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signifi cant themes to emerge from the research
were analysed within the discourses of culture,
feminist theory, power and labour relations,
consumerism and notions about the home envi-
ronment. The implications for practice and pro-
fessional development were then discussed.
For the purposes of this discussion, we will
draw upon one vignette to illustrate what it is
like to be the 'object' of the tourist gaze. Here,
we extend my original study to examine specifi -
cally the elements of the 'gaze' in this one
vignette, and its embodiment in a specifi c social,
cultural and temporal setting with strong under-
currents of hierarchal power-relations. To elabo-
rate further - this chapter explores what it is
'really' like for a young attractive non-white
female trainee receptionist from a third-world
country - in a labour position of subservience
- to be the object of the predatory gaze of a
middle-aged affl uent white heterosexual male
guest of VIP standing in the hotel.
The gaze is defi ned here as an intense look
that lingers on the object of the gaze. Jonathan
Schroeder notes, 'to gaze implies more than to
look at - it signifi es a psychological relationship
of power, in which the gazer is superior to the
object of the gaze' (1998, p. 208). I argue here
that the gaze of the guest is one of 'appraisal' as
to the 'possibilities' of what is on offer; the host/
receptionist has to 'measure-up to' this apprais-
ing gaze for the service encounter to be success-
ful. However, in the encounter explored herein
the gaze is shown to be mutual; that is, the host
also 'appraises' the guest to see whether the
guest will 'comply' with the rules of conduct
expected in a service transaction.
In seeking to study the lived experience of
female receptionists in the hospitality industry, I
sought to fi nd a methodological approach capa-
ble of revealing the richness of the work to the
mind's eye of the reader, so that he/she would
be able to experience some of its spirit and colour.
The methodology employed, interpretative-
hermeneutics, phenomenology and an expres-
sive arts-based textual genre enabled me to
bring alive the lived quality of the experience of
a hotel receptionist as if the work was a dramatic
scene played out on a stage. An arts-based tex-
tual approach seeks to take an alternative (and
complementary) path to arts-based visual
inquiry by bringing aesthetic attention to a por-
trayal of the experience to
show
the typical
nature of this work and the challenges faced by
receptionists in carrying out the work. For exam-
ple, Springgay and Wilson have shown through
their approach of 'A/r/tography' that art provides
an alternative way of
knowing
, 'living inquiry is
an embodied encounter constituted through
visual and textual understandings and expe-
riences rather than mere visual and textual
representations. One cannot separate, through
abstract means, visual and textual interpretations
of lived experience' (2005, p. 902).
In their work on '
Contextualising leisure
research to encompass complexity in lived lei-
sure experience: the need for creative analytic
practice
', Parry and Johnson (2007, p. 121)
argue that:
. . . the leisure studies community is exploring
ways to get closer to understanding the lived
experiences of leisure and is also concerned
about the way leisure is represented. Rather
than simplifying and reducing leisure experi-
ences, leisure studies schools seem to want to
contextualise leisure experiences and treat them
as a complex phenomenon.
In relation to the above, Parry and Johnson call
for the creation and use of more imaginative
and creative representations such as autoeth-
nography, fi ction stories, visual images, poetry,
experimental media and performance. Hence,
this study uses autoethnography, narrative,
visual images in the form of metaphor, and
poetry to study the embodied experience of the
gaze in hospitality settings. The fi ndings from
the research will be of use to hospitality workers,
educators, managers, policy makers and other
parties interested in gaining an understanding
of hospitality reception practice.
The Hospitality Work Context
Working as a hospitality receptionist lends itself
to interaction, as it is foremost a relational activ-
ity that involves being linked to others through
the duty to provide for people - guests, co-
workers and managers - who are at different
status levels. An essential part of this job is man-
aging these dynamic relationships, especially
interactions with guests. In reception work,
guests must be served in such a way that their
expectations are met. Some guests can be very
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