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History Pre-confederation (to 1867)

Writing Geographical Exploration

Thomas James and the Northwest Passage, 1631-33

by (author) Wayne K.D. Davies

Publisher
University of Calgary Press
Initial publish date
Mar 2004
Category
Pre-Confederation (to 1867)
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9781552380628
    Publish Date
    Mar 2004
    List Price
    $49.95
  • eBook

    ISBN
    9781552384817
    Publish Date
    Mar 2004
    List Price
    $49.95

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Description

Writing Geographical Exploration: Thomas James and the Northwest Passage, 1631-33 summarizes the various factors that influence the writing and interpretation of exploration narratives, demonstrating the limitations of the assumption that there is a direct relationship between what the explorer saw and what the text describes. Davies offers a revisionist evaluation of Captain Thomas James, who spent eighteen months in search of the Northwest Passage in the 1630s, to illustrate how modern textual analysis can enrich the appreciation of a traveller's account. Though James's work has been dismissed in the modern period, his work was highly regarded in previous centuries by scientist Robert Boyle and poet Samuel Coleridge. James was not a first-rank explorer, but he was an able navigator and leader, a perceptive scientific observer, and a master author who produced a thrilling tale of adventure that should occupy a more prominent place in exploration writing and history, literary theory, and post-modern geography.

About the author

Wayne Davies has written over a hundred academic essays and authored or edited nine books in a wide variety of research areas, including urban geography and the methods of geography. He is professor emeritus in the Department of Geography at the University of Calgary.

Wayne K.D. Davies' profile page