Dritsas Lawrence
Science Studies Unit, University of Edinburgh, 21 Buccleuch Place, Edinburgh, UK.
Endeavour. 2006 Jun;30(2):50-4. doi: 10.1016/j.endeavour.2006.04.002. Epub 2006 May 12.
High hopes for opening new markets, locating natural resources and the 'advance of civilisation' were built into the plans for Victorian expeditions to Africa. When an expedition failed to deliver on these goals, criticisms of individual explorers and the entire 'civilising mission' project could result. The Zambesi Expedition, led by David Livingstone, received just such criticism when politics and geography obstructed the realisation of its aims. The needs of a growing industrial sector contributed to the organisation of the Expedition but also set the criteria by which its success or failure would be judged.
对开拓新市场、寻找自然资源以及“文明进步”的厚望，被纳入了维多利亚时代非洲探险计划之中。当一次探险未能实现这些目标时，就可能引发对个别探险家以及整个“文明使命”项目的批评。由大卫·利文斯通率领的赞比西河探险队，在政治和地理因素阻碍其目标实现时，就受到了这样的批评。不断发展的工业部门的需求促成了这次探险的组织，但也设定了评判其成败的标准。
