A pirate's life for UB

Although they might not admit it, many students have fantasized about leading the swashbuckling life of a pirate.

It might have been years ago, after reading Peter Pan. It might have last month, after watching "Pirates of the Caribbean" on campus TV.

But whether you've loved eye-patches and parrots as a kid or adult, pirate fantasy becomes reality at UB this Saturday with the Cutting Edge Lecture Series at the Center for the Arts.

Claire Schen, an assistant professor in the history department, will lead the Saturday morning discussion, which starts at 10:30 a.m. and is titled "English Corsairs and Barbary Pirates."

According to Shen, lands of gold and jewels were the common dream of men on the high seas as pirates.

"Just think of Treasure Island," Schen said. "Pirates set sail for months at a time in hope of falling upon an island with undiscovered treasures. It is probably an obvious statement to say that the main force behind piracy has always been the search for wealth."

The history of piracy dates back more than 3,000 years, but the history and political aspects of piracy tend to be forgotten with time, Schen said.

"It is important that people do not forget the importance and historical aspect of piracy," Schen said. "People became more intertwined with trade, due to the curiosity as to what the other culture looked like. North African piracy had very ancient origins which gained great political significance during the 16th and 17th century, and many of the Muslim pirates were operating from the coast of North Africa during the 17th century."

When pirates returned from their plundering escapades, it was not always the romantic life that many tend to believe.

"Pleasures included rum, food, gambling and planning for the next voyage," Schen said. "Many people think of pirates as being very romantic but this is hardly the case of most pirates. Pirates had little thought of anything but the wealth that they longed for when their ships landed on an island."

Scruffy beards and scoundrels were not the only kinds of pirates of the Barbary Coast. Throughout history, the competing interests and ambitions of colonial powers made it easy for ambitious sailors to always find a way to legalize cruel acts of piracy, Schen said.

"English privateers could for instance attack and rob, with impunity, Spanish shipping," Schen said. "On the other hand North African pirates had a license to rob English ships."

According to Schen, the increased size of merchant vessels, naval patrolling of most ocean highways, communication technology and the regular administration of most islands and land areas of the world has resulted in a great decline for piracy in the 21st century.

Schen revisits the golden age of piracy in the Center for the Arts on Saturday with a reception following the 10:30 a.m. lecture.