Foreign
Language
Learning and
Capt.
Marryats
Sailor-Heroes
MAREK BEASZAK
(Opole)
Oneof the moststriking features of Capt. Marryat’s sailor-heroes is their unu sual enthusiasm for and the greateasewith which they learn foreign languages during their long voyagesand visits to many distant parts of theworld.In Peter Simple the narrator-hero whoentersthe Royal Navy as a midshipman, observes: “There certainly is something in the life of a sailor which enlarges the mind” (90), and in The King’s Ownthe author makes a similarreflection directly inhis own voice: “much as travel by land may enlarge themind, it never can be expan ded to theutmostof itscapabilities untilit has also peregrinated bywater.I be lieve that [...] the human intellect [...] is enlarged by going to sea” (239). The said expansion or enlargement perfectly applies tothe study of foreign langua ges, andthrough them - different culturesand customs,at the sametimegiving the writer ample opportunity to incorporate into the text of his novelsa large nu mber of barbarisms andloan-words which represent avariety oflanguages. Bar barisms, as defined indictionaries of literary terms, originate from foreign lan guages and are used in a given linguistic system without the familiar native phonetic adjustment(cf. Sierotwinski 299). On the other hand, loan-wordsbe long tothoseborrowingsthathavebecome generally accepted in the lexicalre sources of a given language.
It seems that Capt. Marryat’s sailor-heroes are keen on the study of foreign languages, among others atleast, for the sake of realism. The discussedauthor always cared for the conformity of hisdescriptions of characters, places andsi tuations to theempiricalworld as experienced by himself. Being a professional sailor with an impressive record of more than twentyyears’ service at sea, he was familar with the linguistic cosmopolitismin thisenvironmentand apparent
ly had the capacity for languages that hebestowed uponhis protagonists. In Ne wton Forster hetakes his hero twice to the East Indies, whichmakes it possible forhim tomake thefollowingcomment on the fleetofthe East IndiaCompany, known as the “Bombay Marine”: “Thecrews are composed ofa small proportion ofEnglish seamen, asmall proportion of Portuguese sea-cunnies, a proportion of Lascars, and a proportionofHindooBombay marines. It requires two orthree languages to carry ontheduty;customs,religions,provisions, all different, [...]” (295).Even on board of a lugger engaged in smugglinggoods across theEnglish Channel in The King’s Own, the juvenilehero Willy finds a set of nationals who give him an impression of confusion that seems hardly possible to control:
The crew consisted of about eighty or ninety Englishmen, out of the full complement of one hundred and thirty men; the remainder was composed of Frenchmen and other Continental ad venturers. Although the respective countries were at variance, the subjects of each had shaken hands, that they might assist each other in violating the laws. The quiet and subordination Of a king’s ship were not to be expected here, - [...] French, English, and Irish, spoken alternately or at the same moment, [...] (82).
The above-mentioned cosmopolitismappears to be verified by the standards of theEnlightenment which made the study of foreign languages in 18th-century Europe oneof the key issues. M. Cieśla notes that in this age the knowledgeof French spread from Lisbonto SanktPetersburg,andthat it was usedas ameans of communication not onlyamong theprivileged classes, but also amongthe lo wermiddle class(72). To the categoryof contemporaryinternational languages the scholaralso includes Spanish (outside Europe) andto alesser extentItalian (mainly in the Mediterranean).Following NapoleonicWars, foreign languages -now including English -have become the instrument of internationalbusiness (cf. Cieśla 179-200).
Capt. Marryat documents hisheroes’zest for languages witha number of dif ferent borrowings. As has beensaid, they contribute to theauthenticity of his no vels,butapart from that, they play an importantstylistic role.Their very lexical “strangeness”attracts thereader’sattention and thustheyperform adistinct ex pressive function. In theolder timesLatin and thenFrench intrusions weretrea ted as exquisite ornaments testifying to the author’s wit and learning. Borro wings are also used to characterize a local community, professional group, social andcultural milieu, for example Frenchexpressions incommonunderstanding illustrate mannerisms ofaristocracy. By way of contrast, they canplaya satirical function when they areincompetently used by thoseaspiring to gentility. Some times borrowings occur so often that the author’s style acquires the peculiar “macaronic” quality - a kind ofa mixed jargon in which two or more languages
Foreign Language Learning andCapt. Marryat's Sailor-Heroes
MAREK BLASZAK
are mingled together (cf. Murray vol. VI 3). Capt.Marryat occasionally pursues this style,especially inthedialogue partsof his novels which are set abroad and involve genuine native speakers.
In his first and most closelyautobiographical novel, The Naval Officer; or, Scenes and Adventures in the Life of FrankMildmay (1829), the title-hero re callsin the first chapter themostlasting impressions ofhis schooldays.These re late to his study ofLatin and Greekand to his classics master, one Mr. Higgin-bottom, who “in anythingbutGreek and Latin, wasan ass” (15). As regards his method ofinstruction, he preferred “thefortiter in re” to“the suaviter in modo” of some other tutors (12). The former consisted in driving knowledge into pupils’ heads withthehelpof a large knotted stick. Franksays that in such circu mstances“wemade astonishing progress;and whatevermyless desirable acqui rements may have been, my father had nocause to complainof my deficiency in classic lore”(12). This musthave been a very strongand painful impression, in deed; fifteen chapters later in the same novel the herodescribes another frightful instance of teachingLatin and the Bible which he witnessed at Port Prayainthe Cape de Verde Islands, a Portuguese colony at that time. The pupils beingdefec tive in their lesson, they areseverely punished bytheir tutorwith aformidable cowskin, that is a large whip:
The old man then ordered the eldest boy to begin his Pater Noster; and simultaneously the whipper-in elevated his cowskin by way of encouragement. The poor boy watched it, out of the corner of his eye, and then began “Pattery nobstur, qui, qui, qui - (here he received a most seve re lash from the cowskin bearer) - is in silly,” roared the boy, as if the continuation had been ex pelled from his mouth by the application of external force in an opposite direction - “sancty fis- heter nom turn, adveny regnum turn, fi notun tas, ta, ti, tu, terror,” roared the poor fellow, as he saw the lash descending on his defenceless back
-(Naval Officer 306-7)
The lessons in “classic lore” as described by Capt. Marryat conform to the. contemporarystatus quo; commentingon the study of Latin inEnglish grammar schools, the social historian G. M. Trevelyan mentions “the usualbrutalities of flogging” (75-6). He adds, atthe same time,that familiarity with Latinwas es sential to any professional career. The discussed novelist proudly documents this in thepages of allhisworks,displayinghis familiarity especially with Latin legal terms. Some of the examples in this category include corporeal strength as “thecondicio sine qua non”ofsurvival inthe Navy (Naval Officer 35),a midshi pman whofailshis exam for a lieutenant and is returnedby the board “re infec-ta” (ibidem 174), the ingenious argument in Peter Simple which is over-ruled “nem. con.” (i.e.nemine contradicente) (36), the laws which are written and “the lexnon scripta” (Midshipman Easy 81), the first-lieutenant acting captain “pro
tempore” (ibidem 171), adivorce“de thoro” (ibidem315),aprisoner“convicto invito” {PhantomShip 284), the principle of ’’lusticiaet Misericordia” (ibidem 320) and numerous others. It is very likely that Capt.Marryat used these terms for the sake of their univocal “international” meaning.
Apart from legal vocabulary, theauthor is always eagertoboast of his know ledgeof Latinthathe gained at such a high cost at school. Consequently, Lati-nismscrop up in everyday situations both aboard and on land. InMidshipman Easy the title-hero challenges to a duel the ship’s boatswain,which his friends think to be “infra dig.” (i.e. infradignitatem) of hisrank (130). In The Naval Of ficerFrank grows weary of thenavalcampaign in North America andon his re turn home resolves to enjoy “theotium cumdig.” (181).InNewton Forster the newly-wed couple exchange pledges of mutual love “ad lib.” (i.e. ad libitum) (16).Mostof such phrases are used in thesuitable context withoutEnglish inter pretation, though sometimesthe author is tempted to explain them to his reader: “felo de se, i.e. fellof itself’{NavalOfficer 14), “there is a way ofdoing it- a modus in rebus” (ibidem 189).It is interesting to add that ina few novels Capt. Marryatreveals, after the manner of numerous earlier English writers,the depra vations ofCatholicism, and especially the horrors ofthe Inquisition, onwhich occasion he uses a couple of ecclesiasticalLatinisms relative totheliturgicalrite of “exorcismus” and the exclusion of ’’excommunicatio” (cf.Midshipman Easy
201).We shall finally observe that thediscussed novelist apparentlyprides him self on hisknowledge oftheclassic authors, referring to andevenquotingfrom their worksintheoriginal.A good exampleisthe captain’stoadypurser who re sembles “a living type of theGnatho of Terence; and I never saw him without re membering thepassage that ends ‘si negat id quoque nego’” {NavalOfficer 278). Passing on to modernlanguages, French appearsto be the only one that Frank Mildmay,the protagonistmodelled onMarryat himself, learns atschool. In the first novelhe mentions by name his Frenchdancing-master,one Monsieur Ari stide Maugrebleu,to whom the hero isratherunceremoniously introduced by the headmaster’s wife as a“mauvais sujet”, that isarogue{Naval Officer 16). This seemsto be verified by M. Cieśla whoclaims that inthe 18th century French took the leadamong modern languages taughtat schools. It isanoteworthy fact that contemporary English philosophytypifiedby John Locke, science by Sir Isaac Newton, and literature by Laurence Sterne, became widely known in Europe through their Frenchtranslations. In his treatise “On Education” published in 1693, Locke himselfencouraged English childrento study French as the second language (after Cieśla 332).
Foreign Language Learning and Capt. Marryat’s Sailor-Heroes
MAREK BŁASZAK
Apart fromschool, anumberofMarryat’s sailor-heroestake thefirst opportu nity to learnFrench during their service at sea. This observation coincides again with Cieśla’s association of the Napoleonic Wars with adistinct increase inthe abilityto speak French across Europe. According tothe scholar,during the said wars theopponentsofthe French emperor studied hislanguage out ofnecessity while his advocatesdid thatforpleasure(177). Marryathimself joined theNavy while the campaign againstBonapartewas in full progress andmostofhis hero es are actually engaged init. We may also addthat France hada powerful fleet andcolonial intereststo tend to inmany distant parts ofthe world, starting from NorthAmerica and the Caribbean Basin in the west, through parts of Africa and Madagascar in the south, to Indo-China in the Far East. In this situation it was impossible for English seamen notto come inthe way ofthe Frenchwherever they sailed. The title-hero inNewton Forster is taken prisoner by a Frenchscho oner off the coast of Guadaloupe. He then spends three months on the island where he israther liberally treated,on givinghis“parole of honour”, byan agre eableFrench couple -Monsieur and Madame deFontanges whoserelative acts as the local governor. Newton’s first lesson begins like this:
”Bon jour, monsieur”, said the lady. Newton bowed respectfully. ’’Comment vous appelez-vous?”
Newton, not understanding, answered with another bow. ”Le jeune homme n’entends pas madame”, observed Mimi.
”Que c’est ennuyant, monsieur”, said Madame Fontanges, pointing to herself; “Moi, - Madame de Fontanges - vous”, - pointing to him
’’Newton Forster”
”Nu-tong Fasta - ah, c’est bon, cela commence”, said the lady.
(Newton Forster 145)
Soonthe circleof friendly tutors comprises Madame’schildren and attendants plus her military husband who takesresponsibilityfor the regular morningclass in conversation. That Newton treats the task of mastering French seriously is also evidentfrom “a little studyofthe grammar and dictionary” thatprovide the necessary portion oftheory supportedby daily practice. The lessons are docu mentedwithextensive dialogue parts recorded entirely inFrench, and, needless tosay,theresultis more than satisfactory-within the space of three months the Englishman becomes “a very tolerable French scholar” (ibidem 146-7).
A similar procedure is repeated inPeter Simple whoseherotakes part in acut ter attack by sea on the Frenchbatteryoffthe town ofCette in the Mediterrane an. He gets badly wounded in the leg, is taken prisoner but allowed to stay in the house of the gentlemanly French officer who appears to be of Irishdescent. As
he gets better, Peter becomes intimate with his pretty little nurse - the Frenchman’s daughterCeleste: “Our chief employmentwas teaching eachother French andEnglish” (141). Having a good motive tolearn quickly-and in this way tobe able to court his lovely instructress -thehero becomes proficient in her language in about two months.
The knowledgeofFrench proves very useful both to Peter Simple and his co mpanionO’Brien in their captivity (the latterlearned it earlierinthenovel in the Frenchcolonies inSouth America). The two Englishmen can understand whatis being said in theirpresence, includingconfidential messages passedby the unsu specting French guards, which gives them a greatadvantage when they effect their escape fromthe prison atGivet in the Ardennes. They manage to tramp ac ross France pretending, among others, French conscripts untilthey reachHol land andeventually find their way aboard an English cutter in the Channel. Like
Newton Forster referred to above,thenovel featuresa number ofdialogues con ducted partly in French {Peter Simple chapters XIX through XXV).
According to M. Cieśla, French was amost universalmeansof communica tion at the turn of the 18th century, widely used abroadby travellers and diplo mats, scholarsandthecosmopolitan-minded aristocracy andmiddle-class (178). All this is evidenced by Capt. Marryat’s sailor-heroes. Frank Mildmaywho sails on one occasion along the coastof Africa, touches at PortPray ato complete the ship’s provisions. When he goes ashoreto pay his respects to the Portuguesego vernor ofthe island, hedoessoin French (Naval Officer 304). In Peter Simple,
the author takes us ona cruise in theBaltic.The English party soon spota Swe dish frigate and Peteris sent by his captain to boardher,askhername, by whom commanded,etc. Themessenger doesnot even attemptEnglish: “When I arrived on the quarter-deck, Iasked in French, whether there was any one who spoke it. The first lieutenant cameforward, and took off his hat[...]”. Afewmoments la ter Peter is ushered into the captain’s cabin and “[...] addressed him in French, paying him a long compliment, with all the necessary et ceteras” (427-8).
Speaking Frenchin the discussed period of time wasstill considered to be the matter of bon ton (cf. Cieśla 178). In The Naval Officer the hero who wantsto particularly impresshis own countrymen, inserts a French wordin his reply:
’’Pray, sir, what ship do you belong to?”
’’Sir”, said I, proud to be thus interrogated, “I belong to His Majesty’s ship, the Le - “ (having a French name I clapped on both the French and English articles, as being more impressive) (24). The ship in question is the English frigate christened by the French name “Imprieuse” (i.e. proud, majestic).
Foreign Language Learning and Capt. Marryat’s Sailor-Heroes
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The fashionable society ashore, “le beau monde”, try even harder to follow the Frenchtiquette intheir manners andspeech. This may assume grotesque and satirical character, especially when aristocratic mannerisms are incompetently imitated by themiddle-class nouveau riche. A very good example ofthis kind is the dinner party givenoutby Capt. Turnbull’s wife and described in the XVIth chapter ofJacob Faithful subtitled “High Life Above Stairs, A Little Before The Mark - Fashion, French, Vertu, And All That”. The hostess, Mrs. Turnbull, works hardat gentility and the party is meant to impress her Englishacquaintan ces andlegitimize her final social triumphover them. Therefore, her visiting list for the party includesan exalted French couple, Monsieur andMadame de Ta-gliabue.ItisMrs. Turnbull’slimited knowledge of the French language, among other deficiencies, that leads to aseries ofcomicmisunderstandings, provoking consternation at table, embarrassment of the guests andexposing the true face of the fashionable lady. Inthe first place, MonsieurTagliabue’s praise of thecook, as well as his other remarks, meet with her dull incomprehensionwhichshetries to mask usingwithout moderationthe distorted form of assent (”ve”for“oui”):
’’Vraiment, madame, tout est excellent, superbe! Je voudrois embrasser votre cuisinier - c’est une artiste comme il n’y a pas?”
”Ve”, replied Mrs. Turnbull.
In the nextmoment,the hostess addresses Madame de Tagliabue, confusing the French “poisson” (fish) with the English word “poison”:
’’Madame, do you soup? Or do you fish?” ’’Merci, no soup - poisson”.
’’Don’t be afraid, madame; we’ve a French cook; you won’t be poisoned here”, replied Mrs. Tu rnbull, rather annoyed.
The worst blunder occurs at desserts:
’’Let me see - hoh! Bidet du poms. Mamade, will you eat some bidet du poms?” ’’Comment, madame, je ne vous comprends pas - “
”Ve”
’’Monsieur Tagliabue, expliquez done;” said the foreign lady, red as a quarter of beef. ’’Permettez”, said Monsieur, looking at the card. “Ah c’est impossible, ma chre”, continued he laughing. “Madame Turnbull se trompoit, elle voudroit dire Beignets de pommes”.
(Jacob Faithul 133-5)
The words mispronounced and confused in this last instance are “bidet” and “apple cakes”.
To conclude the question of Frenchinfluences and usage, it rests to observe that Capt. Marryatis also fond of loans that have alreadybeen absorbedinto En glish. Some of theseinclude terms like chevalier, garon {King’s Own335, 368),
fracas, horsde combat, parole ofhonour, protg(e), savoir-vivre(Newton Forster
, 63, 143, 221, 149), rendez-vous, tte—tte (Naval Officer 165, 181),bivouac, vis—vis (Peter Simple 162, 235), sang-froid, sobriquet(Midshipman Easy 238, 72), chefd’oeuvre, vertu(JacobFaithful139,129) and many others. The author occasionallyexplains theirmeaning, commenting on their origin, and especially pointing to their nauticalapplication.An interesting example of thekindis“flot sam and jetsam” whosestandard dictionary definitionmight confound many a reader (in thesense of ’’people whodonothavejobsor homes”).InNewton For ster the author explains:
Reader, do you know the meaning of flotsam and jetsam? None but a lawyer can, for it is old law language. [...] a sort of lingo, compounded of bad French, grafted upon worse Latin, for ming a mongrel and incomprehensible race of words, with French heads and Latin tails, which answered the purpose of mystification. Flotsam and jetsam are of this breed. Flat, derived from the French flottant, floating; and jet, from the verb jeter, to throw up; both used in seignoral rights, granted by kings to favourites, empowering them to take possession of any man who might happen to be unfortunate, [...] “Omnium quod flotsam et jetsam, et everything else-um, quod findetes; in plain English, “Everything floating or thrown up, and everything else you may pick up”. Now the admiral of the coast had this piratical privilege: [...] (34-5).
As has been stated above, Spanish playedthe role of an international language in the 18th century mainly overseas as well as in the Mediterranean Basin. In some of hisnovelsCapt. Marryatdemonstrates that itisalsoworth learning, tho ugh, what is rather surprising, the main motive appears to be love. Jack Easy who captures a Spanishship carrying valuable cargo and acouple of passengers with anoble SpanishDonand his two lovelydaughters, finds his Englishuse less:“He told themin English thatthey hadnothingtofear, [...]. The ladiesmade no reply, because, inthe first place, they did not know whatJack said,and, inthe next, theycouldnot speak English” (Midshipman Easy94). Thehero takes the nearest opportunitytomakeup for this deficiency. As the English crew of his prize-ship continue their drinking-bout on a desert isle (one ofthe ZaffarineIs lands), he sets to the study of Spanishand his tutor is acaptive Spaniard, a cook named Pedro. It isinterestingtoadd that hedoes that atthe instigation ofhis Ne gro mate Mesty who gives the following reason:
’’Massa, why you no talk with Pedro?” ’’Because I cannot speak Spanish”.
”1 know dat, and dat why I ask de question. You very sorry when you meet the two pretty wo men in the ship, you not able to talk with dem, I guess dat”.
”1 was very sorry, I grant”, replied Jack.
Foreign Language Learning and Capt. Marryat’s Sailor-Heroes
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den you able to talk with dem”.
(Midshipman Easy 108)
When two months lateranother Spanish vessel falls in Jack’s hands, he hasa goodchance to sport his proficiency in a conversationwith thecaptive seamen: “The Spanish captaincomplimentedJackon hisSpanish, which was really very good for [...] he had made greatprogress” (124).Needlessto add, before thewin d-up of thenovel Jack and Agnes,the prettygirl of the Spanishprize-ship, meet again to be eventually happily married.
In another novel, Peter Simple, theauthortellsthestory ofChucks, theboats wainof the“Diomede” whose ignorance of Spanish cost himnotonlythe loss of his beloved, but also a humiliatingdecline in his reputation. On avisit to Valen cia, 16 years prior to the timeofthe proper action, Chucks fell in love with the mostbeautiful woman he had ever met. By his own admission, hecould only “mumble-jumblesomething or another,half Spanishandhalf English”, therefo re, when askedby the girl’s fatherwhatsortofofficer he was, hecould not find the Spanish word for “boatswain”and saidhe wasa“corregidor” (i.e. onewho punishes) (117, 128). That proved tobe very unfortunate, forthe“corregidor” in Spain was an officialmuch above his real rank.Whenthe truth, or rather false hood, was revealed, the proud Spanish Don and his daughter contemptously dis missed the Englishman as a “thief’.
Those Spanish occasions inCapt. Marryat’s novelsare flavoured withadequ ate lexicalborrowings. Some ofthem have already found their way intoEnglish, like the loan “siesta” {Peter Simple 126); other barbarisms become obvious in the context, for example when Chucks offersthe Spanish Don a few“segars [...] real Havannahs” (ibidem 117-118). Stillothers are explained by the author: “I walkedto aposada (that’s an inn)”, “DonnaSeraphina(they call a lady Donna in Spain)”, “for carita, which means charity” {Peter Simple 127, 128, 129), “a short, square-built frame,with astrong projection of the sphere, or whatthe Spa niards call bariga”{Naval Officer 189). In the XLth chapter ofThe Phantom Ship
the author gives a comprehensive explanation of “sanbenitos” and “samarias” whichare differentkinds of bags worn by penitents and introducedby the Holy Inquisition in Spain.
Among Capt. Marryat’s protagonists there are twowho master Portuguese. Oneof them isan English enterprising sailor named Alexander Musgrave alias Elrington, thehero of a semi-historical novel entitled The Privateer 's-man, One Hundred Years Ago. Hegoes in forthe slavetrade with Brazil and soon finds hi mself in a Portuguese jail in Rio deJaneiro. He is thensent downto toil in a dia mond-mine. During hisbondage, following the exampleof several earlier heroes
in similar circumstances, Musgrave learns Portuguese (ch. XVI). In the opposite quarterofthe worldthe same taskis accomplished by Amine Vanderdecken in
The Phantom Ship.She is an adventurous sailor’s wife who accompanies herhu sband on a longand perilous voyage to theFarEast by way of the Cape of Good Hope. Their ship is wreckedin a raging typhoon offthe AndamanIsles,thecou ple are separated and Amine’sraftiswashed up on theeasterncoast of New Gui nea. She is then transported by local people to aPortuguesefactory in theisland of Tidore. Here she isobligedto wait threemonthsfor apassage to Goa: “In a fewweeks, by dueattention,she gained the Portugueselanguage so far as to ask for what sherequired, and before she quitted theisland of Tidoreshe could con verse fluently” (287).
By having two of his protagonists learn Portuguesein two differenthemisphe res of the globe, Capt. Marryat gives credit notonly fortheir natural propensity tolanguages, butalso faithfully depicts thecolonial power that Portugalwielded in the eastern and western hemispheres. Towardsthe end of the 15th centuryPo rtuguese navigatorsfirst reached the Cabo daBoa Esperana (BartholomueDas), colonizing on the way theAzores, Madeira, Cape de Verde Islandsand St.Tho mas Island, then stretched overtoIndia(Vasco da Gamain the serviceofthePo rtuguese King Manuel I)and theFarEast, setting up anumber of trading-posts and military bases fromMozambique,through thecoasts of IndiaandCeylon,to Malacca, Moluccas and Timore.Their possessionsin the Indian Ocean made up the so-called Estado da IndiaPortuguesa with the capital city in Goa. About the middle of the 16th century theyalsoreached China(Macau) andJapan (cf. Da Si lva 324-364). Inthe western hemisphere the greatest Portuguese gain was Brazil discovered in thespring of 1500by Pedro Alvarez Cabral who calledit Terrade Vera Cruz. This discovery gave beginningtothe colonization of the country.
Apart from the afore-mentioned protagonists who learn Portuguese, Capt. Marryat alsodocumentshis familiarity with this nation’s sailors with several le xical borrowings. Those of thebarbarism type include swear-words like “San- gue”, “Corpo del diavolo!”, “Caramba”{Phantom Ship264, 328). NewtonFor ster who touches at the island ofMadeira administered by the Portuguese, is treated to an “husteron proteron” medley ofpies and puddings, remarks on the local “inamoratos” strumming theirmandolins from sunset to the dawn, and at one pointaPortuguesemessengeraddresses an Englishofficer inhisnativeton gue: “Carta por senhor commandante, (..) O senhor embaixo; que ir risposta”
{Newton Forster 235, 237, 246). Amongthe English(and infact international) loan-words adoptedfrom Portuguese, perhaps the best-known examples include “auto-da-f ’ {Phantom Ship320), “padre”{Midshipman Easy 240), and “pagoda”
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{King’s Own 286). Thefirst ofthese relatestothe cruel ceremony introducedby theHoly Office in Spainand Portugal at theend ofthe 15th century, and practi sed the longest in Portuguese overseas territories (well into the 19th century). “Padre”, thesame in Italian, Spanish and Portuguese, was adopted fromthe Po rtuguese colonists in India to designate a minister or priest of any Christian Church, including native priests. It was then appliedbyEnglish sailors and sol diersto achaplain, and itis in this sense that Capt. Marryatusesit in his novels [cf. Murray VII 371). The third popular loan is a corruption of the Portuguese “pagode”, itselffound in India, the native form imitated by the Portuguese being of Persian or Sanskrit origin [ibidem 375).
As regards Italian, it usedto be an international language in the 18th century only on alimitedscale -mainly in the south of Europe [cf.Cieśla72).None of Capt. Marryat’s protagonists undertakes to master it, though Jack who calls in the course of his service at Sicily, “could understand the whole” of Don Rebiera’s speech “from his knowledge ofSpanish” (and possibly French!). Si milarly, when DonnaClara “put an Italian word, Jack understood her perfectly well”[Midshipman Easy 153-4). A couple of borrowings inthisand other novels provethis competence: “rosolio” (or rosoglio)in PeterSimple [129) which is the Italian form of modified Latin meaning “dew of the sun” and signifying a sweet cordial made in Italy from spirits, raisins, sugar, popular in Southern Europe; “speronare” whichthe author describes as a light and graceful Mediterranean boat, “the padroneof the vessel”, i.e. its captain, the “gregos” ofthe crew, “or night great-coats with hoods”, forms ofconfirmation like“E vero vero” (indeed, really),personal weapons like “stiletto” [Midshipman Easy 136, 137, 139, 156, 162); “sotto voce” which is a loan from Italy meaning “in a very quiet voice”
[Newton Forster 324).
Themostingeniously used Italian loan occursinNewton Forster. The termin question is “conversazione”, introduced into Englandfrom Italy atthe close of the 18th century and chifly applied to assemblies of an intellectual character,in connection with science, artor literature [cf. Murray II119). In the XLIVth chap ter of the said novelCapt. Marryat uses theword15 times(!)with the aim ofex posing middle-class pretensions and hypocrisies.On their safe return from India, Newtonis invited by a couple ofex-passengersof the “Bombay Castle”to a fas hionablesocial gatheringin London. The party givenbyDr. and Mrs. Plausible - people of vaulting ambition- is calculated toeclipse those organized by Dr. and Mrs.Feasible who live inthe same street and strive to gain favour withthe same circle of wealthy people and potential patients. Accordingly, on the Plausibles’ guest-list fortheirconversazione there are “allthe scientific men of
the day,andavery pretty sprinkling ofnobility”, the latter including a rathersu spicious prince from Tartary. Singularrefreshmentsprepared by the frugalhost and hostess appear “too ethereal toeat”andfeature“Negus and cherry-water ad ded to tea”, whereas the pseudo-scientific character of the meeting consists in the private exhibition ofthe wax figure of a femalein the firststage of parturi tion (poor Mrs. Plausibleis not even able topronounce thislast wordcorrectly) (Newton Forster 311-322).
The action of two novels by Capt. Marryattakes place on board ofDutch ships plying inthe English Channel, the North Sea, the Indian Ocean, Atlantic and Pacific, as well as in Dutch settlements on the western coastofAfrica and Indonesia. Consequently, several protagonists and secondary characters are Dutch sailors: Lieutenant Cornelius Vanslyperken and his crew sailing in the cutter “Yungfrau” withdespatches between Portsmouthand Amsterdam in Sna-rleyyow, or the Dog Fiend', Captain William Vederdecken, the legendary Flying Dutchman haunting the area of the Cape of Good Hope,and his dutiful sonPhi lip who goes to sea and roamsalmost the wholeglobe inorder to secure salva tion for his sinful father inThe Phantom Ship.These characters speakDutch as their native tongue and the only foreign learner of their languageis aPortuguese Catholic priest whom Philip Vanderdecken meets aboard the “Batavia” in the East Indies (Phantom Ship ch. XII). In these two and afew other novelsCapt. Marryat draws acomprehensive picture of the Dutch seaborne empirein the 17th century, containing many historicalfactsand figures.In the course oftheir Gou-den Eeuw, or Golden Age, Holland set up colonies in both Americas (Hudson Bay, NewAmsterdam in theislandofManhattan,Guiana), in Africa (Capetown and the BoerRepublic), and in the FarEast (Indonesia, Irian and southern Ja pan). In this last place (Nagasaki)the Dutch werethe only Europeansuntil the middle of the 19th century, whereas Irian (western New Guinea) continued as their dominion well into the 60’s of the 20th century (cf. Boxer 300-1).
While thetreatment of historical material deserves a separate study, we will observethat in the discussed novels Dutch realities are spiced up with severalle xical borrowings. In ThePhantom Ship these include geographicalnames such as the “Zuider (or Zuyder)Zee” (123, 148), or polite forms ofaddress such as “mynheer” (39 and the followingpages), a shortened of“mijnheer” for a “gent leman”, or “Sir”when it appears in frontofa proper name. In The Naval Officer
theauthor makes anironic reference to“a Dutch schuyt”(29), a distorted form of theDutch “schuif ’ for a boat or barge; in The King’s Own he uses the loan “monsoon” (289) which is an English modification of theDutch“monssoen”, it self adopted fromArabic “mausim” (literally“season”) (cf. Murray VI630). In
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Peter Simple twoDutch borrowings occurin satirical context: the title-hero and hisshipmate who are runaway English officers,puton women’s clothes inorder to escape captivity in the Netherlands (invaded by the FrenchRepublic thatwas inthe stateof war withBritain).Lookingat Peter’s disguise, his companion wit tily calls him “you ugly Dutch vrow” (186), which is a distorted form of the Dutch “vrouw”for a woman. The same companion criticallyremarks on hisown appearance as well: “in this dressI look as much of a booras any man in Hol land” (184), where the old-fashioned “boor” is a loan of the original Dutch “boer” meaning a peasant, yokel.
On one occasion, atleast, Marryat’shero, Peter Simple, sails in aBritishmili tary convoy to theBaltic Sea. Their orderis to frustrateNapoleon Bonaparte’s attempts to extend his coalition to allnorthern states.We will observe atthispo int that a few years earlier, in an artfulmove, the French dictator presented the island ofMaltatoPaulI,the Tsarof Russia,who demanded its cession from Bri tain. Meeting with aflatrefusal, Paultried to revive the old Confederacy of the North with Denmark which heldthe keyto theBaltic andwhichthen also inclu ded Norway. Britain could not tolerate any seafaring restrictions in this area, as she depended on the local supply of timber, sail-cloth and rope forhernavalpo wer (cf. Callender 202). Therefore, in the spring of 1801, no oneelse butthefa mous Nelson was sent to destroy theDanish fleet at the (first) battle ofCopenha gen. The expedition to the Baltic described in chapters LVIII to LX of Peter Simplewas the second inturn. It took place in September 1807 and was com manded by Admiral Gambier whobombarded Copenhagen from the sea and ca ptured some 70 Danish warships. In thediscussednoveltheheroand his ship are indeed attackedby a squadron of flat-bottomed Danish gun-boats called “pra ams” and they fight afierce battle in sightofCopenhagen. Next they anchor at Carlscronawhere Petermakessurethat thenotorious “Rigabalsam” (a medicine as well as a strongalcoholic drink)does not findits wayaboard. At thispointin the novel a very interestingincident occurswhich has relevance bothtothe actu alhistoryand the studyof another foreignlanguage successfully undertakenby Capt. Marryat’s sailing hero.
Soon after leaving the harbour ofCarlscrona, Peter’s frigate encounters a Swedish man-of-war. Theherois sent on a“diplomaticmission”to meet her ca ptain and inquireabout their doings. To his surprise, in the captain of the Swe dish ship -introduced as Count Shucksen -Peterrecognizes his former shipma te of the “Rattlesnake”, the long-missing boatswain Chucks. The story ofhis professional and social advancement is astring of lucky coincidenceswell gro unded in naval history, but it is also due to hisflair for languages. As itappears, a
few years prior to this meeting, boatswain Chucks was captured bythe Danes whowere then shipwrecked in a gale on the Swedishcoast. BeingRussia’s al lies, the Danes found themselves imprisoned while Chucks regained his free dom. He witnessed the preparations ofthe Swedes for thewar against Russia: they were busy fitting out their vesselsandChucks sawthat he could be useful to them asan able andexperienced officer. However, hecould not speak French, the contemporaryinternational language in the area,which proved to hisadvan tage. In order to remove this impediment, Chucks learned Swedish,greatly di stinguishinghimself inthe new service, and was eventually made a count (cf.
Peter Simple 429-430).
The story ofhisadvancement may well seemunlikelyatfirstsight. During the earliernaval conflict, theAmerican War of Independence, Sweden had been a member of theMaritime Confederacyof theNorth, directed againstBritainand involving Russia and Denmark withNorway. Inthe course ofthe Napoleonic Wars, however,SwedenbecameBritain’s ally.Onegood reason forthis transfo rmationwas her sovereign’s dislikeofNapoleon Bonaparte, next, the long-stan ding rivalry withDenmark which soon led tothe seizureof Norway, and last but notleast, the invasion by the new Tsar (Alexander) of Finland which hadlong been regardedas an integral partofthe realm of Gustavus IV.Thus, history veri fiesthepossibility of Chucks’ career in the Swedish navy on the side ofthe anti--Napoleonic coalition, togetherwith his obligation to learn the local language, since “the language ofthecourtof Britain’s ally, Sweden, wasFrench” (Kemp 148). Wewill rememberthat Capt.Marryat madethis particular character aper fect stranger to French.
The Frenchwarsthat spreadover Europe at the turn of the 18th andthe first quarter ofthe 19th centuries, may also serve asan opportunityto remark on the very limited number of German borrowings inthe discussed novels.During this eventful period, “Prussia’s role at sea was small enough to be disregarded” (Kemp 129). Consequently, none of Capt. Marryat’s English sailors sports any German except the Dutchman Philip Vanderdecken who uses one borrowing from German which has long becomeinternational property. The word inque stionis “schnaps” (or “schnapps”) (Phantom Ship79, 83, 92). In another novel there isa genuine German cook who shoutsout “Ah,mein Gott,mein Gott!”, but he is merely a landsman servant employed in an English country mansion
(King’s Own 332).
We will observethatthis linguisticscarcity correspondsto the contemporary staus of Germany as a state: it continued in its fragmented condition until the Franco-Prussian warof1870-71 when the German Empire was proclaimed with
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Wilhelm I of Prussia as a hereditary emperor. It was only later, at theturn of the 19th century,that the 2nd Reich reached the position of an economic and military power, andstill muchlater,between 1880-1900, that its naval fleet madecolo nial conquests possible in Africa (Togo, Cameroon, South-West Africa) and in the Oceania (theBismarck Archipelago, Solomon and Caroline Islands,Marian nes and others). By that time, however, Capt. Marryat’s novels had been half a century in circulation.
Far away from the cold Baltic, Jack’s friendinMidshipman Easy,NedGasco igne, learns some Arabicin Tetuan on thenorthern coastofAfrica.The backgro und hereisthe warm Mediterranean, very suitablefor Ned’s courtship ofa pretty Moorish girl named Azar. His tutor in Arabic becomesthe local Englishvice- consul and themethod of instruction consists inhis putting down words ona pie ceof paper together with their phonetic transcription. The firstlesson comprises the Arabic translationfor“Don’t be afraid -1 love you -1 cannot speak your ton gue” {Midshipman Easy 185). Ned’scourtship in Arabicworks miracles for the girl continues meeting him nightly in thegardenof her house in spite of their dif ferentraces and religions. To make things easier forNed, and for the reader to follow the progress of this amour, the lovers carry on their affair in “Lingua Franca” (ibidem 187-8).Nevertheless, the author takestheopportunityto intro duce a couple ofArabic loans. Azar, the Moorish beauty, is thus likened to a “houri” from theArabian Nights(188), originally a nymph of the Mohammedan paradise. Her father, Abd el Faza, “puthishand to his forehead,salaamed, and told Gascoigne that hiszenana, andall that wereinit, were his, as well ashisho use and himself’ (190). “Salaam” is the popular Oriental salutation meaning “peace be upon you”, and the other variantsin the novel include “Allah be pra ised!”or“Allah protect you!” (188). As forthe zenana, it isthatpartofa house inMuslim countries in which women ofa family are secluded. Inside her “zena na”, Azar idles her time away contemplatingthe Moon from an “ottoman” (187).
Another occasion touseafew more Arabic borrowings arises in The Phantom Ship. This is connectedwith Philip’s Arab-born wife Amine whosefather used toworkasa“hakim”, orMuslim doctor in the service of anEgyptian “bey”(59). In spite of herEuropeanbreeding, Amine herself appears to cherisha supernatu ral fearof ’’ghouls”(evil spirits inEasternfairy tales that prey on human corpses taken out of graves), as well as of ’’Iblis” and “Ifrit” (the Devil, Satan, evil de mons in Mahometan mythology) (ibidem 67, 144, 145).
During several longer voyages to India, Marryat’s sailor-heroes also get a chance to boastof their acquaintance with some Hindi.Few ofthem can actually speak it, as for example the firstmate ofthe “BombayCastle”who “addressed,
in the Hindostanee language, two or three Lascars (fine olive-coloured men, with black curling bushy hair)” (NewtonForster 204-5). By wayofcontrast,the title-herowho listens to the talk ofnativeHindooseamen,doesnot seem impres sedby the sound of theirtongue, remarking: “Lascars jabberingin their ownlan guage,British seamend - g their eyes, as usual, in plain English” (ibidem 206). In the Madras section of the discussed novel (ch. XXXVIII), Newton disem barks his ship to court alovely young lady, however,he hardly needs to know the local language as she isEnglish. We may observe here that starting from the second halfofthe 16th century, Britishcolonistsgradually drove the Portuguese from continental India (thoughthe latterkeptthe islandof Goa until 1961). In
1600 the formidableEast India Company was established which carried outsy stematic and efficient colonization of the country. One hundredand fifty years latertheBritish thwartedFrenchambitionsin India, following the Seven Years War which they won. By the middleof the 19th centurytwo-thirds of theIndian sub-continent had been subordinated to British rule (cf. Bowie ch. 8).
To come back to Newton Forster in Madras, though he may feel quite at home, his stay there gives the author a good chance to render the localcolour with a number of lexical loans. Thus, the English visitors are transported from theirship ashore in a “masulah” boat (or “massoola”, Anglo-Indian of obscure origin) and they hire the services of “dubashes” or Indian interpreters (Hindi “dbhshiya”). Their countrymen turned colonistshave amassed “lacs of rupees”, thatis hundreds of thousands, or indeed indefinite number of the local currency (Sanskrit “laksha”and Hindustani“Ikh”), and theylivethe life ofrich“nabobs” (Hindi“nawb”) in spacious “bungalows” (Hindi “bngl”) floored with“chunam” (Sanskrit “chrna”), i.e. lime andground mortar. They are respectfully addressed as “saibs” (Hindi “shib”)and are carriedabout the town in “palanquins” (San skrit “paljanka” and new-Indian “pallak”), akind ofcovered sedan-chairs; their numerous domestics include “syces” (Hindi “s’is”) or groomswhose task invol ves fanning away the flies with “chowries” (Hindi “chaunr”) (all these loans come from ch. XXXVIII of Newton Forster, whereastheir etymology isgiven after The Oxford English Dictionary edited by Sir James Murray).
In TheKing’s Ownthe hero, Willy Peters,and the ship’s companyalso find themselvestemporarily in the East Indies. They firstsailup the riverGangesto Calcutta andthenchangethe Bay of Bengal forthe moretranquil, that iswestern sideof the Indianpeninsula, where theycall at Travancore andGoa, finally rea chingthe thirdimportantBritish stronghold in India- Bombay (chapters XLII to XLV). Some of the borrowings in this section of the novelinclude “ghaut” (Hin di “ght”), explained in thetextas a landing-place; “nullah” (Hindi“nla”), made
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clear by theauthor asa creek, brook, rivulet;“raja” and“rajahpoot” (Hindi “rj” and “rjpt”) for the native king and his son; “howdah” (Urdu “haudah”)which can be identified inthe contextasa seat for riding an elephant. Apart from the examples quoted above, the two novels feature severalother wordsused locally andof more complex origin pointing to Tamil, Malayan or evenChinese roots, such as “bamboo”, “cassowary”, “gamboge”, “nankeen”, “tom-tom”, etc.
Summing up, Capt. Marryat’s sailor-heroes possess uncommon zestforlear ning foreign languages. Thisis connected,toa great extent,withtheir seafaring profession. They are constantly on the move, visiting far-away exotic places, meetingand mixingwith representatives of differentnations, races, cultures and religions.They realizethat their command of languages can contribute to their career, promote them socially,bring personal success (e.g. popularitywithwo menleading to a happy marriage),and more generally“enlarge theirmind”and expand theirfull human potential, making them more sensitive, tolerant and cos mopolitan. Proficiency inthis field canalso save themfrom numeroustraps and perils, ranging fromsmall blunders tocaptivity. The author’s use oflexical bor rowings contributes to the authenticity of his voyages, battles, conquests and transactions, staged indifferentremote parts oftheworld. They impart special local andartisticcolouring, help to individualize the scenes andcharacters, in troduceelements of stylization into his novels, enliven the dialogues, and enrich the resources ofCapt. Marryat’s means of expression.
Marryat’s texts cited
Frank Mildmay or the NavalOfficer. Classics of Nautical FictionSeries. Ed. Patricia Za- firiadis. Ithaca, New York: McBooks Press, 1998.
The King’s Own. Classics of Nautical FictionSeries.Ithaca,New York: McBooksPress, 1999.
Newton Forster or the Merchant Service.London:GeorgeRoutledgeand Sons, (without date).
Peter Simple. Gloucester: Alan Sutton Publ. Ltd., 1984.
Jacob Faithful.DrawnbyD.Downing andetchedby W.Wright-Nooth. London: J. M. Dentand Co., 1896.
Mr. Midshipman Easy. Withillustrations by Frank Jennens.London: P. P. Gawthom Ltd., (without date).
Snarleyyow; or, the DogFiend.Drawn and etchedby J. AytonSymington.London: J. M. Dentand Co., 1906.
The Phantom Ship. Drawnby D. Downing andetchedby W.Wright-Nooth.London: J. M. Dent and Co., 1896.
The Privateer ’s-man, OneHundred YearsAgo.Drawnby D. Downing andetched byW. Wright-Nooth. London: J. M. Dent and Co., 1896.
Literature
Bowie, John. The Imperial Achievement. The Rise and Transformation of the British Em pire. Boston: Little, Brown and Co., 1975.
Boxer, C. R. Morskie imperium Holandii 1600-1800. Translated from English by M. Boduszyńska-Borowikowa. Gdańsk: Wydawnictwo Morskie, 1980.
Callender,Geoffrey. The NavalSide of British History.London: Christophers, 1925. Cieśla, Michal. Dzieje nauki języków obcych w zarysie. Monografia z zakresu historii
kultury. Warszawa: PWN, 1974.
Da Silva,JosG. Morskie dziejePortugalczyków. Translatedfrom French by V. Soczewi-ńska. Gdańska: Wydawnictwo Morskie, 1987.
Kemp, Peter, ed. History of the Royal Navy. London: Arthur Barker Ltd., 1971. Klein,Kalina M.Podręczny słownik łacińsko-połski dlaprawników.Warszawa:Wydaw
nictwo Prawnicze, 1956.
Kumaniecki, Kazimierz. Słownik łacińsko-polski. Warszawa: PWN, 1975.
Mvel, Jean-Pierreet al.Dictionaire de la LangueFranaise.Lexis.Paris:Larousse, 1989. Murray, SirJames A. H., ed. The Oxford English DictionaryBeingaCorrected Re-Issue
of a New Oxford Dictionary onHistorical Principles Founded Mainlyon the Mate rials Collected by the Philological Society. Volumes I-X. Oxford: The Clarendon Press, 1928.
Parry, J.H. Morskie imperiumHiszpanii. Translated fromEnglishbyS.Bławat.Gdańsk: Wydawnictwo Morskie, 1983.
Pronińska, Aleksandra. Uniwersalny słownik włosko-polski. Kraków: Liberal, 1998. Sierotwiński, Stanisław. Słownik terminów literackich. Wrocław: Ossolineum, 1986. Śliwiński, Antoni and Leokadia Tyszkiewicz-Śliwińska. Słownik portugalsko-polski.
Warszawa: Wiedza Powszechna, 1983.
Trevelayan, G.M. English Social History. A Survey ofSix Centuries: Chaucer to Queen Victoria. London: Longmans, Green and Co., 1945.
VanWely, F. P. H. Nederlands-Engels Wordenboek. Den Haag:VanGoor Zonen, 1964. Wawrzkowicz, Stanisław and Kazimierz Hiszpański. Podręczny słownik
hiszpańsko-połski. Warszawa: Wiedza Powszechna, 1982.
Nauka
języków
obcych
a
bohaterowie
morskich powieści
kapitana
Marryata
Niniejszy artykuł koncentruje się na marynarzach, bohaterach powieści kapitana Marryata pod kątem jednej z najbardziej uderzających cech - ich zapału do nauki
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języków obcych. Protagoniści jego dziewięciu powieści morskich rozpoczynają od nauki w szkole klasycznej łaciny i greki oraz jednego języka nowożytnego — fran cuskiego,będącegonajbardziejuniwersalnymśrodkiemkomunikacjimiędzynarodowej na przełomie XVIII i XIX wieku. Bohaterowie uczą się również tychjęzyków, które kapitan Marryat słyszał zarówno na pokładzie statków na morzach i oceanach całego świata, jak również w zamorskich posiadłościach największych potęg kolonialnych. Należą donichportugalski, hiszpański i holenderski. Autor włączateż do swoich tek stówwiele zapożyczeń zwłoskiego, arabskiego,hindi ikilkuinnych języków. Artykuł wskazuje także na ważne funkcje stylistyczne, które odgrywają zapożyczenia leksykalne w jego dziełach.
