Transitioning My Blog

Initially this blog was intended for a PhD class I took a year ago. Now that it is no longer needed for this purpose, this blog has been wasting away, all alone. I’ve decided that I may as well put it to better use, so I’m considering transferring it into some sort of personal blog. For a while, this will be a transitionary phase as I consider how “private” to make this public blog–especially since I’m considering linking it to my FB account.

It’s likely I may use this blog to post my own movie reviews or longer commentaries to things I come across, since FB  is lacking and MySp is rarely used by my network of peeps. We’ll see-no official decisions to be made yet.

For now, I will test out the linkage setup with FB
–Cheers!

Sensbach Book Review Draft

Sensbach, Jon F. Rebecca’s Revival: Creating Black Christianity in the Atlantic World. Harvard University Press, 2006.

 

In Rebecca’s Revival: Creating Black Christianity in the Atlantic World by Jon F. Sensbach, the beginning of the spread of black Protestantism in the Americas is revealed through a biography of one exemplifying character, Rebecca Protten, whose gender, race, and religion converged during the 18^th century and the expansive growth of the Atlantic system. During this key period in transatlantic history, Rebecca “the Mulatto” Protten helped “ignite the fires of a new kind of religion” [3] in the midst of the slave trade expansion, the black struggle for freedom, and a rise in black Christianity. By relating directly to enslaved Africans on St Thomas in the 1730s, even in the face of persecution, Rebecca, her white German Brethren, and later black followers/converts all spread the message of their faith through New World slave communities. From there, Rebecca follows her faith to Europe and then later to Africa, in what could be considered a reverse cultural pattern for a colored former slave. Sensbach sums it best, that “Rebecca’s story is the unique record of one person steering her way through the worlds of slavery and religious faith in the eighteenth century, with their limited possibilities and ambiguous choices. But her own fortunes are also a mirror on a larger narrative—the origins of the black church itself.” (7)

Rebecca’s lifeline is the organizing thread of the book, pulling together the different stages of her work on St Thomas, her later overseas travels, and the contemporary events within each. The first chapter describes the setting and locale for 1730s St Thomas by detailing the slave rebellion on the neighbor island of St John in 1733 and its residual effects on everyone. Chapter two then takes the reader into what little is known of Rebecca’s childhood, her experience growing up in the Caribbean, her conversion to Christianity and her granted freedom at a young age. In detailing the beginning of her evangelical work to slaves, chapter three focuses on the entrance of the German missionaries of the Moravian church and their role in teaching enslaved blacks and spreading Christ’s love. She discovers an outlet for her calling—becoming a “priestly woman”. The following chapter deeply examines the style of Rebecca and her Brethrens in reaching African Americans and spreading their faith and spiritual freedom. The layout of the island, the limited accessibility and free hours for slaves, and the planters’ fears of rebellion all play a significant part in these mission workers’ attempts and strategies to gain converts.

            Yet it is Rebecca’s and her fellow German missionaries’ trial and imprisonment that portrayed them as exemplary to their followers. Refusing to give in to the planters’ and governor’s demands (based on their fear of instigating rebellion and stamp out this rising black congregation), she adamantly refuses to swear an oath and was willing to be put back into slavery for the sake of her faith. Chapter six develops both the eventual release and the changes within the developing black church upon the arrival of a fellow Moravian leader, Count Zinzendorf and his connections to the crown. The final two chapters then focus on her excursions overseas, from her time in Germany among white believers (and her receipt of both acceptance and authority within the Moravian Church) to her final years attempting to teach in Africa (in the face of problems created by her husband). She never returns to her homeland, and her life serves as a reverse travelling of cultures from the New World, back to the Old, and then to the middle point of culture exchange via the slave trade and Africa.

Considering this study’s strengths, Sensbach successfully incorporates descriptive backgrounds and histories into the numerous avenues that touched Rebecca’s life. These include the St John slave rebellion of 1733, the 1730s slavery lifestyle on a Danish colony (with planters’ atrocities and amputating punishments), the small-town Moravian lifestyle in Germany, and even the history  and description of Fort Christiansborg on the Gold Coast of Africa. Additionally, Sensbach’s descriptive language provides a distinct visual to the reader’s mind, yet it is not so detailed that it loses the thread of his arguments. Though brief in many instances, his background elaborations provide an ease to the reading (for general audiences and historians).  Finally, he effectively integrates a broad expanse of coverage and representation within his transatlantic story.

            In his epilogue, he briefly mentions that the Moravian protestant movement inspired other evangelicals “emulating” their model on St Thomas, including Methodists and Baptists. He also mentions that until the 1730s, most enslaved blacks that converted to a European religion were Catholic-influenced. Yet Sensbach does not develop this any further, such as the spread of Catholicism as it was integrated into African culture and intermixed with African religions. An example of this would be the Vodou religion in Haiti. He focuses on Protestantism, yet ignores the available comparison of Catholicism for study. This could bring to light the degree of African acceptance and/or adaptability to religion, the way they interpret and develop their own belief systems, and more within both the context of the Caribbean as well as the Atlantic world.

            Yet Sensbach overwhelmingly succeeds in contributing new aspects within the field of transatlantic history. First of all, he provides more information on not only Danish colonial slavery in the Caribbean, but also on freedmen (of which there is often limited inclusion by historians). He also develops the degree of importance that religion serves to the persecuted slaves that take it up, needing something to counter the atrocities they experienced at the hands of the planters. By focusing on the Moravian church through Rebecca’s commitment, he also explores the interlinked networks within one church’s parameters between the Atlantic triangle of America, Europe, and Africa.

In the latter half of the book, a developing comparison between two mulattoes’ (Rebecca and her second husband Christian Jacob Protten) experiences in the Atlantic system reveal the impact of the system on mixed races. Their similarities in life and treatment by others result in very different reactions from the two individuals, from adaptability to situations (Rebecca) to never fitting in, an outcast (Protten) hovering between the two worlds of Europe and Africa. Additionally, the limited involvement of the Danish within 1730s Caribbean is given a deeper look and development. As their slave trade did not expand until after acquiring St Croix and a higher demand for slaves, little has been written about these earlier Danish years. Finally, in addition to all these other contributions, he adds to the involvement of women, in this case both a mulatto and former slave, within Caribbean slave society, within religion, within interracial marriages, and in her unique interaction with other peoples and other countries. In focusing on this one person’s life, Sensbach is bringing together many aspects of transatlantic history. Again, he summarizes it best, that “Only the feverish swirl of people, money, and ideas in the Atlantic world could have produced a person like Rebecca.” (5)

Restall Book Review

Sorry for the belated posting, it didn’t “take” like I thought last week.

Restall, Matthew. Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest. Oxford University Press, USA, 2004.

 

In Seven Myths, Matthew Restall maintains that over the passage of time, from the 16^th century until today, there have been long established myths about the Spanish Conquest that promote misunderstanding and misinterpretation of a great episode in transatlantic history. He supports that by exploring these myths, one can come to a better understanding and “genuine insight” to the Spanish Conquest “phenomenon”. (xv)  He explains how each of these key myths came into origin and why they stick so readily through the centuries; then he proceeds to debunk each of them by “placing them in the context of alternative sources of evidence.” (xvi) Ultimately he compares myth with reality, but in doing so he adds further dimensions of comprehension through an exploration of Western historiography. This book is not just a means to retell a common story, but rather to present an analysis of how generations of people, cultures, and historians have retold that story while influencing it with their own perspectives.

A great strength of this study is the ease and fluidity of Restall’s organization and structure. In a simple and very organized layout, each chapter focuses on a primary myth that is commonly purported to be true. First, Restall examines the myth’s origins, and then he investigates how it continued through the centuries by looking at various 16^th, 17^th, 18^th, 19^th, and 20^th century sources. Then he explains how it is misleading or wrong by looking at other available sources that impart different perspectives, statistics, and cultural outlooks. He often lists out his reasons logically and orderly, and he presents his supporting evidence clearly and concisely. Finally, he concludes each chapter with a very short summary restating the importance of the myth and how it does not fit into a realistic understanding of the Conquest.

For example, in chapter one Restall analyzes the patterns created by the lives of many Spaniards rather than the “great few” that are usually given the most credit.  After introducing this concept of a few “great men” accomplishing the entire conquest of the Americas, he argues that these few were reacting to various events and other humans rather than fashioning them. (4) He traces these conquistador legends (especially Columbus and Cortés) and their development to the present by examining 16^th century chroniclers such as the Franciscans or Gómara, as well as more recent 19^th century historians such as William Prescott. He supports his counterpoint by detailing seven elements of these conquistadors’ patterns of action which include searching for precious metals, native allies and interpreters, and even seizing the native ruler.

This revisionist history continues exploring other myths.  Restall tackles the myth that conquistadors were soldiers sent by their king, and he puts forward that they were actually more varied in their “identities, occupations, and motivations”. (xviii) In explicating the myth of the “white conquistador”, he reveals that this image of outnumbered conquistadors fighting off thousands of native warriors is a one-sided outlook that ignores the roles of Native Americans (as allies) and Africans (whether free or enslaved). As Restall sufficiently proves, these “invisible warriors” play important roles in the success of the Spanish Conquest, even if the conquistadors themselves gave them little credit. The myth of “completion” revolves around Spanish anticipation of inevitable victory in completing the campaigns of Conquest. After examining the contemporary Spanish systems of patronage and imperial ideology, he presents seven aspects in which the conquest remained incomplete.

            Additional myths tackled in this study include the myths of (mis)communication, the desolation of the natives, and Spanish superiority. Restall argues that there lies a middle ground between the conquistadors’ contention that they communicated well with natives and the more modern argument that emphasizes their miscommunication. Rather than reducing the native world “to a void,” native cultures actually “displayed resilience, adaptability, ongoing vitality, and a heterogeneity of response to outside interference…” (xviii) Lastly, Restall outlines the “ultimate myth” of superiority, which ties the previous myths together as one of the simplest explanations for the Conquest—that the Spanish are inherently superior (whether by divine will, technology, native ineptitude, etc.). He counters these aspects with aspects that “better explain” the outcome of the Conquest: disease, native disunity, limited use of weaponry, and more. Finally, Restall’s conclusion knots the end of his de-mything thread by taking a lesser-known encounter in 1525 between “Cortés, Cuauhtémoc, the last Aztec emperor, and Paxbolonacha, the ruler of a small Maya kingdom” to illustrate all of the themes/myths of the conquest discussed in the book and their counterpoints. (xix)

Another strength of this study is Restall’s use of various sources. While clarifying the nature of these sources and placing them into context with their contemporary period, he analyzes basic primary documents of the Conquest, including probanzas, letters, and 16^th century chronicles. Additionally, and very interestingly, he incorporates an exploration of culture by looking at alternative sources that reflect the continued myths up to present day. He includes a variety of images, such as engravings, paintings, and film representations, as well as song lyrics and descriptions of popular festival celebrations. Because myths are commonly accepted entities, using culture-reflecting sources provides an additional foundation for substantiating the myth’s entrenchment within society.

If Restall’s intent is to primarily aim at a general audience of readers with his arguments, then he overwhelmingly succeeds. However, if his intent is to persuade academic historians to re-analyze modern perspectives towards the Conquest, then it would be helpful to have further development and detail of his arguments, supporting evidence, and alternative suggestions for future study. Additionally, it would be interesting to see more development of some of the other encounters he mentions (albeit briefly) to offset the oft-repeated detailed encounters of Cortés & Moctezuma and Pizarro & Atahuallpa. Yet since the structure and writing style lend themselves to comprehension, the book still engages both general and academic readers.

            How does this book contribute to transatlantic history as well as Latin American history? This study opens an individual to new perspectives concerning the roles of Native Americans as well as Africans. Their roles tend to be assumed and often are misconstrued stereotypes, but Restall examines their degree of involvement in the Spanish Conquest. The interaction of Europeans, Natives, and Africans is delved into further when Restall examines a number of Africans’ roles as conquistadors themselves—placing them in a new transatlantic light as pro-active participants of the Conquest. Additionally, this book is not just about the contact and interaction taking place in the Americas—but also an exploration of Europe and its contemporary culture as well. All of these factor together in a “three-way” Conquest, rather than the promoted “one-way” Spanish Conquest and colonization. Overall, Restall succeeds in writing an interesting investigation that opens audiences to new perspectives of a common story.

Books of Revisionist Conquest History

Here are some revisionist history books about the Conquest. As you can see from the titles, many take different viewpoints and perspectives of the Conquest and its “key” conquistadors and historians.

Carman, Glen. Rhetorical Conquests: Cortes, Gomara, and Renaissance Imperialism. Purdue University Press, 2006.

 

Chorba, Carrie C. Mexico, From Mestizo to Multicultural: National Identity and Recent Representations of the Conquest. Vanderbilt University Press, 2007.

 

Leon-Portillo, Miguel. The Broken Spears: The Aztec Account of the Conquest of Mexico. 1st ed. Beacon Press, 2007.

 

Mills, Kenneth, William B. Taylor, and Sandra Lauderdale Graham. Colonial Latin America: A Documentary History. SR Books, 2002.

 

Restall, Matthew, and Florine Asselbergs. Invading Guatemala: Spanish, Nahua, and Maya Accounts of the Conquest Wars. Pennsylvania State Univ Pr (Trd), 2008.

 

Roa-de-la-Carrera, Cristián, A. Histories of Infamy. University Press of Colorado, 2005.

 

Schwartz, Stuart B. Victors and Vanquished: Spanish and Nahua Views of the Conquest of Mexico. Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2000.

 

Wood, Stephanie Gail. Transcending Conquest: Nahua Views of Spanish Colonial Mexico. University of Oklahoma Press, 2003.

Harms Book Review

Ooops. I forgot to post my Diligent review earlier, so here it is.

Harms, Robert. The Diligent: A Voyage Through the Worlds of the Slave Trade. 1st ed. Basic Books, 2001.

 

In The Diligent, Robert Harms takes a closer look at one slave trading ship’s voyage to reveal that the slave trade itself was a diverse entity that was constantly changing and adapting with “national and local endeavors”. (xiv) This one voyage is but a tiny piece of the Atlantic History puzzle, but Harms’ narrative of the journey brings a more comprehensive understanding of the interconnecting histories of transatlantic countries (and continents).

Based primarily upon one mariner’s journal account of this expedition, Harms narrates the slaver ship The Diligent’s trek as it travels from France to Africa, and then on to the Atlantic Islands and finally to Martinique before returning to France. The structure of his book follows this threaded pathway, and Harms steps into each locale’s setting to expand the story.

Further evaluation of the book’s organization discloses the author’s successful use of various story development and narrative approaches. Each of the book’s twelve “parts” focuses on a different aspect or location of the voyage. Within these, Harms uses the Diligent’s story as a thread for weaving together local histories and additional sources’ first hand accounts. These, in turn, provide a window into the context of European impact on (and involvement with) Africa, as well as present a broader perspective of transatlantic history and the institution of slavery within it. The book’s early chapters focus on the beginning of the slaver’s trip, and Harms describes the contemporary situation in France during the 1720s and 1730s. From the elaboration of Nantes’ history as a French port to the process of outfitting a slave ship financially and physically, Harms reveals the shifting trends from a monopoly of old charter companies to a newer, openly-competing private enterprise within the slave trade.

The next few sections describe the Diligent’s route southward as it restocks in the Cape Verde Islands and then heads along Africa’s grain, ivory, and gold coasts. Harms uses these chapters to explain this period’s sailing techniques and to analyze his primary source Robert Durand, all whilst revealing a slave ship’s hierarchy and the danger of pirates upon the seas. While describing local histories along the African Coast, Harms touches upon Europeans’ impacts on the coastal regions. For example, during European struggle to control trade routes along the Gold Coast (and littering it with many fortified ports), ultimately Europeans introduced the role of guns into African warfare and revolution.

            But it is the next series of chapters where Harms shines brightest in his historical development. Few transatlantic histories have expounded as well upon Africa’s slave trade with such detail and description. Harms looks at the key slave trading “cities” of Africa, Whydah and Jakin, during this early 18^th century period. He compares the local histories and the political unrest of the African kingdoms, and Harms depicts an Englishman’s enslavement to show how just one European could further impact the local Dahomey kingdom. For example, with the English slave’s influence the Dahomey king decided to stop being the “middle man” in the slave trade; the trade would be made directly through him. The proceeding chapters about Jakin, where the Diligent bought its slaves, describe the slave trade process and the sickness and misery attending both the crew and slaves as the ship is loaded.

            The next couple sections focus on the trip to the Caribbean as they restock at Principe and São Tomé and then continue on the long Atlantic Ocean crossing—otherwise known as the Middle Passage. It is this portion which one could wish for more development of the slaves’ experience and point of view. Harms attempts to relate their experience, but his focus upon Durand’s journal is limited during this course. He does rely on other general sources and a few witness accounts to overview slave life and treatment on this ship (similar to many others), but he lacks development of the slaves’ outlook.

            Finally the ship and the book arrive at Martinique, and the Diligent’s slaves are eventually sold amidst the captain’s greed and attempts of fraud. Harms steps further into the picture to detail the history of the island and its current economic crisis to explain the selling difficulties and lower prices the captain faced. Furthermore, Harms summarizes life on a sugar plantation, and he describes the common produce and commerce from the French Caribbean: Sugar, Cotton, and Rocoa.  The book concludes with an overview of all the main characters’ futures upon arrival in France. Instead of describing the return voyage itself (which might have been of interest to some readers), the final chapters detail the financiers’ lawsuit with the captain, Durand’s part as a witness, the financiers shift in trade to grain commerce and increased wealth, and Durand’s promotion to more ventures.

            As anyone can see from above, this narrative contains a surplus of African history and interestingly recreates daily events on the journey. Moreover Harm’s writing style and techniques provide a history more easily read for a broader audience but still detailed enough for scholars of slavery. Finally, the author has embellished upon his brilliant primary source with other sources to develop different observations and local histories. Yet there are a couple areas, as previously mentioned, that could use more development. These include the lack of the African slaves’ perspective, both on their capture and during the voyage. There is merely a minimal supposition of what they may have thought. Additionally, the story mode can get bogged down with detail and analysis that possibly overwhelm the reader, but Harms attempts to bind the story and detail back together by the end of each chapter.

            There are many ways this historical narrative contributes to current study of transatlantic history. For one thing, though often a painful topic in today’s society, this book exposes the degree of French involvement in the slave trade amidst that of the British, Spanish, Portuguese, and Dutch nations. It lends a French perspective to the institution of slavery by explaining the French view of hierarchy in terms of power and wealth rather than race and color (which resonates to this day). More importantly, Harms puts regional African histories into the context of the slave trade, and this creates an interconnecting network of French, African, and Caribbean micro histories. Harms also provides faces and names to the people actually partaking in these ventures, making the experience more intimate for the reader and providing an opportunity to connect with transatlantic history. Overall, Harms has provided a slow process of one single voyage to release a sense of the Atlantic as it was “stitched” together by different nations, ships, and persons. The Atlantic slave trade was not merely one entity, but rather a tapestry of overlapping and interwoven stories from three very different continents.

Set-Up: Diligent’s Google Earth Tour

Originally I planned to touch a few things up on the tour, but I’ve got enough on my plate. So I’m trying not to be too much of a perfectionist… so here’s the link to my google earth tour. Hope it’s useful to you guys as you write your reviews!

The Diligent Google Earth Tour

Don’t forget, that when you’re watching the Africa portion, you should uncheck that section’s first placemark which is the overlapping map image. you’ll want that to disappear when you are flying over the coasts…

Any problems, just let me know. Enjoy!

Karen’s Schwartz Book Review

Technically I’m not required to blog my review, but as there is a lack of postings for our class–here’s something for you to read over… if you glance at your readers in the few hours until class time…

 

Schwartz, Stuart B. (ed.). Tropical Babylons: Sugar and the Making of the Atlantic World, 1450-1680. The University of North Carolina Press, 2004.

 

Stuart B Schwartz has compiled a collection of essays in Tropical Babylons which will hopefully stimulate an increase in historical scholarship that focuses on the early origins of sugar. Schwartz and others have provided an interesting response to current traditional outlooks that intrinsically tie sugar’s history to a Marxist theory which involves slavery and technology within a “plantation regime”.[1] Instead of this popular explanation of “foundational capitalist enterprise” in which sugar suddenly increased as a commodity of the European and Atlantic markets (during the 18^th and later centuries), these historians argue that the sugar industry changed gradually from already established foundations as early as the 15^th and 16^th centuries. (1) This new perspective is supported by focusing on sugar as a staple. As Schwartz explains, this book looks with a “commodity approach” on factors of production and relations with consumers while crossing geographic boundaries and providing a broad picture within transatlantic history. (6)

            In his introduction, Schwartz expounds upon all of these arguments and more as he prepares readers for the essay collection. He explains that the plantation as a foreshadower to a “factory” is an unstable argument due to inconsistent profits, lack of attempts for improvements, etc. One must look deeper to see these difficulties with this current traditional outlook. He opens up the study as a comparative perspective, introducing the following essays’ findings and the new research available to allow the exploration of a frequently neglected period of the sugar industry.

            The structure of the book traces the geographical spread of sugar production from the Far East, to the Islamic nations, and from there to Spain before jumping further west to the Atlantic Islands and eventually to the Caribbean Islands and Brazil.   William D. Phillips, Jr. focuses on sugar’s introduction and transfer into the Iberian peninsula from two key routes: Muslims in southern Spain and returning Christian Crusaders to eastern Spain. Yet it is Alberto Vieira’s essay which starts the Atlantic jump. He argues that the Canary and Madeira Islands’ roles, within their social organization as well as slavery, served as a “trampoline” and made large scale production possible for later colonies. (74)

The next three essays focus on regional studies. These general sugar histories reveal the parallel aspects of the early sugar industry as well as varying influences and economic factors. All were at some point important in the industry’s development. Genaro Rodríguez Morel studies the rise and fall of Española’s sugar economy which was tied to both the colonial system as well as internal and external economic factors. Alejandro de la Fuente argues that rather than an open plantation economy, early colonial Cuba’s sugar was more agriculturally based with the use of slaves in smaller mill units.  Schwartz explores the early Brazilian sugar industry’s political influences as well as economic factors which led to a slow adoption of African slaves, a balance of small private ownership interdependent with elite plantations, and a fixed (immobile) wealth within realty.

After the regional histories, the flow of the book switches tracks as the next couple of essays develop key themes in sugar’s history: its relationship with slavery and its relationship within the Western European market. Herbert Klein argues that the Atlantic Slave Trade “evolved independently of the expansion of the sugar economy” (201). Varying factors support that slavery was not tied to the “sugar revolution” but instead was only one avenue (of many) of African trade. In the next essay, Eddy Stols argues that the sugar market in Western Europe spread long before the usually noted 18^th century “sugar revolution”. Instead, it was a gradual process from 1500-1650, before the decline in prices and mass production could make it more accessible. This is probably the strongest essay in supporting the book’s idea that the sugar industry was already in place; sugar as an early “commercial commodity” is exemplified in the popularity of preserves and jams, the visual propaganda of sugar, and the importance of Antwerp within the market.

John J. McCusker and Russell R. Menard conclude the essay collection by debunking the common outlook of Barbados’s “Sugar Revolution”. They further support the book’s underlying idea by arguing that instead of a revolution, Barbados’ sugar industry underwent a mid-17^th century “Boom”. The integrated plantation changes were gradual and slow, and Barbados only “sped up” the process that was already founded by their growth of tobacco and cotton and their uses of slaves and servants.

In lieu of supporting this new outlook on sugar’s origins, the earlier essays are more subtle as they focus on relating regional histories. This weakness is only nullified by the strength of the latter concluding essays that blatantly dispute the “negative capitalist” approach. Yet the interlinking regional histories (though varying) succeed in opening the mind to this earlier colonial period. Additionally, the contributors of this collection come from a broad spectrum of fields and geographical focuses. From Latin America to Belgium to the United States, a broader perspective is strengthened by these historians’ varying areas of interest.

            Another strength of this essay collection is its extensive use of primary sources that have rarely been accessed or available until recent years. Not only do they robustly support these historians’ economic arguments, but they open up the field of transatlantic history to a wealth of new ideas.  Though primary sources of this early colonial period is minimal and difficult to find, they use estimable judgment to sort them into well-supported arguments and findings.

With so much discussion of productive capacities, capital gains and losses, internal and external factors, etc., it brings a mindset of a modern Marxist theory. Other historians (such as anthropologist Sidney Mintz) argue that the sugar “plantations” are a type of modern factory with the people (slaves) as machines Yet the underlying argument of this collection is quite the opposite. These early sugar plantations were not ready to be the start of “factories”. Instead, the growing sugar economy consisted of smaller production units with a more agricultural base. Some may argue that this collection is not very comprehensive, but one must remember that it’s merely an introduction. It’s an opportunity to raise new questions, and scholars may soon develop them further. This study is just a beginning—it raises some innovative questions and presents newly available information in order to instigate transatlantic historians to think more about the various economic outlooks of Sugar’s early history.

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[1] For an example of this current economic perspective, see: Mintz, Sidney W., Sweetness and Power: The Place of Sugar in Modern History (NewYork: Penguin Books, 2002).

Hmmmm

I’m wondering how I’m supposed to start out the class convo with my blog review… with only one posting so far… ? Any ideas? [sarcasm, ahem]

Set Up: Book Reviews for Schwartz’s Tropical Babylons

Below are 6 scholarly and/or peer reviews of Stuart Schwartz’s edited book Tropical Babylons: Sugar and the Making of the Atlantic World, 1450-1680.  I’ve tried to pull reviews from the subfield of Economic History as well as others (which include American History, Latin America Studies, and Interdisciplinary History as well) I had difficulty finding available html links to Business History book reviews, but I want to mention that there were a couple of those as well (if you are interested–but UTA has only so many subscriptions…).

Benjamin, Jules R. “Tropical Babylons: Sugar and the Making of the Atlantic World, 1450-1680…” Enterprise & Society 7, no. 1 (March 2006): 185-187.
http://libproxy.uta.edu:2262/journals/enterprise_and_society/v007/7.1benjamin.html

Carrington, Selwyn H. H. “Review of Tropical Babylons: Sugar and the Making of the Atlantic World, 1450–1680.” The Journal of American History 92, no. 2 (September 2005).
http://libproxy.uta.edu:2252/journals/jah/92.2/br_4.html

Ebert, Christopher. “Tropical Babylons: Sugar and the Making of the Atlantic World, 1450–1680. Edited by Stuart B. Schwartz. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press, 2004. Pp. Xiii, 347. $59.95, Cloth; $22.50, Paper..” The Journal of Economic History 64, no. 04 (2005): 1159-1160. doi:10.1017/S0022050704373122.
http://libproxy.uta.edu:2457/action/displayFulltext?type=6&fid=259915&jid=JEH&volumeId=64&issueId=04&aid=259914&fulltextType=BR&fileId=S0022050704373122

Fernandez-Armesto, Felipe. “Stuart B. Schwartz (ed.), Tropical Babylons: Sugar and the Making of the Atlantic World, 1450–1680 (Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 2004), Pp. Xvi+347, £40.50, £15.50 Pb..” Journal of Latin American Studies 37, no. 03 (2005): 611-612. doi:10.1017/S0022216X05219739.
http://libproxy.uta.edu:2457/action/displayFulltext?type=6&fid=360405&jid=LAS&volumeId=37&issueId=03&aid=324453&fulltextType=BR&fileId=S0022216X05219739

Karras, Alan L. “Review of Tropical Babylons: Sugar and the Making of the Atlantic World, 1450–1680.” The American Historical Review 110, no. 4 (October 2005).
http://libproxy.uta.edu:2252/journals/ahr/110.4/br_13.html

Paquette, Robert L. “Tropical Babylons: Sugar and the Making of the Atlantic World, 1450-1680..” Journal of Interdisciplinary History 37, no. 3 (Winter2007 2007): 489-491. doi:Book Review.
http://libproxy.uta.edu:2067/ehost/pdf?vid=2&hid=13&sid=5cb6ba0f-0e62-4acc-a5a7-677d9cfdaf84%40sessionmgr8

Another note: these are NOT all from using the JStor Database but also Ebsco, Project Muse, and BookReview Digest Plus…

Draft of Beasley’s Crosby Bk Review

Crosby, Alfred W. Ecological Imperialism: The Biological Expansion of Europe, 900-1900. 2nd ed. Cambridge University Press, 2004.

In 1986 Alfred W. Crosby first published Ecological Imperialism, and his study has contributed to making him a prominent environmental historian. From the constant reprints of his study twenty years later, it is apparent that his arguments and perspectives are still impacting history. Crosby explains in the new preface that earlier historians’ outlooks do not fully answer the questions of Europeans’ Imperialist successes in specific areas over others (xvii). He argues that in addition to the advantages Europeans had with their technology, navigation, military, weapons, etc, the key factors for the Europeans’ success in expansion had biological components (7). These factors include the necessary success of the Old World’s native biota, comprised of servant and parasitic organisms.

Crosby explores questions raised by the environment’s interaction with various life forms during the European Expansion, and he supports his arguments with a wide mix of primary and secondary sources. He utilizes primary accounts of witnesses observations from both sides of the experience—indigenes and Europeans. Yet this is not the full basis of his evidence. Most of his sources and support come from fellow historians and secondary sources that range over multiple fields: medieval, conquest, environmental, medical, anthropological, and natural histories; geography; social sciences; science; literature; etc.

The book is organized with a sense of chronology. He begins by explaining his concepts of Neo-Europes,<[1]< “native biotas”<[2]< and the European proclivities for overseas migration due to availability of the proper conditions, transportation, and biogeography. Crosby then takes a large step back in time to explain the development of the earth’s landmasses, the Neolithic Revolutions, and the previous failed attempts of early expansion. Medical and ecological reasons (such as famines, pestilence, changing climates, and too great of distance) explain the failures of the Norse’s migration across the Atlantic into Vinland and those of the Crusaders to the Middle East. The next couple chapters develop the first early stages of Europe’s successful expansion. He begins with the stepping stones, the Fortunate Isles, which consist of the Azores, Madeira, and Canary Islands. He reveals their discoveries and development as a “pattern for plantation colonies” later, especially with the success of sugar, wheat and honeybees. He also explains how the conquering of the Canaries peoples, the Gaunches, foretells the future “Europeanization” of the Neo-Europes through the roles of plants, animals, and disease. Yet it is not until Europeans begin to comprehend the winds and currents of the oceans that they are finally capable of travelling such far distances. Crosby gives an interesting narrative of successful adventurers’ travels during the late 15^th and early 16^th centuries.

To cover all aspects of his biogeographical argument, Crosby stops briefly to mention that not all “discovered” lands were successfully conquered by Europeans. He explains how permanent communities were not established in areas such as Pacific Asia, the Middle East and Africa in part from an inability to “Europeanize”. This inability was influenced by previously established human communities with their own versions of servant organisms and parasites. (134). In order to demographically advance, Europeans had to conquer the indigenes and have major success with their own agriculture. The next three chapters develop the three general areas, apart from human enforcement, that reveal their underlying success: Weeds, Feral Animals, and Pathogens. Each of these, with limited human involvement, reveals how quickly the European native biota flourished in the most hospitable areas of the Neo-Europes. He supports his findings with a chapter devoted as a model narrative of Europeanization in a Neo-Europe: New Zealand.

Crosby concludes his study first by exploring further explanations of Europeanization. He reiterates that it’s the success of the portmanteau biota, the collective group of Europeans and the organisms they brought with them, which provides the key to understanding the rise of the Neo-Europes (270). He mentions the possible theories about the decline of various large species which created available “econiches” for later species. Then he pulls it all together in the 19^th century with new influx of immigrants creating ever more density in Neo-Europes with foreseeable future problems. Within these concluding chapters, he explains a few of his multiple themes which are threaded through the study. This especially includes the interacting impact that humans, animals, and the land have on each other, as well as the theme of human intervention and their effects as the dominant life form of the portmanteau biota. Other themes of the study include the consistent one-way exchange (from the Old to the New Worlds), and a large image of time and evolution as biogeography evolves across the globe.

In developing his biogeographical arguments, Crosby frequently points out the “other” advantages for imperialist expansion, but he overrides their importance with biological reasons each time to lend strength to his theses. This can be seen as either a strength or weakness, because it could leave open an argument that he has left out key information within technological, military, and other developments/advantages. But this also reveals that he assumes the reader knows the usual histories of conquest. He intends this study for a more scholarly audience, probably fellow historians in a variety of fields. His writing style flows smoothly enough to make the history available for any audience inclined to the subject, and his good use of images and charts provide further understanding.

His environmental bias is so leaned upon, so redundantly explained, that it may leave an impression of an opinion rather than a fully supported historical outlook. Yet Crosby tries to alleviate this by reminding the reader when some of the ideas are merely theories. He may not develop these other non-environmental factors beyond a few sentences, but he usually makes the effort to mention their consideration.<[3]< Ecological Imperialism lends a perspective that is not aimed at blaming one civilization over another, but at what an invading group brings with them. This perspective further implies that all peoples at some point in their history can be seen as an invader into new lands.

One of Ecological Imperialism’s greatest strengths is that Crosby does not limit himself to a history of the discovery of North America. Instead, he continually develops the histories of all the Neo-Europes (North and South America, Australia, and New Zealand). From this he can create an encompassing biogeographical explanation of European Imperialism which provides a different perspective as we head into the 21^st century. He leaves us with thoughts that our current global economies are still inter-dependent, and our supplies ultimately have a limit.

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<[1]< Neo-Europe is a term for any of the New Worlds settled by Europeans, including North America, South America, Australia, and New Zealand.

<[2]< Native Biotas are the flora and fauna from a specific environment.

<[3]< These non-environmental factors include the previously mentioned technological, military, navigational, and capitalist factors.