Introduction of Mungo Park’s Travels

In this essay, I will be focusing upon the essay of Elizabeth Bohls on the travels of Mungo Park featuring the experiences of explorer as he surfed through the Africa’s interior districts and areas. Mungo Park was basically a surgeon and a botanist which gave him a lot of expertise. At the start, the travels of the explorer over the western Africa have been described. His experience consisting of 500 mile journey has been described and the example from his book has been given. Moving on in the essay, Mungo Park’s journey with the enslaved Africans has also been described in the essay. Basically, he traveled with a 34 Africans who were shackled with the permission of the trader. (This group of 34 enslaved Africans, part of a caravan or coffle of 73 travelers, had been marched from the interior to the coast to be sold to European slave traders and shipped across the Atlantic. Pg. 347)

The main point or thesis is generally related with the fact that Park highly depended on the infrastructure of the enslavement system. During his journey, he came across were slaves. The type of enslavement was hereditary and slaves were adjusted in various functions and duties such as caring for cattle and cultivating the land. Mungo found the system in Africa quite unpleasant but with time, it seemed that all activities made sense and the slavery system made almost all the things easy. (Karfa fed, clothed, and sheltered the journey home. But the explorer’s homeward journey was his fellow traveler’s journey away from their homes into New World slavery. Pg. 348)

Mungo had explained that he was the man of earth and wanted to explore the regions that he had to see. He wanted to visit Africa because he knew very little about it and hoped to know just how the civilization was there at the moment. Additionally, he had also explained that he wanted to understand the values of natives and know just how they lived. In order to do that, he traveled to the country and experienced what has been described by many. At first, Mungo when arrived at Africa and got accustomed with the slavery, he didn’t like seeing people being bound and unable to do what they wanted. However as the time passed and Mungo spent some time, the system seemed right to him and he changed his perception about it. (This essay will call attention to Park’s dependence on the infrastructure and personnel put in place by the slave trade. Pg. 348)

Mungo Park and his Travels

It was almost May 22nd of 1795 when Mungo Park had left to continue his journey in Africa. Considering the fact that he had always wanted to explore the region, he was more than just ready to involve himself in the inner working of frameworks there. In July, he got to Pisania which is located on the Gambia River. It had only been a little time when he became the victim to the famous epidemic malaria and had to spend almost five months in Dr John Laidley’s house, a slave-trader established for many years. This was the point when he began his official journey along with his two slaves after his recovery. Immediately, Park had begun to check over the area. In his exploration, he encountered Mali Empire’s part, the Mandingo. In his discussion, he has described how well they were in shape basically made to ensure intensive labor. (In June 179, at a village near the mouth of the River Gambia on the Atlantic coast of West Africa, the Scottish explorer bid farewell to a group of people with whom he had just made a five-hundred mile journey across western Africa. Pg. 347)

In his journey, almost all the people that he encountered were slaves. It has again been described by Mungo himself that he got to know numerous slaves and almost all of them were employed in some specific responsibilities or duties. He also described that the slaves were unfortunate in a sense that their masters had the authority to decide their fates for them. If the master thought it to be right, he could even dispose his slaves and use them for his own benefit. Basically, the most important aspect is that Mungo couldn’t resist the system of slavery from changing his perceptions as well. It has been described by him that the living mode in Africa made him uncomfortable only for a little time. As the time passed, it was found by him that such a system helped a lot in keep the things running. With the passing of year, approximately 300 miles had been covered by him and he had reached the Kaarta’s state Bambara. (But the explorer’s homeward journey was his fellow traveler’s journey away from their homes into New World slavery. Pg. 348)

As he got to the village of the slave trader, he was not alone but he was also sick and hungry, after obtaining his objective of observing the direction leading to the Niger River.

This thesis statement has been chosen because it not only tells about the story leading to this statement and the scenario that is going to be developed. The main point is that although Mungo didn’t seem to be pleased with how things worked with in Africa and mainly the slavery system. However, when he had gotten lost and hadn’t eaten for a long time, he had no one to care for. Additionally, his two slaves had gotten lost as well. That was the time when he had stumbled upon some slaves and a slave trader. At that time, he had no one to depend one and it was that slave driver who had helped him and saved him. Even though he didn’t like the infrastructure of enslavement system but he had to ultimately rely on it. (This essay will call attention to Park’s independence on the infrastructure and personnel put in place by the slave trade. Pg. 348)

This group of 34 enslaved Africans, part of a caravan or coffle of 73 travelers, had been marched from the interior to the coast to be sold to European slave traders and shipped across the Atlantic. Park Traveled with the coffle by permission of its leader, the African slave trader Karfa Taura. The two made a dead: on arrival at the coast, Park would pay Karfa “the value of one prime slave.” This “benevolent Negro,” as Park calls him, helped the explorer at the lowest point of his adventurous journey (Travels, 234). (Pg. 347)

Park’s Travels presents the information the explorer collected about peoples, climate and resources of West Africa in four such interpolated chapters, one of which treats African slavery. (Pg. 350)

Karfa fed, clothed, and sheltered the journey home. But the explorer’s homeward journey was his fellow traveler’s journey away from their homes into New World slavery. (Pg. 348)

All these lines actually point towards the same thing; Mungo had to rely on the infrastructure of slavery even when he didn’t seem to like the system.

Agreement or Disagreement of Mungo Park’s Travels

I have skimmed through and have found only one issue that I wasn’t able to understand in the way it was described by Mungo. Basically, Mungo had been yearning to get to Africa and understand how the habitants worked in the country. Although he hoped to visit Africa and realize the system that was residing there but he also had mentioned that he was not fond of the slavery system.

When he had gotten to Africa, he had observed that the slavery system was at its peak and almost all the ones that he had met were slave to others. There was a terrible network of slavery and the masters of slaves were allowed to use them however they liked. Generally, they could also dismantle them for their own benefits. Even though Mungo had exclaimed that he became uncomfortable with such type of a system. However, when he had to spend some time and rely on the slave trader, Karfa, his opinion had changed and then he had exclaimed that it was the slave system in Africa that made the working of things easier there.

Additionally, Mungo seemed to travel with Karfa and it was this slave trader that had helped him along. There must be a matter that could have changed Mungo’s point of view on slavery. I don’t agree with Mungo’s reasoning.

Reason for disagreement of Mungo Park’s Travels

Mungo explained his perception upon the slavery system in Africa and told that he didn’t seem to like it at all. However after traveling through Africa, he explained that even though slavery system was present but it kept the whole infrastructure of the country working. It was mainly due to the fact that he had spent some time with the slave trader who had saved his life from the misery that he was facing at the moment. (:Both the Atlantic slave trade still legal and active during his travels, and the internal African slave that supplied European ships with human cargo. Pg. 348)

Such a rapid switching of perceptions shouldn’t just take place when the topic at hand is so large. When Mungo was starving, Karfa had rescued him and had clothed him when he had nothing to wear. Furthermore, he had elaborated upon the aspect that salves were assigned different duties such as the cultivation of land which produced outcomes such as crops that served as an asset. Sure, there are such benefits but there is another major point that should not be hidden such as the desperation that comes along with slavery.

I believe that Mungo should have explained that slavery played an important role in running the country but it should be minimized up to almost nonexistent because slavery plays an important role in breeding hatred and it also become the foundation for protestants that could emerge any moment and throw the peace of country at a stake (Simkin, 2014).

Conclusion of Mungo Park’s Travels

Overall, Mungo had been curious about the African civilization for a long time and it seemed to ignite as the time passed until he really got the chance to get to Africa and explore just what was happening around there and how the civilization actually worked.  (Park’s Travels presents the information the explorer collected about peoples, climate and resources of West Africa in four such interpolated chapters, one of which treats African slavery. Pg. 350)

At the start, Mungo had gotten sick and had fallen victim to Malaria. With some time, he had recovered and with a new vigor, he had continued his journey and had ultimately ended up relying on the slavery system that used to make him uncomfortable. Karfa, the slave trader had actually assisted him and helped him in such a way that he had ended up relying on the system which made him change his perception about the system that he didn’t like.

When he later on explained, he told that slavery system played an important role in the system of the country. It was quite contradictory to what he had explained previously.

References of Mungo Park’s Travels

Simkin, J. (2014, August ). Mungo Park. Retrieved from Spartacus-educational: https://spartacus-educational.com/USASpark.htm