Writings: A Collection of American Characters
Anna Wada, Brown ’13
This series depicts several figures from Perry’s crew, including Commodore Perry, the marine rifleman, ship’s commander, interpreter, navigator, and musician. Slightly differing versions of this image exist as well. (The website “Visualizing Cultures” introduces a color version of the print.)
The text describes the name, approximate age, and vivid details of each uniform. The second set in the series contains the surveyor, black sailor who was called “to work in the rigging or dive in the sea,” and leader of cannoneers.[1] The black sailor is portrayed as being in notably poor condition, his half naked body contrasting with other crew members’ grand military uniforms. While the fictional “Country of black peoples” had been drawn in world maps before the arrival of Perry (an example can be found here), there was rarely a chance to see Africans or African Americans in Japan, and so black soldiers became the target of intense local curiosity.
Notes:
- John Dower, “Black Ships and Samurai: Portraits,” Visualizing Cultures, accessed January 11, 2012.