Ota Benga
In 1906 society deemed a twenty-year-old man so nonessential, that he was kept in a cage with the monkeys at a zoo. His name was Ota Benga. The Biography, Spectacle, by Pamela Newkirk tells the story of this Congolese man taken from his home to be exhibited at the St. Louis World Fair, from there he was moved to the Bronx Zoo whom placed him under brutal conditions in their primate house. After his own protests and those of the community, Ota Benga is freed, but his mind is still trapped reliving the experience and he commits suicide ten years later on March 20, 1916. The risks taken by Benga and those most influential in his life, not only led to their own immediate consequences, but ultimately to the greater consequence of Benga’s …show more content…
Although his life began an estimate of twenty years prior, the life Benga is known for begins when a man named Samuel Phillip Verner is commissioned by organizers of the St. Louis World Fair to procure African Pygmies. In order to do this Verner must travel deep within the relatively unexplored jungles of the Congo, a dangerous expedition that he is later admired for within the scientific community (20). In result of his mission, he captures Benga along with eight other young males, also recorded as pygmies, and they travel back to America where the tribal men parade the fairgrounds together for months, being showcased, and being mocked by families who eagerly crowd the new attractions (138). The world fair marked the beginning of the end for Benga whom was blissfully unaware that he would never return home or be in the warm presence of his family again. When the world fair came to an end Verner was not ready to give up his lavish new source of income, so he wrote up a deal to loan Benga to the Bronx Zoo for the month of September, potentially longer if the exhibit was to be successful. The zoo’s director, William Hornaday, saw it …show more content…
Four days after entering the zoo, Benga decided he had enough of the mistreatment. When one of the park employees entered the cage Benga wrestled them, kicked them, and threatened to bite. This happened on multiple accounts before William Hornaday understood that Benga was protesting his living conditions (51). Benga acted out of a desperate need of freedom, and this is one of the first truly apparent signs that further events could go awry if he is unable to return to his tribe in the Congo. Benga’s risk paid off, for shortly after Hornaday ordered park employees to release Benga from his cage and let him explore the zoo for an hour each day provided that he had supervision (54). This was Benga’s first chance to truly interact with society since the World Fair, four years prior, without bars separating him, and what he was shown was only more harshness. Benga again was able to see that society did not view him as an equal, nor did they view him as someone who mattered in the world. His desire to return home only grew stronger with this realization, for his already fragile heart weakened even more. Benga’s rebellion continued, and also left a trail of benefits, including an article written by Times Magazine on the subject of his mistreatment, and eventually leading to Hornaday realizing that it would be
In 1906 society deemed a twenty-year-old man so nonessential, that he was kept in a cage with the monkeys at a zoo. His name was Ota Benga. The Biography, Spectacle, by Pamela Newkirk tells the story of this Congolese man taken from his home to be exhibited at the St. Louis World Fair, from there he was moved to the Bronx Zoo whom placed him under brutal conditions in their primate house. After his own protests and those of the community, Ota Benga is freed, but his mind is still trapped reliving the experience and he commits suicide ten years later on March 20, 1916. The risks taken by Benga and those most influential in his life, not only led to their own immediate consequences, but ultimately to the greater consequence of Benga’s …show more content…
Although his life began an estimate of twenty years prior, the life Benga is known for begins when a man named Samuel Phillip Verner is commissioned by organizers of the St. Louis World Fair to procure African Pygmies. In order to do this Verner must travel deep within the relatively unexplored jungles of the Congo, a dangerous expedition that he is later admired for within the scientific community (20). In result of his mission, he captures Benga along with eight other young males, also recorded as pygmies, and they travel back to America where the tribal men parade the fairgrounds together for months, being showcased, and being mocked by families who eagerly crowd the new attractions (138). The world fair marked the beginning of the end for Benga whom was blissfully unaware that he would never return home or be in the warm presence of his family again. When the world fair came to an end Verner was not ready to give up his lavish new source of income, so he wrote up a deal to loan Benga to the Bronx Zoo for the month of September, potentially longer if the exhibit was to be successful. The zoo’s director, William Hornaday, saw it …show more content…
Four days after entering the zoo, Benga decided he had enough of the mistreatment. When one of the park employees entered the cage Benga wrestled them, kicked them, and threatened to bite. This happened on multiple accounts before William Hornaday understood that Benga was protesting his living conditions (51). Benga acted out of a desperate need of freedom, and this is one of the first truly apparent signs that further events could go awry if he is unable to return to his tribe in the Congo. Benga’s risk paid off, for shortly after Hornaday ordered park employees to release Benga from his cage and let him explore the zoo for an hour each day provided that he had supervision (54). This was Benga’s first chance to truly interact with society since the World Fair, four years prior, without bars separating him, and what he was shown was only more harshness. Benga again was able to see that society did not view him as an equal, nor did they view him as someone who mattered in the world. His desire to return home only grew stronger with this realization, for his already fragile heart weakened even more. Benga’s rebellion continued, and also left a trail of benefits, including an article written by Times Magazine on the subject of his mistreatment, and eventually leading to Hornaday realizing that it would be