Amerigo Vespucci

Frederick Albion OberProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.8

Word count: 328K words
Chapters: 33

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Amerigo Vespucci by Frederick A. OberAuthor: Ober, Frederick A. (Frederick Albion), 1849-1913,Language: English, Class: E011: History: America: America, Release Date: Dec 3, 2006

Editor's review

This is Frederick A. Ober's English biography of the American navigator Amerigo Vespucci, an example of early popular historical writing. It places Vespucci in the context of fifteenth- and sixteenth-century European overseas exploration, recounting his voyages, the naming controversy, and the background to the origin of the word "America," making it a suitable introduction to the figures and place-name origins of the Age of Discovery. As a public-domain eBook from Project Gutenberg, the text is easy to obtain and moderate in length; the English is not especially difficult, and the historical narrative has the tone of late nineteenth-century popular biography. Readers can encounter both the details of maritime adventure and the evaluative stance of that era's authors toward explorers. It is best read as historical narrative rather than as strictly sourced scholarship; pairing it with maps or related historical sources will make the reading more rewarding.

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers interested in the Age of Discovery and the history of the discovery of the Americas
English learners who want to know the origin of the name "America"
Students who need English-language primary sources as course supplements
History enthusiasts who like public-domain eBooks and are used to digital reading

Not a good fit for

Professional historians seeking rigorous scholarly annotation and the latest research findings
Beginners with weak English reading skills who need a Chinese translation
Readers who prefer fiction and strongly plot-driven narratives

Reading tips

Read the table of contents and opening first to clarify the order of Vespucci's voyages, then proceed chapter by chapter.
Prepare a fifteenth- or sixteenth-century world map and compare routes and place names as you read.
When you encounter personal or place names, you can skip them at first and look them up after finishing the chapter, to avoid frequent interruption.
After finishing, compare biographies of Columbus and Magellan to form a multi-perspective comparison.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book in Chinese or English?

The original is in English, published by Project Gutenberg as a public-domain eBook. Chinese readers need some English reading ability, or should read with a dictionary and translation tools.

What aspects of Vespucci does the book mainly cover?

It focuses mainly on his voyages, his role in the exploration of the Americas, and his connection to the naming of "America," while also offering the author's evaluations of the explorer's life and descriptions of the historical background.

Is this book suitable as historical research material?

It is closer to popular biography and was written long ago, lacking modern scholarly annotation and the latest research; it is suitable as an introduction and as a source of leads, but not as rigorous scholarly evidence.

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About the author

Frederick Albion Ober Author · American · 1849–1913

Frederick Albion Ober (1849–1913) was an American naturalist and writer born in Beverly, Massachusetts. Between 1876 and 1878 he conducted ornithological surveys in the Lesser Antilles, discovering twenty-two new avian taxa, two of which were named after him. He went on to write for thirty years, producing more than forty books, chiefly travel narratives, works on ornithology, and biographies. His representative works include Old Put The Patriot, Vasco Nuñez de Balboa, Amerigo Vespucci, and Spain. Interested in historical figures and geographical exploration, he wove personal observation into his narratives in a plain and readable style that combines natural-history observation with travel literature. Ober was a co-founder of the Explorers Club in 1904 and died in Hackensack, New Jersey, in 1913.