Voyaging through History: the Meanings of the Mayflower, 1620-2020

2020年，英美世界将纪念“五月花”号跨大西洋航行400周年。一系列庆祝活动正通过“五月花400”网络计划，从建造一艘海上复制品，到游行、节日和表演。压力团体已经在游说各国政府正式承认这一纪念活动具有国际文化重要性。人们对五月花的故事产生了浓厚的兴趣，这并不是什么新鲜事，特别是在美国，五月花是这个国家“起源故事”的基石。但是，清教徒之旅的故事也吸引了英国人的想象力--尽管它没有出现在学术研究中。在19世纪中后期；在第一次和第二次世界大战期间和之后；以及在1970年的最后一个重大周年纪念中，有一些值得注意的时期。在地方和国家层面，清教徒横渡大西洋并逃离宗教迫害的故事已被证明为个人、机构和社区留下了持久的遗产。一系列广泛而丰富的小说、戏剧、电影，以及纪念碑、雕像和精心策划的历史建筑，证明了五月花的文化、政治和宗教意义。通过对这些视觉、文本和实物材料的深入分析，该项目将首次对五月花故事在英国文化中的强大吸引力进行权威和批判性的分析。承认五月花之旅的意义已经发生了实质性的变化，以适应不同历史时期的特定议程，它也将提供一个及时的镜头，通过它来看待当代的时尚，进行历史纪念。批判性的观点，跨越漫长的时间范围和广泛的主题范围，将为历史文化和宗教、英美文化外交以及当地旅游和地点建造之间的关系提供关键的见解。学术文章和一本里程碑式的专著将把五月花不断变化的含义放在英国社会过去的更大背景下。跨学科会议和随后编辑的期刊问题将把这种方法扩大到更广泛的学术受众。将我们的研究与当地社区联系起来，我们还将支持和告知地方和国家2020年五月花的庆祝和项目。讲习班、公开辩论、口述历史访谈和戏剧表演将鼓励公众利益攸关方反思五月花号故事的历史重述的各个方面，推动从批判性的角度看待该航程在当前的相关性。一个由埃克塞特大学数字人文小组创建和主持的网站(项目结束后的5年保修期)，以及由项目小组成员和其他专家撰写的功能和学习指南，将为当代与五月花故事的互动提供历史背景。它将包括一张互动地图，将以视觉和文字内容独特地定位对五月花的纪念，跨越漫长的历史时期。大英图书馆的公共活动还将把五月花的重要性扩展到更广泛的当代关于历史和冲突纪念的辩论，不仅在英国，而且在美国和更广泛的世界，而我们的学术支持和在南安普顿五月花剧院(他们正在制作五月花音乐剧)的口述历史采访将丰富当地的了解。这个项目将广泛的原创学术研究与明确重点的公共参与工作结合在一起，从而汇集了英国过去和现在的丰富故事，以增进对历史文化的学术和非学术理解。

In 2020 the Anglo-American world will mark the 400th anniversary of the trans-Atlantic Mayflower voyage. A range of celebratory activities are being planned through a 'Mayflower400' network, from the construction of a sea-going replica of the ship, to parades, festivals, and performances. Pressure groups are already lobbying national governments to officially recognise the commemoration as an event of international cultural importance. Intensive and focused interest in the story of the Mayflower is not a new phenomenon, especially in the United States, where it is the bedrock of the nation's 'origin story'. But the tale of the Pilgrim's voyage has also captured the British imagination - despite, however, its absence from academic studies. There were periods of notable interest in the mid- and then late-19th century; during and following the First and Second World War; and in the last large anniversary in 1970. At both a local and national level, the tale of the Pilgrims' journey across the Atlantic Ocean, and their escape from religious persecution, has proved to have an enduring legacy for individuals, institutions, and communities. A wide and rich range of novels, plays, films, alongside memorials, statues, and curated historical buildings, are testament to the cultural, political and religious significance of the Mayflower.Drawing on an intensive analysis of these visual, textual, and physical materials, this project will be the first to provide an authoritative and critical analysis of the powerful draw of the Mayflower story in British culture. Acknowledging that the meaning of the Mayflower voyage has altered substantially to suit specific agendas at different points in history, it will also provide a timely lens through which to view the contemporary vogue for historical commemoration. A critical view, across a long chronological range and through a broad thematic scope, will give key insights into the relationship between historical culture and religion, Anglo-American cultural diplomacy, and local tourism and place-making. Academic articles and a landmark monograph will situate the changing meaning of the Mayflower in the larger context of the place of the past in British society. An interdisciplinary conference and subsequent edited journal issue will expand this approach to a broader academic audience. Connecting our research with local communities, we will also support and inform both local and national Mayflower 2020 celebrations and projects. Workshops, public debates, oral history interviews, and theatrical performances will encourage public stakeholders to reflect on aspects of the historical retelling of the Mayflower story, advancing a critical perspective on the relevance of the voyage in the present. A website, created and hosted by the University of Exeter Digital Humanities Team (guaranteed for 5 years beyond the project end), and populated with features and a study-guide written by members of the project team and other experts, will give historical context to contemporary interaction with the Mayflower story. It will include an interactive map that will uniquely locate the commemoration of the Mayflower in visual and written content across a long-period of history. Public events at the British Library will also extend the importance of the Mayflower to wider contemporary debates about history and the commemoration of conflict, not just in Britain but the USA and wider world too, while our academic support and oral history interviewing at the Mayflower Theatre in Southampton (who are producing a Mayflower musical) will enrich local understanding. Combining extensive original academic research with clearly focused public engagement work, this project will thus draw together a rich story in the British past and present to enhance both academic and non-academic understandings of historical culture.