The Journey of My Historical Thesis: The Backbone of Success

The horizon, the unknown, the challenges, the danger. With the Revolutionary War underway in the British colonies, Captain James Cook prepared for his third voyage of discovery. Cook’s first expeditions included a circumnavigation of the globe, observing the transit of Venus in Tahiti, mapping New Zealand, and the eastern coast of Australia. The second expedition circumnavigated Antarctica, however dense pack ice did not allow Cook and his crew to approach the continent. The third voyage sent him seeking a northeast passage linking the Pacific to the Atlantic ocean. Upon this journey Cook and his crew were the first Europeans to come across the Hawaiian islands, and map the west coast of North America from Oregon up past the Bearing Straight between Alaska and Russia.

For anyone interested in the nautical explorations of the world, the voyages of Captain Cook should be high on your list of expeditions to learn about.

The Intrigue of Captain Cook

I became interested in Captain Cook during my college years. Walking through a bookstore I browsed the discounted shelves (broke college student seeking the constant wonder contained within books). A book cover depicting a seventeenth century man below a lime branch and a ship on the horizon caught my attention. It was titled A Pirate of Exquisite Mind - Explorer, Naturalist, and Buccaneer: The Life of William Dampier. That sounded exciting. I picked it up, found just enough cash in my wallet to purchase it, and dove into a world of adventure. The thing that gripped my attention was this was not a fictional adventure but real life experiences. Movie worthy, with daring attacks, setting off toward and unknown horizon, discovery, illness, and disaster my mind immersed itself into an age I had never given much thought to. Throughout the book references to a Captain James Cook were frequently made. I knew nothing about the man and to the best of my knowledge had never heard of him. When I finished reading about William Dampier the next books I bought were the published journals of Captain Cook.

Around this time I was approaching the mid point of my undergraduate degree in History and had to come up with a historical thesis. As I read the journals of Captain Cook and subsequently the journals of some of the other lieutenants of his crew, I noticed a lot of mentions about the work of the sailors - the men who ultimately enabled the ships to remain in working order, furled and unfurled the sails, and restocked provisions. Looking into more modern historical works about Cook and his three voyages I found that very little was written about the crew, everything focused on the leadership of Cook, his discoveries, and the civilizations he came in contact with.

My Discovered Thesis

Back to the journals of the voyages I went, this time reading them and marking every mention of the crew. What tasks did they complete, how did they accomplish their orders, how trustworthy were they, how capable were they, how were they disciplined, did they have a voice in the expeditions, were any a part of all three voyages or two of the voyages or did they seek a new birth after their voyage they participated in? These were the questions I was seeking answers for. Little by little, piece by piece, reference by reference I was able to gather enough information about these men that I thought I could write a thesis on them.

I proposed the idea to my thesis advisor. With his support and guidance I was eventually able to compose a thesis that would be able to stand up to a thesis defense: The crew of Captain Cook’s third voyage guaranteed the success of the expedition, because of their devotion to exploration, skillfully executed duties on and off the ships, and their ability to repair all parts of the ships.

The Real Work Begins

Coming up with my thesis meant that I had already done a fair amount of reading and learning on the subject. However, I needed to dive deeper, find more primary sources, explore more secondary sources, identify other areas where information could be gleaned, and then see if my proposed thesis would still work or if it needed to be adjusted.

In that process my original discovery that no historian had dedicated any significant work to the crew of Captain Cook’s voyages held true. With my focus on the crew, I noticed an area of information that I had not recognized before, the voyage artwork. As Cook’s voyages were largely scientific in nature, included with those onboard his ships were astronomers, botanists, and artists. Those artists ended up depicting many scenes showing the work of the crew. They are the best thing we have to “see” into the world of the voyages. I set about gathering as many of the paintings as I could find that included depictions of the crew.

Gathering sources and references was the easy part. Compiling all the information into a sensible thesis paper was quite another ordeal. One evening I sat at my computer with books littered over my desk and floor. Where to start? I dove in. Draft one was no good. Draft two didn’t have the right tone. Draft three was on the right track but was lacking something. Draft four showed potential. By draft five things had come together, the layout was solid, the scope narrowed in, the purpose clear.

Building out draft five proved to be just as hair pulling. Check, double check, and triple check sources, references, and who said what all while striving to tell the story of the crew of captain Cook’s voyages in a coherent manner. Due to the fact that information about the crew is sporadic through primary sources. I had to rely on all three of Cook’s voyages to pull the information together, but to have my thesis make the most sense from a timeline standpoint I ended up only focusing on the third voyage. This meant taking information from voyages one and two that applied to the topics discussed about voyage three.

Eventually the grunt work came to a close. This was followed with what seemed to be endless refining. Consistent use of commas, correct spelling, adjusting sentences to better convey meaning, and ensuring everything had the same margins, indents on block quotes, and references and the bibliography elements perfect. Of course everything had to adhered to Chicago Manual Style format. Draft after draft after draft was completed.

My Thesis Defense

A day I had looked forward to for so long. At the same day it was a day I dreaded. What if the board of reviewers found my thesis to be unsound and weak. I dressed up in slacks, button up shirt, and tie. I took a copy of my thesis bound in a folder with a crisp clear cover on the front and a black matte cover on the back. I had kleenex in my pockets to help keep the nervous sweat at bay prior to shaking each of the professors hands and handing them their copy of my thesis. They sat down. I stood waiting for the invitation to sit.

Question after question were asked. For the first few I managed to answer calmly despite my heart rate running at the pace of a sprint. Eventually, I calmed. I knew the information, the sources, the timeline, and the details for each aspect of my historical argument. Eventually I was asked to leave the room, while the professors deliberated on if the history department would accept my thesis and allow me to graduate.

I sat in the hall, my foot rapidly tapping on the floor. I stood, hoping it would calm my nerves. Only to sit back down hoping for the same outcome. Within seven minutes I was called back in to face the decision of the holders of my fate. They were all smiling. The most senior professor said, “We did not have to talk long. Your thesis is one of the best in your graduation class. Congratulations.” They then added an additional bonus, “Each year we select two thesis papers to be included in the school’s Crescat Scientia publication. We would like yours to be one of those.” With that my thesis defense of Captain Cook’s crew was over.

I subtly wiped my hands on my slacks as the professors stood and I stepped forward to shake their outstretched hands. I walked out of the room feeling light as a feather a broad smile across my face. I did it! I may have jumped and clicked my heels in air as I excitedly walked out across the campus grounds to my car. I celebrated on my own with a delicious large shake - Chocolate Cookie Dough - before sharing the news with others. Never had a shake tasted so good.

A Free Download of The Backbone of Success: The Crew of Captain Cook’s Third Voyage of Discovery

If you would like to learn more about the epic voyages of Captain Cook and how his crew enabled the success of those voyages, you can download my thesis here.

Who are your favorite explores? Comment below! I look forward to your comments.