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Pico Iyer Why We Travel Analysis

1500 Words6 Pages

Most people dream about sudden trips to exotic lands or planned voyages to previously familiar locations, but what is it that drives us to seek to leave our home? Why is it that we travel, even if we are completely comfortable in the country we live in? Pico Iyer, in his travel essay titled ‘Why We Travel’ states different reasons why he believes we seek the unknown. One of the points he claims that we travel for the “self and anonymity”. As he expands on this idea, it is clear to the reader that Iyer believes one of the reasons we travel is to be able to be “free of caste and job and standing” in order to better comprehend ourselves. In a different environment where no one can really put a label on you, especially if you are alone, it is probable that certain issues or aspects of one’s personality, which would have otherwise remained dormant, manifest themselves, allowing you to be “born again”. In this situation, you don’t live in the past or the future, but in the present where it is almost impossible for you to ignore your inner self, biases, values, and opinions. The thought of traveling alone usually expresses a feeling of loneliness, but in reality being on your own encourages you to learn and understand yourself in ways that cannot be achieved by staying in your habitual territory. This can occur because of many factors including, but not limited to individuals around us and their culture. How could the society around you influence you if you have a set of core

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