reseprosa

Reseprosa, literally “travel prose” in Swedish and related Nordic terms, refers to a form of literary non-fiction that centers on travel experiences, place, and cultural encounter. It encompasses essays, diary-like entries, and narrative prose that document journeys while meditating on landscapes, cities, and people. The term is used in literary criticism to distinguish such works from more reportorial travel journalism and from purely fictional narratives.

Characteristics of reseprosa include a strong first-person voice, vivid sensory description, and scene-driven pacing. The form often blends description with reflection, social observation, and personal development. The emphasis is typically on mood, atmosphere, and meaning generated by moving through space rather than on practical itineraries or exhaustive data.

Historically, travel writing has a long lineage, but reseprosa as a category is used by contemporary Nordic literary criticism to describe a living tradition of Nordic travel prose. Works span classic travelogues and modern essays that explore tourism, globalization, and identity, often using travel as a lens to examine culture and self.

Relation to other genres is fluid: reseprosa overlaps with nature writing, memoir, and literary reportage. Critics discuss issues such as voice, representation, and ethical responsibility when portraying places and people encountered during travel. Reseprosa tends to foreground subjective experience and interpretation, inviting readers to share the writer’s encounter with place.

See also: travel writing, travelogue, travel memoir, nature writing, literary non-fiction, Swedish literature, Nordic literature.