Interspecies Entanglements
This article focuses on the strained legacy of colonial botany and plant trafficking in the context of European expansion and colonisation. ‘Interspecies entanglements’ refers to the relationships of power, knowledge, accumulation, commodification and desire that are perceptible when humans talk abo...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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The White Horse Press
2024-10-01
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| Series: | Plant Perspectives |
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| Online Access: | https://www.whp-journals.co.uk/PP/article/view/1081 |
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| author | Nick Enright |
| author_facet | Nick Enright |
| author_sort | Nick Enright |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This article focuses on the strained legacy of colonial botany and plant trafficking in the context of European expansion and colonisation. ‘Interspecies entanglements’ refers to the relationships of power, knowledge, accumulation, commodification and desire that are perceptible when humans talk about plants in the framework of colonialism. The example I take is the breadfruit tree (Artocarpus altilis), a member of the mulberry family dispersed widely across the Pacific, which was famously transplanted from Tahiti to the Caribbean in the 1790s. After elaborating its journey through cultural discourse (first as ‘bread of the Gods’, then as ‘food for slaves’), I focus on German naturalist Georg Forster’s essay, titled Vom Brodbaum (On the Breadtree, 1784). My underlying contention is that, while Forster redresses some damning stereotypes and misconceptions relating to the Pacific cultures, his interest in race and the attendant hierarchies places a question mark over the integrity of his scientific engagement with human and plant knowledge alike. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-bfcd06c8e44b4e5f9ff6517788df272f |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2753-3603 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-10-01 |
| publisher | The White Horse Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Plant Perspectives |
| spelling | doaj-art-bfcd06c8e44b4e5f9ff6517788df272f2025-08-20T02:49:12ZengThe White Horse PressPlant Perspectives2753-36032024-10-011231333410.3197/whppp.638454949097361022Interspecies EntanglementsNick Enright0University of SydneyThis article focuses on the strained legacy of colonial botany and plant trafficking in the context of European expansion and colonisation. ‘Interspecies entanglements’ refers to the relationships of power, knowledge, accumulation, commodification and desire that are perceptible when humans talk about plants in the framework of colonialism. The example I take is the breadfruit tree (Artocarpus altilis), a member of the mulberry family dispersed widely across the Pacific, which was famously transplanted from Tahiti to the Caribbean in the 1790s. After elaborating its journey through cultural discourse (first as ‘bread of the Gods’, then as ‘food for slaves’), I focus on German naturalist Georg Forster’s essay, titled Vom Brodbaum (On the Breadtree, 1784). My underlying contention is that, while Forster redresses some damning stereotypes and misconceptions relating to the Pacific cultures, his interest in race and the attendant hierarchies places a question mark over the integrity of his scientific engagement with human and plant knowledge alike.https://www.whp-journals.co.uk/PP/article/view/1081breadfruitcolonial botanyracepacificgeorg forster |
| spellingShingle | Nick Enright Interspecies Entanglements Plant Perspectives breadfruit colonial botany race pacific georg forster |
| title | Interspecies Entanglements |
| title_full | Interspecies Entanglements |
| title_fullStr | Interspecies Entanglements |
| title_full_unstemmed | Interspecies Entanglements |
| title_short | Interspecies Entanglements |
| title_sort | interspecies entanglements |
| topic | breadfruit colonial botany race pacific georg forster |
| url | https://www.whp-journals.co.uk/PP/article/view/1081 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT nickenright interspeciesentanglements |