An Improbable Task

In Adam Hochschild's Bury the Chains, Hochschild goes into great detail about Thomas Clarkson's rise as an abolitionist. After writing his award winning essay Clarkson was on the road to London to become a deacon. It is hear we see his transformation as a mere scholar to a true abolitionist. With his essay weighing heavily on his mind Clarkson believes that, "Some person should see these calamities to their end" (p.89). Clarkson's eventual mission was not clear to him for some time. I found this interesting and telling of age that Clarkson lived in. If Clarkson, who was to become the top advocate for slavery's abolition, was unsure about the role he was to play how was he going to be able to convince an entire global community? I believe that Hochschild's comparison to global warming and doing away with cars is exactly the kind of crazed notion that Clarkson was trying to convince people of his time to accept.