Alexander Scott: constructing a legitimate geography of the Sahara from a captivity narrative, 1821

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Periodical article

Title:	Alexander Scott: constructing a legitimate geography of the Sahara from a captivity narrative, 1821
Author:	Outram-Leman, Sven D.
Year:	2016
Periodical:	History in Africa (ISSN 1558-2744)
Volume:	43
Pages:	63-94
Language:	English
Geographic terms:	Sahara Great Britain
Subjects:	geography historical sources expeditions historiography 1900-1949
About person:	Alexander Scott
External link:	https://doi.org/10.1017/hia.2015.31
Abstract:	Alexander Scott's narrative of his captivity in the Sahara in the early nineteenth century presents a curious example of how information of foreign lands was received and legitimized in Britain. Through the input of individuals such as Joseph Banks and James Rennell, Scott's tale was presented as an authoritative account of the inaccessible West African interior. This article pursues this process of authentication and demonstrates how elements of the editors' preconceived notion of the region colored the subsequent text and associated cartography. Bibliogr., notes, ref., sum. in English and French [Journal abstract]