After outlining the ways in which the parameters of the sub-discipline of maritime history changed during the 1980s and 1990s, the article focuses on why maritime history is a significant field of enquiry. Case studies of the Wilson Line, and the career of trawler skipper William Oliver, both based in Hull, exemplify the extraordinary and extreme extents to which human interaction with the marine environment – the essence of maritime history – can shape the lives of individuals and the societies in which they live.

中文翻译：

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为什么是航海史？

在概述了 1980 年代和 1990 年代航海史子学科参数的变化方式之后，本文重点讨论了为什么航海史是一个重要的研究领域。威尔逊线的案例研究和位于赫尔的拖网渔船船长威廉奥利弗的职业生涯，证明了人类与海洋环境的非凡和极端程度——海洋历史的本质——可以塑造个人和海洋的生活他们生活的社会。