Captain Cook and the Explorer Gods

Exploring myth-making

On February 14th, 1779, while some Britons exchanged love letters and proclamations of affection, bleeding their hearts dry, thousands of miles away, on a sandy beach in Hawaii, another Englishman would find suffering, but not through the arrows of mischievous Cupid, but rather through clubs and knives.

The subject of this affliction: Captain James Cook, had supposedly been deified by the local Hawaiians. Blond, blue-eyed, tall, and poised, the English Captain quickly became respected by the Hawaiians, but…