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THE ‘ENGLISH EXPERIENCE’ AMONG THE HUMBLEST CHINESE IN THE CANTON TRADE ERA (1700s‐1842)
Author(s) -
Ching Maybo
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
curtis's botanical magazine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1467-8748
pISSN - 1355-4905
DOI - 10.1111/curt.12206
Subject(s) - circumstantial evidence , context (archaeology) , history , archaeology
This article puts into context the unusual experience of Whang at Tong, the Chinese boy who was brought by John Bradby Blake from Canton to England, against a wider background of 18th and 19th century Canton where a considerable number of Chinese made a living from foreign trade. Referencing various sources and circumstantial materials, I suggest that prior to his first departure for England, Whang at Tong had already been exposed to an English‐Chinese environment in which he was able to make a living by being an in‐between person, perhaps also picking up some English with a few English‐learning kits. He might have benefited from existing foreign knowledge circulated in Canton when he was young; he might also have contributed to the enhancement of this pool of knowledge after he returned home from England in the 1780s. The experiences of Whang at Tong thus open a window to reconsider how cultural encounters between East and West could have taken place, including especially among ordinary people on a daily basis.

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