959.17/160750
- Identifier
- vital:12279
- Identifier
- ISBN:1324-1486
- Abstract
- This paper explores the complex and changing nature of adventure as a form of cultural practice. Borrowing from Joseph Conrad's memoirs The Mirror of The Sea (1907), sea kayaking is contextualized here as a journey that takes place just as much between 'landfall and departure' as it does between the paddler's ears (i.e., in the paddler's mind). That is to say, to gain useful insights into the experience of sea kayaking it is necessary to consider both the external and internal journey of the paddler, and the relationship that exists between these two phenomena. Using tenets of personality psychology which presents new ways of understanding narrative identity, we will 'waymark' textual vignettes from four modern day sea kayaking adventure narratives to explore ideas of self, narrative identity and meaning making. These key passages aim to reveal how the adventurer's story is influenced by "external factors that shape the public expression of stories about the self" (McAdams & McLean, 2013, p. 233). Summary discussion will address potential implications for contemporary outdoor adventure education, offering a way of stimulating reflective practice about the culturally and textually constructed nature of adventure.
- Publisher
- Outdoor Council of Australia
- Relation
- Australian Journal of Outdoor Education Vol. 18, no. 1 (2015), p. 16-26
- Rights
- Copyright of Australian Journal of Outdoor Education is the property of Outdoor Council of Australia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.
- Rights
- Open Access
- Rights
- This metadata is freely available under a CCO license
- Subject
- 1302 Curriculum and Pedagogy; 1303 Specialist Studies In Education; Adventure education; Outdoor education research; Personality studies; Sea kayaking; Narratives
- Full Text
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