Plants and Empire: Colonial Bioprospecting in the Atlantic World

· Harvard University Press
電子書
320
頁數

關於這本電子書

Plants seldom figure in the grand narratives of war, peace, or even everyday life yet they are often at the center of high intrigue. In the eighteenth century, epic scientific voyages were sponsored by European imperial powers to explore the natural riches of the New World, and uncover the botanical secrets of its people. Bioprospectors brought back medicines, luxuries, and staples for their king and country. Risking their lives to discover exotic plants, these daredevil explorers joined with their sponsors to create a global culture of botany.

But some secrets were unearthed only to be lost again. In this moving account of the abuses of indigenous Caribbean people and African slaves, Schiebinger describes how slave women brewed the "peacock flower" into an abortifacient, to ensure that they would bear no children into oppression. Yet, impeded by trade winds of prevailing opinion, knowledge of West Indian abortifacients never flowed into Europe. A rich history of discovery and loss, Plants and Empire explores the movement, triumph, and extinction of knowledge in the course of encounters between Europeans and the Caribbean populations.

為這本電子書評分

請分享你的寶貴意見。

閱讀資訊

智能手機和平板電腦
請安裝 Android 版iPad/iPhone 版「Google Play 圖書」應用程式。這個應用程式會自動與你的帳戶保持同步,讓你隨時隨地上網或離線閱讀。
手提電腦和電腦
你可以使用電腦的網絡瀏覽器聆聽在 Google Play 上購買的有聲書。
電子書閱讀器及其他裝置
如要在 Kobo 等電子墨水裝置上閱覽書籍,你需要下載檔案並傳輸到你的裝置。請按照說明中心的詳細指示,將檔案傳輸到支援的電子書閱讀器。