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oth distinct from and more reliable than previous European accounts due to its German
authorship. During the height of travelogues in the late eighteenth century Georg Forster’s name
would also become synonymous with the ‘Pacific imagination’. In fact, well into the nineteenth
century Reise um die Welt remained as the sole German-language scientific travelogue to include
a substantial section on New Zealand, besides a selection of German translations of prominent
British works and various general treatises, pamphlets and articles, until the mid-1800s when it
was overtaken in Germany by the likes of Hochstetter’s Neu-Seeland in 1863. What Forster
created was an ambivalent image of New Zealand, which saw the future colony as at times
majestic and breathtaking in all its beautifully Romantic forms, with the Arcadian virtues of
‘natural abundance’ and a healthy climate adding to its isolated and relatively uninhabited
appearance, whilst at other times the most wild, savage and raw of climates set amongst barren,
craggy and uncultivated landscapes; yet in his opinion a most promising place for replenishing
supplies and future colonisation. Like his contemporaries, Hawkesworth and Cook, Forster
continues the ambivalent portrayal in his perception of the Maori who are depicted as a
courageous and honest but revengeful and barbaric people. On the one hand, his views have been
shaped by the tenets of the Scottish Enlightenment, leading him to perceive a male-dominated
society where female oppression is wholeheartedly enforced and the women exist as mere
drudges to be freely beaten by their husbands and undisciplined children, giving the Maori the
lowest ranking of barbarism on the so-called ‘index of civilisation’. The existence of female
prostitution further inspires him to make negative comments concerning Maori dirtiness and
moral decrepitude, albeit with equally damaging judgements made against the actions of the
British seamen involved. On the other hand, the Maori showed themselves to be passionate
traders and irreligious warriors who were not without sensitivity or artistic ability. Surprisingly,
Forster exhibits a high level of relativity and balance in his views, which developed independent
of his father and went far beyond the scope of the latter’s original diaries, despite his young age
and the ‘superior’ European mentality that characterised the times, particularly regarding
controversial subjects such as anthropophagy or cannibalism. Instead he bases his argument on
the principle of revenge and portrays this custom as a natural act that is no different, or at least no
worse, than European excesses committed in battle. In fact, when a misunderstanding or conflict
arises between the two races the benefit of the doubt always goes to the Maori, as he places the
responsibility heavily on the side of the Europeans.
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