First Mate's Journal

Blog Post #3          "Heroes or Villains" The life of a pirate was often treading on a thin line of morality and legality which often led them to take on repulsive acts or morally questionable choices. It is important to note that a large portion of young men who took on the Caribbean sea were "brought up in civilized society, and who have been accustomed to obey laws" (Buccaneers and Pirates of Our Coast Ch.3).  Daniel Montbars (The Exterminator) was such a man who own morals led him to being feared by the Spanish.  Having read of the atrocities committed by the Spaniards was enough for him to act so violently towards the Spanish that only two others can match his wrath towards the Spanish Empire. Errors in judgment have led many to an early grave either through an under estimation of risk or through misinterpretation of law . Captain Kidd was someone who met such a fate after one decision that started and e...

Blog Post #2 Myth Busters  Many people have garnered an odd view of what and how pirates would have behaved and acted in certain situations. Largely thanks to the existence of stories surrounding the topic such as “Treasure Island” and the plays on the larger than life pirate captains such as “Black Beard” and “Captain Kidd”. While many children these days get their view of them off “The Pirates of The Caribbean” which had some truths surrounding the showboating Captain Jack Sparrow who paid his respects to the hanged pirates all while his ship began to sink. The Topic of The Golden Age of Piracy has interested many people thanks in part to much of the info being both limited and just as evasive and unknown as the pirates who lived during the time. A major reason for the lack of information is that the large portion of pirates are illiterate and as such lacked the ability to write or draw maps despite what “Treasure Island” portrayed. While many were not able to write a ...

Assignment 1: Representation of Pirates in Myths Pirates have been romanticized ,and been given duality qualities as portrayed with Captain Conrad who was given a combination of "Gothic style villains with the ideals of the noble outlaw" from The Corsair  (pg.217 Under the Black Flag). While others have been honored as larger than life with ballads and plays made in their honor such as Captain Kidd (William Kidd) and Blackbeard (Edward Teach). Despite the realities are often more bleaker than we can stomach for both the legendary characters in reality and the common pirate. One of the most widely known pirate portrayals in modern day culture is from a film that released back in 2003 commonly referred to as Pirates of the Caribbean. Which still has some of the bleak problems seafarers dealt with (in addition to some magic related shenanigans that is due to the fear of the sea) but with a more bright portrayal to maintain their PG rating.

First blog: About Me                      Hello welcome to the First Mate's Journal. I have travelled to and through various states over the years from New York the state I was born in to California the state most of my family lives. Since Freshman year of high school a massive collection of trading cards (and still growing)  have been amassed cause of my hobby of playing trading card games. RPGs are my preferred game genre from table to disk.