Passing Worlds: Tahiti in the ERA of Captain Cook: Poems

Deeply researched and deeply felt, __Passing Worlds__ is a poetic reimagining of the first encounters of Europeans and Tahitians during the historic voyages of Captain James Cook. Although the expeditions brought back impressive stores of knowledge and new plant and animal specimens, those scientific rewards came at a high human cost. Examining both imperialism and exploration, Holmes illuminates the cultural exchanges, clashes, miscommunications, and friendships that developed during these European sojourns, including the Tahitians’ impressions of their strange visitors, the ways the British played into island politics, and how the “discovery” of Tahiti―with its easy life, absence of poverty, and liberal sexuality―influenced European ideas. Part narrative, part lyric, the poems speak in multiple voices, bringing to life a fascinating cast of characters, from the black servants and common sailors to the aristocratic naturalist Joseph Banks, a female Tahitian leader, and an island girl caught in a system of sexual commerce. Marking the 250th anniversary of the launch of the __Endeavour__, which carried Captain Cook on his first voyage around the world, __Passing Worlds__ is a poignant and imaginative depiction of a key point in a historic voyage and of a society whose delicate balance was altered and finally devastated by the impact of a far different one. Cover 1 Contents 8 Prophecy 12 The Dolphin 14 iron 16 George Robertson’s Poem 17 Approach 18 Babel of Signs 19 The Landing 21 Marae 22 Purea, a “Great Woman 23 Skin 25 Not Recorded: Girl 26 Nails 27 Tupaia, High Priest 28 The Brief Adventure of the French 30 Points of Interest 32 A Tahitian in Paris 33 The Endeavour, from England to the South Pacific 34 James Douglas, 14th Earl of Morton, President of the Royal Society 36 The Mission 37 James Cook, Captain 39 Provisions 40 Joseph Banks, Botanist and Patron 41 Daniel Solander, Botanist 43 Sydney Parkinson, Artist 45 Not Recorded: Dorlton and Richmond, Servants 46 Sailors 48 Parkinson on Board 51 Richmond and Dorlton: Night 52 Tierra del Fuego 53 Cook: The Nature of Seamen 55 One Look Back 56 The Endeavour at Tahiti 60 Reef 62 Fa‘a, an Old Priest 64 Fa‘a, Ambassador 65 Impressions of the Natives of King George’s Island 66 Parkinson: Morality 68 Parkinson: Dye-Making 69 Incident 70 And Everywhere There Was Joseph Banks 73 The Sailors Prepare to Depart 75 Cook: Departure 76 Tupaia Leaving 77 Elizabeth Batts Cook 58 Counterpoint 80 Truth Is the Daughter of Time 82 In Matavai Bay 83 Incidental 85 Possession 87 The Chief Mourner 89 Counterpoint 91 Afterword 94 Acknowledgments 98 Notes 100 Selected sources 104