Seadogs and Their Parrots

The reality of ‘Pretty Polly’

Bibliographic Data

ID11729324
AuthorsMegan C Hagseth (0000-0003-2535-3008, ORCID, corresponding author)
Year2018
Volume104
Issue2
Pages135-152
Publication date2018-04-03
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe Mariner s Mirror (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0025-3359 • E-ISSN: 2049-680X
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/00253359.2018.1453645
OpenAlexW2799821326
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited15

The relationship between sailors and tropical birds is often ignored because of its association with swashbuckling pirates and their winged sidekicks. Links to pirates in popular culture such as Treasure Island's Long John Silver and Captain Flint have led to many misconceptions about the social functions of avian pets in the seafaring community. The transportation of parrots from exotic locations into western culture provides a unique opportunity to study the seamen involved in this exchange and lends insight into how this group fit into the larger social paradigm of European and American culture. Focusing on the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, this analysis draws on evidence from primary accounts, newspapers, legal documents, artwork, and archaeology to identify the social functions of bird ownership among sailors

Archaeology · Ethnology · Media studies · Newspaper · Sociology · Treasure · American History and Culture · Colonialism, slavery, and trade · Geographies of human-animal interactions · History

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