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Did Marco Polo's travels help or hurt the people he encountered on his journey?

Cherry Lindemann

Marco Polo was a traveler who went on a long journey to explore different lands and people that lived in those lands. He traveled to China and other parts of Asia. He wrote a book about his journey called "The Travels of Marco Polo" which was a valuable source of information for people who wanted to learn more about the world.

Now, some people wonder whether Marco Polo's travels helped or hurt the people he encountered on his journey. We can say that his travels had both positive and negative impacts on the people. Let’s take a look at some of them!

First of all, Marco Polo's travels helped the people he encountered by spreading information and knowledge. He shared with the people of Europe what he had learned about the cultures, customs, and traditions of the people he had met during his travels. This helped the people of Europe to learn more about the world and to understand different cultures and lifestyles. They also learned about new foods, spices, and other goods that were not available in Europe.

Another way Marco Polo's travels helped the people he encountered was through trade. He brought back many goods and treasures from the east that he had encountered during his travels. This led to the development of trade between Europe and Asia. The exchange of goods helped to improve the economy and the standard of living for many people.

On the other hand, Marco Polo's travels also had negative impacts on the people he encountered. One of the negative impacts was the spread of diseases. When Marco Polo returned to Europe, he brought back diseases such as the black plague which caused a lot of suffering and death.

Another negative impact of Marco Polo's travels was the exploitation of resources and people. The Europeans were attracted by the wealth and resources of the people Marco Polo encountered, and they took advantage of them. This was especially true when it came to the colonization of Asia and other parts of the world. Many people lost their lives and freedom due to the colonization.

In conclusion, we can say that Marco Polo's travels had both positive and negative impacts on the people he encountered. However, we cannot overlook the fact that his travels helped Europeans to learn more about the world and to develop trade relations with Asia. Despite the negative impacts, we can say that Marco Polo's travels contributed to the expansion of knowledge and the development of society.