How the Victorians Invented the “ Staycation ”

Holidays feel like an important refreshment after such a tough year. While international travel is possible, it’s not exactly easy, so many are choosing to stay closer to home, taking a “staycation ”. This year holidaymakers are discovering the     1     of the UK’s coast and the beauty of its landscapes.

Domestic tourism as we know it began in the 19th century when the idea of the holiday was just becoming     2     . Expanding railways and changing work practices meant people had more leisure time for travelling. International travel was becoming easier but wasn’t     3     to all, so the Victorians chose to spend this newfound “ free ” time in the UK.

This gave way to the     4     of hot new holiday destinations, mostly on the UK’s coast. Great British seaside towns, from Bournemouth to Brighton, appealed to people with     5     of fun, sea and clean air — many of the things that continue to attract people today.

The great summer holiday as we know it was designed by the Victorians. The 19th century saw the industrial     6     and the rise of industrial capitalism, where factories were booming and work structures were more clearly and severely defined and presented. This led to the emergence of administrative     7     , like clerks, and an emerging middle class.

There was more     8     working time, including shift work in factories and time off on Sundays. As a result, working-class people had leisure time to use, and by the 1890s some skilled workers had half days on Saturdays, leading to the birth of the “ weekend ” — though this was not     9     until much later in the 20th century.

In 1871 the Bank Holidays Act was passed. This appointed certain days as holidays on which banks closed, though, over the years, more businesses began observing these days off work. Before 1830, banks closed only on the 40 saints’ days of the year, though by 1834 this was just four days, including Christmas day. From 1871, any day could be     10     a bank holiday, not just saints’ days.

8 . Robert Frank, an economist at Cornell, believes that his profession is restricting cooperation and generosity. In the U.S., economics professors give _________money to charity than professors in other fields. Economics students in Germany are more likely than those from other majors to recommend an overpriced plumber (水管工) when they are paid to do it. Economics majors tend to rate _________as “generally good,” “correct,” and “moral” more than their peers.

Does studying economics change people? Maybe not. It could be self-selection: students who already believe in self-interest are drawn to economics. But this doesn’t exclude the possibility that studying economics pushes people further toward the selfish extreme.

“As a business school professor, these effects worry me, as economics, _________every aspect of our lives, is taught widely in business schools, providing a _________for courses in management, finance, and accounting,” says Frank.

If economics can discourage pro-social behavior, which is central to the well-being of people or society, what should we do about it? A change in economics and business education is suggested. Courses in behavioral economics, which considers the role of “social preferences” like _________, fairness and cooperation, are required for students of economics major. In fact, economics courses not involving some behavioral economics are considered both an inadequate education and a poor preparation to be a practicing economist. Also, _________width, economics majors are required to take courses in social sciences like sociology and psychology, which place considerable emphasis on how people are _________about others, not only themselves. _________, within economics courses, we should do a better job _________the principle of self-interest, which involves anything a person values—including helping others.

Not until then may the prophecy (预言) by Nobel Prize-winning economist and philosopher Amartya Sen be __________. Calling economists “rational fools,” he observed: “The purely economic man is indeed close to being a social fool.”

9 . For four lonely years, Evelyn Jones of Rockford, Illinois, lived friendless and forgotten in one room of a cheap hotel. “I wasn’t sick, but I was acting sick,” the 78-year-old widow says, “Every day was the same. I would just lie on my bed and maybe cook up some soup.” Then, six months ago, she was invited to The Brighter Side -- Rockford’s day care center for the elderly. Every weekday morning since then, she has left her home to meet nine other old people in a church for a rich program of charity work, trips, games, and -- most important of all -- friendly companionship.

Just a few years ago, there were few choices for the elderly between a normal life in their own homes and being totally confined in nursing homes. Many of them were sent to rest homes long before they needed full-time care. Others like Mrs. Jones were left to take care of themselves. But in 1971, the White House Conference on Aging called for the development of alternatives to care in nursing homes for old people, and since then, government-supported day-care programs like The Brighter Side have been developed in most big American cities.

“This represents a real alternative to the feared institution and makes old people believe they have not left the world of living”, says Alice Brophy, 64, director of New York City’s Office for the Aging, “They do well at the centers, and I hate it when people describe us as elderly playpens.” New York’s 138 centers encourage continuing contact for the aged with the community’s life. The centers serve more than 15,000 members, and volunteer workers are always looking for new ones. If someone doesn’t show up at the center for several days in a row, a worker at the center calls to make sure all is well. And although participation in the center is free, those who want to can pay for their lunches.

No normal studies have been made of these centers for the elderly, but government officials are enthusiastic. In the future, the Public Health Service will do a study to decide if the programs can receive federal Medicare money. And the old people themselves are very happy with the programs. “There is no way”, says Evelyn Jones, smiling at her new companions at the Brighter Side, “that I will ever go back to spending my day with all those loses at the hotel.”