ABSTRACT
The dominant discourse of ocean liner travel is one of luxury and glamour. Whilst this
may have been the case for a certain class of passenger from the late nineteenth
century onwards, travellers before this time did not enjoy such an experience. Indeed,
to travel at all was a sign of prestige: ‘Until the nineteenth century being able to
travel, particularly for non-work reasons, was only available to a narrow elite and
was itself a mark of status’ (Urry 1995: 130). Travel by sea before and during most
of the nineteenth century (and the advent of steam power and attempts to provide
luxurious surroundings) was a very uncomfortable experience for the majority
of travellers. The Industrial Revolution gave rise to exceptional, technological
innovation in all areas of transport, beginning with train travel and then impacting
upon sailing, but the design of the interiors mirrored social hierarchies and traditional
forms of decoration. Indeed, the stimulus to provide liners came more from the need
to transport mail and cargo more speedily, than the necessity to move passengers.
