In 1550 the German adventurer Hans Staden was serving as a gunner in a Portuguese fort on the Brazilian coast. While out hunting, he was captured by the Tupinambá, an indigenous people who had a reputation for engaging in ritual cannibalism and who, as allies of the French, were hostile to the Portuguese. Staden’s True History, first published in Germany in 1557, tells the story of his nine months among the Tupi Indians. It is a dramatic first-person account of his capture, captivity, and eventual escape. 
Staden’s narrative is a foundational text in the history and European “discovery” of Brazil, the earliest European account of the Tupi Indians, and a touchstone in the debates on cannibalism. Yet the last English-language edition of Staden’s True History was published in 1929. This new critical edition features a new translation from the sixteenth-century German along with annotations and an extensive introduction. It restores to the text the fifty-six woodcut illustrations of Staden’s adventures and final escape that appeared in the original 1557 edition.
In the introduction, Neil L. Whitehead discusses the circumstances surrounding the production of Staden’s narrative and its ethnological significance, paying particular attention to contemporary debates about cannibalism. Whitehead illuminates the value of Staden’s True History as an eyewitness account of Tupi society on the eve before its collapse, of ritual war and sacrifice among Native peoples, and of colonial rivalries in the region of Rio de Janeiro. He chronicles the history of the various editions of Staden’s narrative and their reception from 1557 until the present. Staden’s work continues to engage a wide range of readers, not least within Brazil, where it has recently been the subject of two films and a graphic novel.

Hans Staden's True History: An Account of Cannibal Captivity in Brazil (The Cultures and Practice of Violence)

History

Staden, Hans

Americas

Duke University Press Books

Véritable Histoire Et Description D'un Pays Habité Par Des Hommes Sauvages, Nus, Féroces Et Anthropophages: Situé Dans Le Nouveau Monde Nommé ... Jusqu'à L'anné... (French Edition)

Nabu Press

This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book.

N. Federmanns Und H. Stades Reisen in Südamerica, 1529 Bis 1555, XLVII (German Edition)

Federmann, Nikolaus

Europe

Hans Staden: The True History of His Captivity, 1557

This is a new release of the original 1929 edition.

Biographies & Memoirs

Historical

Literary Licensing, LLC

This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work.

Hans Staden: The True Story Of His Captivity 1557 (Argonaut)

Kessinger Publishing

Hans Staden: The True Story of His Captivity 1557

Literature & Fiction

Literary

The True Story and Description of a Country of Naked, Ferocious and Anthopophage Savages Situated in the New World America was one of the most published books about the New World during the XVI Century. The story of young Hans Staden's adventure, his captivity among the tupinamba tribe in ancient Brazil, contains all the elements of the then emerging travel literature that nurtured the old world's dreams about the exotic. And better yet, it benefits from its own authenticity by stemming from the author's direct observation. Staden writes about his adventure, but while doing so he also offers first hand ethnographical data of great value. The most attractive, while at the same time most repulsive, for the European readers is, undoubtedly, the description of the blood soaked anthropophagic rituals, that exerted a visible fascination on the civilized audience. The Brazilian Spectacle, depicted in the wood etchings of the 1547 edition, was transformed into full color pictures by the engraver editor Theodore de Bry. The evoking of such a different cultural universe makes one ponder about the paradox of human nature: sometimes the evil savages appear as having more human qualities that the civilized westerners. In this full color edition prof. Jean-Paul Duviols compares the Staden's first edition wood etchings with the later stylized full color depictions by De Bry, a comparison that highlights the interpretation the western world gave to the base information conveyed by Staden.

Verdadera Historia y Descripcion de Un Pais (Spanish Edition)

Stockcero

Nus, féroces et anthropophages

Editions Métailié

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