Felipe Fernández-Armesto

David Cathie -|Last Chapter page 527 to 566 “Crisis and Renewal of Atlantic Civilisation” In the civilisations usually praised or blamed for inventing our notion of our human supremacy - those of the ancient Chinese, Indians, Greeks and Jews - the claim that man is monarch or steward of the planet cannot be traced back very far: not beyond a period well into the last millennium before the Christian era. Once established, the claim was not widely shared. Egyptian civilisation clung to gods with the faces of crocodiles and dogs. The civilisation of the Americas worshipped the parts of the environment they ate. The mutual sustenance of man and corn did not imply the superiority of the human partner. On the contrary m, it was the people who tended the cobs in a lowly rite of servitude, while the corn seemed to exercise the divine prerogative of self-immolation for its worshippers’ good. There is no practical paradox in the idea of a god who sacrifices himself to nourish his devotees: the God of Christians does it every day.”… (more)

From Ferdinand Magellan and Sir Francis Drake to lesser-known scientific explorers and even an unknown mariner, a batch of new nonfiction works share previously overlooked stories set during the age of discovery. These titles expand our thinking about the people and missions that jumpstarted maritime travel and commerce.

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Straits: Beyond the Myth of Magellan
Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, Mar 2022, University of California Press
Themes: World history, Maritime history, Expeditions, Age of Discovery

STRAITS revisits the life of Ferdinand Magellan separating the fact from fiction through surviving primary sources while providing useful insights and context.
Take-aways: Historically, textbooks have glossed over the life of Magellan and portrayed him as the hero of the age of discovery. This work is effective in providing a more realistic and comprehensive examination of this historical figure.… (more)