Pirates

As long as ships have sailed, pirates have preyed upon them. This course examines piracy from ancient times to present, from the Mediterranean Sea to the Indian Ocean and the Caribbean. We will explore questions: How did piracy evolve over time? Where, why, and how did people become pirates, and what (if anything) made them different from other seafarers? How is piracy related to other historical processes, notably imperialism and nation-building? What explains the resurgence of piracy in the twenty-first century? Why have pirates become the stuff of legend, and how accurately are they portrayed in books and films?