The paucity of the extant written record left by the Third Franklin Expedition (1845−1848) has presented challenges to the efforts of generations of searchers and scholars. Additionally, it has underscored the reliance of Western culture on written records when establishing narratives and understanding events. This paper explores the sparse written records of the expedition in the context of their contextualisation over the years within an ersatz Franklin archive which includes a variety of discourses and documentary intents. By situating the Franklin records within an archival context, it is possible to reconsider these materials as part of a collection while also examining the ways in which they stand on their own by virtue of the (sometimes unknowable) circumstances of their creation, circulation, and preservation. Combining this archival approach with Derrida’s notion of hauntology, this paper analyses the written records of the Third Franklin Expedition as an ephemeral, and ultimately inscrutable, representation of a vanished expedition.

中文翻译：

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档案中的幽灵：第三次富兰克林远征的文本漏洞

富兰克林第三次远征队（1845-1848 年）留下的现存文字记录的匮乏对几代搜索者和学者的努力提出了挑战。此外，它强调了西方文化在建立叙事和理解事件时对书面记录的依赖。本文探讨了远征的稀疏书面记录，这些记录在他们多年来的语境化背景下，在一个包含各种话语和文献意图的 esatz Franklin 档案中。通过将富兰克林的记录置于档案环境中，可以重新考虑将这些材料作为收藏的一部分，同时也可以根据它们的创作、流通和保存。