Title: The trial of the cannibal dog :
Authors: Salmond, Anne.
Date: 2003
Publisher: Allen Lane,
Physical description: xxii, 506 p. : ill. (some col.), maps ; 24 cm.
Language: English
LC classification: G
Abstract: "The Pacific voyages of James Cook sailed across perilous tropical seas, survived hurricanes and volcanic eruptions, discovered unknown lands and peoples and made their Captain an icon of imperial history." "Yet, as Anne Salmond shows, the story of these epic South Sea journeys is far more than one of conquest and control. She has devoted a lifetime to the study of relations between Europeans and Polynesians, and this startling, rich, stylish book is the result. In Salmond's account, Cook's great voyages regain their dreamlike quality as they encounter the last major human communities untouched by wider worlds. Far from being little wooden islands of Englishness in a Polynesian sea, his ships and the men in them are as much changed by what happens as the islanders they meet. We see them alarmed and entranced by the islanders' open sexuality, shocked by human sacrifice and cannibalism, but also forging relationships with Pacific Island friends and lovers, acquiring tattoos and learning to speak Polynesian languages, with Cook himself granted the status of high chief in many areas before his violent downfall."--BOOK JACKET.
Contents: How Englishmen Came to Eat Dogs -- Rule Britannia! -- The Wooden World of the Endeavour -- High Priest of 'Oro -- Tupaia's Paintbox -- Cook's Tour of Tahiti -- Travellers from Hawaiki -- The Owner of These Bones -- Penguins on Wimbledon Common -- Cannibals and Kings -- A Feast at Grass Cove -- The Return of the Native -- Monboddo's Monkeys -- A Tahitian at the Opera -- The Glorious Children of Te Tumu -- Farewell to Elysium -- Killing Kuki -- Conclusion: Our Ancestor Captain Cook -- Calendar of Punishments during Captain Cook's Three Pacific Voyages.
Subject headings (LCSH): Cook, James, 1728-1779--Journeys--Oceania.; Cook, James, 1728-1779.; Explorers--Great Britain--Biography; Oceania--Description and travel; Oceania--Discovery and exploration; Polynesia--Description and travel.