White hunter is a term used for professional big game hunters of European or North American backgrounds who plied their trade in Africa, especially during the first half of the 20th century. The activity continues in the dozen African countries which still permit big-game hunting, but the "white hunter" is now known as the "professional hunter." White hunters derived their income from organizing and leading safaris for paying clients, or from the sale of ivory.
The popular term Great White Hunter emphasizes the racial and colonial aspects of the profession, as well as its colorful aspects. The phrase echoes the privileged status of the white men who earned their living this way. Depending on the author and intention, the term can be used straightforwardly, in parody, or as a critique.
Read more about White Hunter: Hunting in Africa, Rise of The Hunting Safari, Notable White Hunters, Representations in Literature and Film, The Phrase Itself
Famous quotes containing the words white and/or hunter:
“It is not the intelligent woman v. the ignorant woman; nor the white woman v. the black, the brown, and the red,—it is not even the cause of woman v. man. Nay, ‘tis woman’s strongest vindication for speaking that the world needs to hear her voice.”
—Anna Julia Cooper (1859–1964)
“Every one finds by his own experience, as well as in history, that the era in which men cultivate the apple, and the amenities of the garden, is essentially different from that of the hunter and forest life, and neither can displace the other without loss.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)