In which John Green teaches you about the life and death of one of history’s great explorers, Captain James Cook of the British Navy. He charted large swaths of the Pacific ocean, laid claim to Australia and New Zealand, and died a bizarre death in the Sandwich Islands, which are now called the Hawaiian Islands. Exactly how and why Captain Cook was killed in Hawaii is a long-running historical debate. John presents two interpretations of the event and talks about what the differing interpretations say about history. It turns out how the story is told depends on who is doing the storytelling, and people from different backgrounds can interpret events in very different ways. Also, there is a celebration and a mustache involved in this episode, so you definitely don’t want to miss it.
Chapters:
Introduction 00:00
Captain James Cook 0:33
An Open Letter to “The White Man’s Burden” 2:44
Captain Cook’s Controversial Death 3:40
Interpretations of Captain Cook’s Death: Makahiki 4:19
Issues with the Ritual Death Story 5:19
How Cook Actually (Probably) Died 6:34
Why Did Cook’s Ritual Death Myth Persist? 8:03
Credits 10:00
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