46 pages • 1 hour read
My Life with the Chimpanzees
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BetaChapters 4-5Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 4 Summary
At 23, Goodall left London for Mombasa, Kenya, sailing along the West Coast of Africa and rounding the Cape of Good Hope. Stopping in South Africa, she recalls seeing apartheid and expresses her opposition to the practice. After 21 days, Goodall arrived in Mombasa and took a train to Nairobi, where she was met by her friend, Clo. On the way to Clo’s farm, Goodall saw her first giraffe up close and knew she had finally arrived in the Africa of her dreams.
Goodall spent three weeks at Clo’s farm in the White Highlands of Kenya before moving to Nairobi to start a temporary job. After two months working in Nairobi, she met the man who would make her dreams come true: Dr. Louis Leakey, a renowned anthropologist and paleontologist. Leakey offered Goodall a job as his secretary, impressed by how much she knew about African animals.
In 1957, before starting her job, Leakey and his wife took Goodall on an expedition to Olduvai Gorge in Tanganyika (now Tanzania). Goodall recalls this as one of the most exciting adventures of her life. At the time, Olduvai Gorge was not well known among foreigners. Goodall spent three months there digging for fossils, and she recounts an experience she’ll never forget: holding the fossils of a creature that walked the Earth millions of years ago.
After three months, Goodall returned to Nairobi, settling into her new job and sharing a flat with her friend, Sally. Together, they accumulated a collection of animals, many of which were orphans brought to Goodall for care. These included a bush baby, a vervet monkey, and a dwarf mongoose. Despite their attempts to release these animals, only a few chose to return to the wild. Goodall discusses how keeping wild animals as pets often leads to sad outcomes since these species are not domesticated.
After working at the museum for nine months, Goodall saved enough money to surprise her mother with a visit to Africa. Her mother loved Africa, and they discussed Goodall’s future and Leakey saw potential in her despite her lacking a degree.
Since returning from Olduvai, Leakey had talked about chimpanzees living on the shores of a remote lake in Tanganyika. He valued Goodall’s lack of formal training, believing it meant her mind was unbiased. He needed someone with patience and a genuine desire to learn about chimpanzee behavior. Goodall fit the bill perfectly, and he suggested that she be the one to study the chimpanzees. Leakey warned Goodall that if she succeeded, she would need to get a PhD. They decided she should return to England to learn all she could about chimpanzees while Leakey worked on securing funding. Goodall and her mother took the boat back together to England, and Goodall’s dream of studying wild animals was closer to becoming a reality.
Chapter 5 Summary
Goodall spent the year in London, working at the London Zoo and reading everything she could about chimpanzees. However, most of the information was based on lab studies or observations in people’s homes. Goodall realized how intelligent chimpanzees were and felt incredibly fortunate that she would soon be studying them in their natural habitat.
Louis Leakey informed Goodall that he secured funding for her study and obtained permission from the British government for her to work in the Gombe Stream Game Reserve in Tanganyika. It was considered unsafe for a young single woman to venture into the African wilderness alone, so Goodall chose her mother as her companion. Excitedly, they packed and flew to Nairobi, only to face disappointment upon arrival. They received a telegram from the head of the game department in Tanganyika, stating that a conflict among fishermen over rights along the lake shore made it unsafe for them to proceed. The safari had to be delayed. To lift their spirits, Leakey arranged for Goodall and her mother to use his motorboat on Lake Victoria in Kenya and observe vervet monkeys on the island of Lolue.
Goodall quickly became familiar with the vervet monkeys, getting close to a troop in just 10 days. One day, while following the monkeys into the forest, she encountered a hostile crocodile poacher who threatened her with a spear. Frightened, Goodall left the island, but she learned much about the monkeys during her stay. Soon after, Goodall received the news that she could finally go to Gombe. She and her mother began their three-day journey to Kigoma, the nearest town. Upon arrival, they learned of a violent rebellion in the nearby Belgian Congo, causing concerns about the safety of Europeans in Tanganyika. They were told to stay in Kigoma until it was deemed safe to proceed.
Kigoma was filled with refugees from the Congo, many of whom fled after witnessing the killings of their loved ones. The local community came together to help the refugees. Eventually, the British authorities determined it was safe for Goodall and her mother to continue to Gombe. Despite doubts and concerns from others, including a botanist who thought they were being reckless, Goodall and her mother set off on the final leg of their journey.
Chapters 4-5 Analysis
At the age of 23, Goodall left London for Mombasa, Kenya, by boat. This journey highlights Goodall’s adventurous spirit and her early encounters with the political and social realities of Africa; she strongly opposed South African apartheid, a reflection of her strong values and moral principles. Once in Nairobi, the sight of her first giraffe symbolizes the fulfillment of her childhood dreams; she was in Africa. Settling into Nairobi, Goodall’s home became a sanctuary for orphaned animals. Her experiences caring for these animals reveal the challenges and emotional complexities of keeping wild animals in captivity. She had always been committed to animal welfare, and her unsuccessful efforts to release these animals back into the wild affirmed these ideals. This relates to her later assertions on studies of animals in captivity, which she considers insufficient because they don’t observe natural animal behavior. As such, even these early anecdotes are part of establishing Goodall’s methodology as a scientist.
Meeting Dr. Louis Leakey marked a turning point in Goodall’s life, offering a real outlet for Goodall’s passion and keen interest. Impressed by Goodall’s knowledge of African animals, Leakey offered her a job as his secretary, recognizing her potential despite her lack of formal training. This builds ethos in the text, using Leakey’s prominence to underscore Goodall’s own credentials. The opportunity with Leakey was pivotal in Goodall’s career, as he became a key mentor for her. His recognition of her potential was a direct result of her evident passion and self-taught knowledge about animals. Unlike many scientists of her time, Goodall did not follow a conventional academic path. Leakey valued her lack of formal training, believing it allowed her to observe and learn without the constraints of established theories. This non-traditional route exemplifies The Intersection of Personal Passion and Scientific Inquiry as it leads to fresh perspectives and groundbreaking discoveries.
Goodall’s long journey to the Gombe Stream Game Reserve tested her patience and resilience. However, the experience highlights the value of optimism in tough situations. Upon arriving in Nairobi, she and her mother encountered a conflict among fishermen that delayed their safari. Instead, Leakey arranged for them to observe vervet monkeys on an island in Lake Victoria, providing Goodall with valuable field experience despite the setback. This sequence of events also highlights some of the issues that conservationists are up against, like Goodall’s frightening encounter with a poacher. This anecdote adds another facet to The Importance of Environmental and Wildlife Conservation, illuminating poaching as a serious issue for animals in Africa and elsewhere. Even after Goodall is allowed to proceed to Gombe, she and her mother encounter another crisis due to a rebellion in the Belgian Congo. This provides another opportunity for Goodall to discuss the good in people as she highlights how people helped fleeing refugees. Throughout the text, she simultaneously emphasizes the good and bad things that people are capable of, emphasizing that each person is responsible for how they treat others.
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