American Sea Literature: Seascapes, Beach Narratives, and Underwater Explorations

134 Pages·2014·0.82 MB·English

by  Shin Yamashiro (auth.)

American Sea Literature
DOI: 10.1057/9781137463302.0001
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DOI: 10.1057/9781137463302.0001
American Sea
Literature: Seascapes,
Beach Narratives,
and Underwater
Explorations
Shin Yamashiro
Associate Professor of American Literature,
University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan
DOI: 10.1057/9781137463302.0001
american sea literature
Copyright © Shin Yamashiro, 2014.
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2014 978-1-137-46566-5
All rights reserved.
First published in 2014 by
PALGRAVE MACMILLAN®
in the United States—a division of St. Martin’s Press LLC,
175 Fift h Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
Where this book is distributed in the UK, Europe and the rest of the world,
this is by Palgrave Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited,
registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke,
Hampshire RG21 6XS.
Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies
and has companies and representatives throughout the world.
Palgrave® and Macmillan® are registered trademarks in the United States,
the United Kingdom, Europe and other countries.
ISBN: 978–1–137–46330–2 PDF
ISBN: 978-1-349-49967-0
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Yamashiro, Shin.
American Sea Literature: Seascapes, Beach Narratives, and Underwater
Explorations / Shin Yamashiro, Associate Professor of American Literature,
University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978–1–137–46566–5 (hardback)
1. Sea stories, American—History and criticism. 2. Seafaring life in
literature. 3. Sea poems, American—History and criticism. 4. Ocean travel
in literature. I. Title.
PS169.S42Y36 2014
810.9932162—dc23 2014028112
A catalogue record of the book is available from the British Library.
First edition: 2014
www.palgrave.com/pivot
doi: 10.1057/9781137463302
Contents
Copyright Acknowledgments vi
Personal Acknowledgments vii
Introduction: On the Sea, By the Sea,
Beneath the Sea 1
1 American Sea Literature—on the Sea 12
2 American Sea Literature—by the Sea 48
3 American Sea Literature—beneath the Sea 81
Epilogue: Rooftop Water Tank 121
Index 124
DOI: 10.1057/9781137463302.0001 v
Copyright Acknowledgments
The author wishes to thank the following academic jour-
nals for kindly granting permission to reprint previously
published materials. The list is in order of appearance in
the book.
1. “Seascapes as a Critical Framework in American Sea
Literature.” Tamkang Review 37.1 (2006): 100–120.
2. “The Spirit of Joshua Slocum: Autobiographic and
Anachronistic Elements in Sailing Alone Around the
World (1900).” Literature and Environment 7.7 (2004):
38–47.
3. “The Beach as a Neutral Ground: Henry David
Thoreau’s Cape Cod and the Tradition of American
Beach Narrative.” Literature and Environment 4.4 (2001):
22–30.
4. “Introduction: Part III: Freedom and Restraint.”
Concentric: Literary and Cultural Studies 34.1 (2008):
13–16.
vi DOI: 10.1057/9781137463302.0002
Personal Acknowledgments
It took me almost ten years to complete this book. I thank
my editor, Brigitte Shull, for responding to my first manu-
script proposal—that was the moment I thought my work
could be worthwhile.
This book also owes its existence to a number of men-
tors and colleagues who led me to see the possibilities of
literary study and criticism. I wish to thank the following
people for their various forms of support and encourage-
ment: Cheryll Glotfelty, who introduced me to the field
of literature and environment; Michael P. Branch, whose
class helped to initiate this project; and of course Scott
Slovic, whose fathomless kindness and warm-hearted
mentorship are utterly beyond description. My mentors
in Okinawa, Okifumi Komesu, Katsunori Yamazato, and
Ikue Kina, all of whom continue to be supportive and gen-
erous, while tolerant of my audacity. I am indebted to Bert
Bender, whose work immensely influenced my interest in
sea literature and helped me learn to navigate through the
vastness of sea literature. My colleagues at the University
of the Ryukyus allowed me to take a leave to complete
this project during 2011–12. This book is partially based
on my previous research, funded by KAKENHI, Grants-
in-Aid for Scientific Research in Japan (Grant Numbers
17720051, 20720073). I also benefited from the Fulbright
grant to research at Harvard University, during which Dr.
Lawrence Buell and Dr. John Stauffer showed great kind-
ness, enabling me to be based at Harvard as a Fulbright
visiting scholar. I deeply owe Timothy Kelly, Norman
Fewell, and George MacLean for reading and commenting
DOI: 10.1057/9781137463302.0003 vii
viii Personal Acknowledgments
on my chapters; without their editorial assistance, this book wouldn’t
exist. Anonymous reviewers of my manuscript reminded me to exercise
care in reading and writing. Karen Lupardus was generous in providing
comments and suggestions, and encouraged me to bring the manuscript
to life. Any faults in this book would be mine only.
I’ve saved my deepest gratitude for my family; they are the reason for
my work.
DOI: 10.1057/9781137463302.0003
Introduction: On the Sea, By
the Sea, Beneath the Sea
Abstract: “Introduction” explains the main concepts of the
“terrestrial” and “oceanic” that the author claims are always
predominant in sea literature. By employing these concepts,
the author proposes to divide sea literature into three types:
on the sea, by the sea, and beneath the sea; thereby, we can
better look at American sea literature from the colonial period
to the twentieth century, appreciating its historical trends,
multifaceted varieties, and everlasting imperatives.
Yamashiro, Shin. American Sea Literature: Seascapes,
Beach Narratives, and Underwater Explorations.
New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2014.
doi: 10.1057/9781137463302.0004.
DOI: 10.1057/9781137463302.0004 