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case study of piracy
the impact of piracy on society
case study of piracy
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When you hear the word pirate, most people think of the modern day pirates, Captain Hook from Peter Pan, Jack Sparrow from The Pirates of the Caribbean. The stereotypical definition of pirates was men who sailed the sea saying arrrgh and wear eye patches. But they were a lot bigger than that. Pirate is a word from Greek and Latin piratia, and the root of peril prefers to a person who commits acts of piracy (Waldman).
The first pirate activity that the world has knowledge of is back in the seventh century BC (Matthews 1). By the mid 13th century BCE pirates had become the dominant seafaring people of the Mediterranean, committing acts of piracy (Waldman). The Golden Age of Piracy was when pirate activity increased greatly. The Golden Age of Piracy dated 1660 to 1730 (Matthews 2). The act of piracy was a crime on the seas. For over 2,500 years pirates lurked along trading routes, ready to attack merchant ships (Lock 8). Some pirates were stealers, while others were famous for behaving unusually. The most famous were the ones whose names could strike fear into the hearts of all who heard the name (Mason 26). But during the 1800's was when Pirates were seen as monsters in human form (Mason 4).
Pirates sailed seas and oceans around the world, there was no specific area for pirates. They were called by different names in each place though (Lock 6). The most popular places for pirates were common seas like the Caribbean and the Mediterranean (Williams 18). There were many kind of pirates that sailed the seas, such as Turkish, Greek, Latin, French, and many more (Waldman). Pirates and privateers in the 17th century were mostly English, Dutch, and French (Waldman).
The first Pirates that we have records of were Phoenician sa...
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...l the flesh rotted off them. The process could take as long as two years, this was a warning to anybody who from then on thought of piracy (Matthews 21). But the growth of National navies in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries helped decreased piracy (Waldman), by the end of the 18th century most of the pirates were gone (Matthews 22). Even though pirates aren't as common as they were back in the earlier years, acts of modern piracy still happen today. Now in modern days technology allows pirates to still sail the oceans (Waldman).
Throughout the history of pirates, no one really liked them, due to the fact that they were robbers of the seas. The typical descriptions of pirates don’t show what they were really like. Though some people did not appreciate pirates, there were some people who lived the life of a pirate who loved it; it was the only thing they knew.
Cordingly’s book Under the Black Flag: The Romance and Reality of Life Among the Pirates tells the story of many different pirates of different time periods by the facts. The book uses evidence from first hand sources to combat the image of pirates produced by fictional books, plays, and films. Cordingly explains where the fictional ideas may have come from using the evidence from the past. The stories are retold while still keeping the interest of the audience without having to stray from the factual
Throughout the film there are parts of historical piracy that are shown. In the start of the film, pirate Hector Barbossa is shown as a new privateer for the English. It is revealed that Captain Barbossa is not sailing the seas for the King, but instead
Little is known about the infamous Blackbeard's early life; in fact, the first documentations of him are not recorded until the early 1700s, long after his childhood. Yet with so little knowledge of him, he is arguably regarded as the most notorious pirate in history due to his fearsome personality, distinguished look, daring acts of piracy, and stalwart death.
"Blackbeard: Pirate Terror at Sea--History, Pictures, and Information for Kids." Blackbeard: Pirate Terror at Sea--History, Pictures, and Information for Kids. National Geographic, n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2014.
The Renaissance was a time of great change in Europe beginning in the late middle ages. Philosophies and culture shifted, and so did rebellion. Many feared the seas, for thieves and murderous gangs filled it. Privateers or crews who received funding from royalty or other authorities to fight enemies were corrupt, but they were not the main cause for worry.(Paine) Pirates were the ones who were feared by many and adored by few. Pirates traveled the seas in search of fortune. They would often murder, kidnap and use any other violence necessary to get what their greedy hearts desired.(Paine)(Aldrete) Only the most desperate and greedy would dare to join the bands of rebels because it took specific traits to be a pirate.(Aldrete) To be a successful pirate during the Renaissance, one needed fighting skills, perseverance, and the demeanor to carry out difficult and cruel tasks.
Most pirates were anonymous men of humble origin. William Kidd was once a well-known and prominent figure who moved in elite circles, and had important connections
Because of this ill treatment, some sailors decided to become pirates. The system of piracy was a particularly egalitarian one. It reinstituted the medieval method of payment, by offering each member shares of the profit, which in the sailor’s mind meant better pay for their labor. Additionally, as written in the codes the pirates followed, the ship was run by the crew, not the captain. The crew had the ability to depose a captain that treated them unfairly. (Rediker 261-62) In many cases piracy offered better working conditions, better food, better pay, and better leadership. However, an organized effort to eradicate the threat of piracy began to take shape in the late 1720’s. Colonial governors began offering bounties on the heads of pirates and the Royal Navy engaged in a much more organized and focused attack on such enterprises. (Rediker 283) These factors, combined with the inability of pirates to organize on a large scale, lead to only a short reign at sea for these ill-treated rebels. (Rediker
During the 16th, 17th and early 18th centuries, piracy was rampant in the Atlantic, specifically in the West Indies. Piracy has existed since the earliest days of ocean travel, for a range of personal and economic reasons. However, one of the major reasons why piracy was wide spread and rampant in the 16th, 17th and early 18th centuries was Great Britain’s endorsement and usage of piracy as an asset; in wars fought in the New World. Great Britain with its expanding power and conflicts with other nations would make piracy a lifestyle and lay down the foundation for the Golden Age of Piracy and eventually bring what it created to a screeching halt.
One way this essay will be able to quantify piracy will be by how many letters of marque were issued by the Admiralty. For example, the total number of British privateers operating around the territorial waters of England, Ireland and France between 1589 & 1591 was recorded at 236. This was during a time when the reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth I of England, advocated privateering and regulated it throughout the Anglo-Spanish War with ‘Letters of Reprisal’ (lettre de mark). She did this for several reasons, but one of them was to distance herself from any direct aggression towards hostile European powers. These letters were only obtainable by the Admiralty court, if the person in question could prove they had been robbed by a foreign power at sea. Nonetheless, it counts as an act of piracy and does show that the dates sourced in the title for Golden age of Piracy are too narrow, as this evidence shows piracy being advocated by the British as early as
The history of piracy dates back more than 3000 years. “It appears that the word pirate (peirato) was first used in about 140 BC by the Roman historian Polybius. The Greek historian Plutarch, writing in about 100 A.D., gave the oldest clear definition of piracy. He described pirates as those who attack without legal authority not only ships, but also maritime cities (http://www.piratesinfo.com/history/history.php).” The most common meaning of the word pirate recognizes them as an outlaw and a thief. Anyone who was caught and tried with the act of piracy would be sentenced to death.
pirate as he is portrayed in the beginning of the text nor is he the
The Golden Age of Piracy began around 1650, and ended around 1730. Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence at sea, but can include acts committed on land, in the air, or in other major bodies of water or on a shore. It does not normally include crimes committed against persons traveling on the same vessel as the criminal. The term has been used throughout history to refer to raids across land borders by non-state agents. A pirate is one who commits robberies at sea, usually without being allotted to do so by any particular nation. The usual crime for piracy can include being hung, or publically executed. Some of the most famous pirates who were killed either because of piracy, or because of natural causes, are Barbarossa, Stede Bonnet, Anne Bonney, Sir Francis Drake, Captain Greaves, William Kidd, Jean Laffite, Sir Henry Morgan, Mary Read, and Giovanni da Verrazano.
Piracy is not something, which developed recently. The young Julius Caesar was kidnapped by pirates in 78 BC on a voyage to Rhodes and held for ransom.
“Piracy and Armed Robbery Against Ships,” The International Maritime Organization, Accessed March 26th, 2014. http://www.imo.org/OurWork/Security/PiracyArmedRobbery/Pages/Default.aspx
Pirates have a natural love for treasure and wealth. They often loose what little morals they possess in exchange for any opportunity to achieve any type of wealth. Pirates at this time are looked at as the scum of the earth (Jacobs Henry). This is shown by the depiction of the dead pirates hanging with a sign that says, “Pirates ye be warned” (Pirates of the Caribbean). Jack had a rough upbringing from early on. It is in these pivotal years that we develop many of our natural tendencies and social behaviors that we carry with us for the rest of our lives. If someone has a hard or troubled upbringing with little stability, then they are often predisposed to certain mental disorders. For example, Jack Sparrow started his life onboard a ship at sea during a typhoon. In no way, shape, or form is coming into the world in such conditions nurturing to the individual. Furthermore, his father Captai...