Tåget är halva berättelsen : En etnologisk studie om ungdomars interrailresor

Sammanfattning: This is a study about young people’s understanding and experiences of interrail. The aim is to explore young people’s views of interrail and train travel in Europe and how traveling with train through interrail changes young people’s views of themselves and the world around them. Interrail is a train ticket that gives the ticketholder the ability to travel through 33 countries using over 40 different train and ferry companies. Founded in 1972 to give young Europeans the means to travel and explore their continent, today interrail is an established travel form for young people all over Europe. Through interviews of four young people currently living in Sweden I aim to understand the reasoning behind young people’s interest in interrail and train travel, how and what sort of communities that form throughout the trip, and in what ways the trip and the experiences of the trip influence the travelers lives once they return home. The analysis is primarily made from a phenomenological viewpoint, told from Maurice Merleau-Ponty’s view of phenomenology, as well as Victor Turner’s views on liminality. Throughout the study I argue that the interrail trip can be interpreted as a liminal phase between childhood and adulthood. Identity and cosmopolitism are also discussed using Nira Yuval-Davis’ terms on the subject.