CARLO SPINOLA AND HIS ATTEMPTS TO GET TO THE ÍNDIAS加路士‧斯皮諾拉為到達印度所作的嘗試
This article analyzes the attempts of the Italian Jesuit Carlo Spinola to reach the Indian Ocean (the "State of India") within the context of oceanic routes and missionary narratives of the late sixteenth century. Through a comparative reading of Spinola's letters addressed to the Superior General C...
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| Published in: | Review of Culture |
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| Format: | Articles |
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Instituto Cultural de Macau
2013
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| Online Access: | https://www.icm.gov.mo/rc/viewer/pdfViewerParts/40044/2423 |
| Summary: | This article analyzes the attempts of the Italian Jesuit Carlo Spinola to reach the Indian Ocean (the "State of India") within the context of oceanic routes and missionary narratives of the late sixteenth century. Through a comparative reading of Spinola's letters addressed to the Superior General Claudio Acquaviva and the account attributed to Father Gaspar Afonso (incorporated into contemporary shipwreck repertoires), Daniele Frison seeks to explain why seemingly marginal episodes in Spinola's biography were narrated with such great detail and apologetic value. The study argues that the writings of Spinola and Afonso must be understood in light of a missionary methodology specific to the Society of Jesus, in which epistolary reporting and printed circulation functioned as "media" to legitimize enterprises, convert misadventures into proof of faith, and inscribe success (or the reorientation of the journey) within an economy of religious reputation. Methodologically, the author compares chronologies, themes, and modes of narration, while simultaneously acknowledging the differences between the two descriptions and the vicissitudes that separated the travelers along the way. It concludes that the voyage, marked by disasters and detours, was transformed into a historiographical and theological argument: even when the immediate objective is not achieved, the "contrary" outcome is read as glorious, reinforcing the value of the mission and the permanence of the evangelizing purpose. |
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| ISSN: | 1682-1106 |