The year 2005 will mark the 600th anniversary of the first of Zheng He's six voyages to distant seas, and 1421 has become a great curtain-opener for the celebrations, prompting us to ask up front, "What is it that maritime legend Zheng He really represents-the glorious past of the Chinese people, or the limitations of the Chinese maritime perspective?"
二○○五年是鄭和下西洋的六百週年紀念，《1421：中國發現世界》高調地揭開週年討論序幕，也讓讀者提早發想：「鄭和」這個海上傳奇所標示出的是華人歷史輝煌的過去？