The Emperor's Giraffe And Other Stories Of Cultures In Contact [Hardcover]

Samuel Wilson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 25, 1999

An outbreak of a disease known as the “black vomit” prevents the English from strengthening their hold in “The New World” in the eighteenth century, with huge repercussions; the untimely death of an emperor prevents Chinese and Portuguese explorers from meeting along the coast of West Africa in the fifteenth century; the most significant factor in the Spanish exploration of North America turns out not to be Spain’s mighty armies or her unrivaled fleet, but the lowly mosquito. In human history, little things can make a big difference, as Samuel Wilson demonstrates in The Emperor’s Giraffe and Other Stories of Cultures in Contact.Focusing on individuals caught by chance in pivotal times and places, Wilson explores the ways in which seemingly small decisions made during the initial “contact period” between two cultures have had a huge impact on the course of history. Many of the stories illustrate that, despite thousands of years of isolation, the states and empires of the Old World were remarkably similar in structure and organization to those of the Americas. And the course of events in these past societies was at least partially determined by decisions made by people very much like ourselves—armed with imperfect knowledge and fueled by personal agendas.More than anything else, The Emperor’s Giraffe shows that the consequences of these “contact periods” are still very much with us, in some rather surprising ways. Who could have predicted that the British colonization of the West Indies would come to a symbolic end with a 1950 England–West Indies cricket match? Who would have guessed that centuries-old European folk tales would make their way to America and be brought back to Europe hundred of years later in the guise of Disney characters? Little known events with large consequences and remarkable characters fill these interesting, informative, and sometimes surprising essays.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

With a light touch that belies the depth of vision behind this delightful collection of essays, Wilson (Hispaniola) trains his anthropological spyglass on the point of contact where cultures converge or collide. Ranging across the Americas, Europe and the Caribbean from Columbuss time to the present, this associate professor at the University of Texas offers short reflections on such diverse topics as Viking misadventures among the Eskimos, French castles in the shadow of EuroDisney, a Jewish cemetery in the West Indies and the copacetic relationship between a conquistador and a Taino chieftan. In an essay on the impact of colonialism on the gardens of the Italian Renaissance, Wilson notes the early hybrid roses sprinkled around the background of Botticellis The Birth of Venus. From his discussion of the diplomatic ties that brought giraffes from Africa to Asia centuries prior to European colonialization to the ironic connection between the Opium Wars and todays War on Drugs, the author provides a mix of fresh details and original insights. Although some of the essays are too brief, Wilson is an able guide to some amusing near-misses in history, as well as to the poignant aftermath of culture clashes that we still live with today. The annotated table of contents and suggested reading lists at each chapters end are an added boon. Maps, illustrations included.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Cultural contact and interaction are key concepts in anthropology. Wilson (anthropology, Univ. of Texas, Austin) provides a good introduction to these concepts, subdividing his book into five major sections, each comprising a series of short chapters illustrating the major topics. These include Columbus, the interaction of various Native American groups with European groups, the influence of introduced European diseases, Asian interactions with the European world, and the Caribbean region. The book closes with a series of chapters that orient the reader toward the wonder of cultural distinctions throughout the world. Impressive in the geographic and temporal breadth of its examples, this book is also noteworthy for emphasizing that cultural contextAoften cast in a negative light by researchersAhas also produced cultural richness worldwide. Highly recommended for introductory courses in cultural and general anthropology, this text may also have applications in international business, politics, and finance.AJohn E. Dockall, Bernice P. Bishop Museum, Honolulu
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books (March 25, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 081333585X
• ISBN-13: 978-0813335858
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,435,584 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable Historical Essays, August 3, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Emperor's Giraffe And Other Stories Of Cultures In Contact (Hardcover)

This is a wonderful, well written collection of essays on historical cultural contacts. I particularly enjoyed Wilson's essays on Native American retribution ... Wilson offers a balanced discourse on the tension between archaeologists and Native Americans. Highly recommended!

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Is That It?, July 21, 2004

By 

Joe E. Richardson III "JT" (Dallas, TX United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Emperor's Giraffe: And Other Stories Of Cultures In Contact (Paperback)

When I picked up The Emperor's Giraffe, I was hoping for more stories like the title, and less of the fairly well-covered territory of encounters of Europeans and Native Americans. Notable absences are of interactions with Africans, and the final essay, on trickster stories, seems out-of-place and woefully inadequate.

So, as a light introduction to first encounters of cultures, this is a good place to start. But if you're looking for something more in depth or intellectually challenging, look elsewhere.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Small Bites, July 5, 2000

By 

A. Ross (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Emperor's Giraffe And Other Stories Of Cultures In Contact (Hardcover)

This book is a collection of 23 short essays Wilson wrote for Natural History, under the theme of "early contact"--mostly between Europe and the Americas. Almost every piece is interesting in one way or another, although the few that challenge popular myths stand out as exceptional: one about the "real" Christopher Columbus, and another about the origins of Thanksgiving. The emphasis is on Wilson's own area of the specialization (the Caribbean and Latin America) so your own enjoyment may depend on your level of interest in that region. The most interesting of these to me was a piece about the history of Jewish culture in the Caribbean. The book would make a good, bite-sized companion to Jared Diamond's outstanding work, Guns, Germs, and Steel.