Exploration and Race

The exploration of Robert Peary and Matthew Henson to the North Pole helped to break barriers between races in the early 1900s. At the same time, it displays a desire for exploration and an increase of knowledge. The journey of a white male named Peary and his partner Henson to the North Pole was extremely demanding; yet these men were determined to succeed. Henson was a black man who accompanied Peary on various explorations to Greenland, in hopes of discovering the Pole. Henson respected the Esquimos and learned their language along with their culture, which later helped in his final expedition in the Arctic. Peary and Henson came dangerously close to starvation and were forced to retreat from Greenland on different occasions. In 1906 the men were equipped with a ship known as The Roosevelt built especially for the journey to the pole, which brought the men within 180 miles of their final destination. Teddy Roosevelt, the newly elected president of the United States, supported the exploration effort in the Arctic. This proves to be significant because it addresses the overall feeling of the era. America was exploring the world along with new aspects of culture.

“Then Peary shuffled back along the deck, passing Father and saying to him They’re children and they have to be treated like children” (Doctorow, 73). Doctorow’s use of free indirect discourse directly expresses Peary’s view of white superiority. Peary sees the Esquimo as an inferior race, which leads the reader to assume that he believes the same about African Americans at this time. Racial inequality was prominent in the 1900s, but Peary chooses Henson over white men to accompany him on the most important voyage of his career. Peary’s team consisted of six men. In Ragtime, the reader is aware that the character known as Father is aboard the ship. However, his real name remains anonymous. Father is a prosperous, white male in the novel but is not equipped to finish the expedition. Instead, Henson is ready for the journey and is a main contributor to Peary’s success. Prior to his appointment of Henson, Peary had little experience with African Americans. For him, choosing to bring Henson along was an exploration of racial integration and a step toward equality. The men developed a mutual respect for each other. Peary displays not signs of racism in the picture of the men on his team in the picture above on the left. Henson receives equal representation as the white men. In the picture of the four Polar Eskimos and Henson at the North Pole on April 6^th, 1909, all of the men’s faces are indistinguishable. Peary did not discriminate against Matthew Henson despite the understanding in the 20^th century that blacks were inferior. This successful exploration to the North Pole helped to break racial tensions and encouraged further exploration.

By Brooke DeWitt

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