Amenities, Affluence, and Ideology: Comparing Rural Restructuring Processes in the US and Norway

Paul M. Van auken and Johan Fredrik Rye

Landscape Research, 2011, vol. 36, issue 1, 63-84

Abstract: In this paper we analyse how conceptions of nature and rural space, combined with broader structural influences--particularly rural restructuring and neoliberal ideology--impact community development in rural amenity areas. Building on qualitative data (in-depth interviews, photo-elicitation, and participant observation), the paper applies interactional theory of community to analyse the amenity-based restructuring narratives of two rural communities: Bayfield County in Wisconsin, USA, and Hitra/Fr�ya in Norway. Three primary conclusions are drawn: 1) while amenity-led development occurs because of rural contrast, the trappings of urban life are growing in importance; 2) consumption may be the driving force behind growth and change in many 'post-productivist' rural areas, but landscapes are actively produced to capitalize upon local amenities; and 3) the study areas are in different phases of maturation, where Norwegian social attitudes about land seem to be shifting from a 'traditional' mentality towards a more 'American' mentality.

Date: 2011
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DOI: 10.1080/01426397.2010.536203

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