Customer Reviews

Liberty on the Waterfront: American Maritime Culture in the Age of Revolution (Early American Studies)

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Maritime history is one of those sub-fields of history that still has room for fresh interpretation and analysis, which is one thing you can't say about many areas of historical research. Recent scholarly works from Maritime historians have greatly increased our understanding of the American Revolutionary experience; and Gilje's work is no exception.
He presents the American Revolution, the early federalist period, the War of 1812 and the years after the war up to 1850 through the eyes of American sailors. "Liberty on the Waterfront" is one in a series of monographs that focus on neglected issues in American history. Since most histories of the American Revolution focus on the land, Gilje's work begins to fill in the gaps left by such an approach.
From the outset "Liberty on the Waterfront" takes the reader into the heart of a sailor's experience from 1750-1850. He explores the complex and dynamic meanings of liberty to sailors and how those constructs reflected or did not reflect the larger, land-oriented political meaning of freedom and liberty.
Gilje draws on personal writings, such as journals and letters of sailors to uncover their meaning of liberty. Gilje demonstrates that liberty to many sailors in early America had little to do with grand notions of political independence from an Empire, but rather couched itself in an unrestrained personal liberty ashore. The ability to blow an entire journey's earnings on booze, women and gambling constituted freedom to many sailors. After months bound up on ships in which martial law reigned, many sailors compared their lot to slaves and rejoiced when they reached port and the liberty the soil offered. He also contrasts the forecastle with the quarterdeck and draws on the imagery of authority and deference to show the subtle shades of liberty and slavery experienced by sailors.
While the various journals and letters of the sailors are informative and very interesting, Liberty on the Waterfront is redundant in some areas. It also covers a large portion of history from 1750-1850. This large span of time tends to muddle Gilje's arguments and contributes to broad generalizations about the life of Jack Tar. The first portion of his book assumes sailor's lives, motivations for sailing and sense of liberty remained constant over a hundred-year period. Despite these drawbacks, "Liberty on the Waterfront" gives a much needed and entertaining glimpse into the culture of early American sailors, as it recognizes their role in key periods of American history.