Furthering our focus on the fragilities and contingencies at the heart of colonial knowledge acquisition, we consider the role of Oates’ changing emotional state in how he took on evidence from the outside world and processed this as understanding. We assess Oates’ sense of self-fulfilment and the way this led to changes in his interactions with the African landscape and the peoples within it. We consider how one episode that affected Oates’ sense of self-esteem led to a radical reconfiguration of his relationship with Lobengula. We also consider the intersections between the power of telos and of specific encounters in explaining what changed within the hitherto risk-averse Oates that led to the sudden ‘dash’ for the Falls and his death.