May 15 - The EndWelcome to the end of the book. I'm sure you've been happy that over the past few days, nature has cooperated with us and been really unseasonably cold so that we can better sympathize with the climbers during the climax of the book--not quite -56 degrees celsius, but you know, close.
Anyway, now that you've made it here, you've read the heart of the book. All of the information early on and the build-up to the summit is quite interesting, but I think what has drawn people to this book is the battle for survival and the moral complications that come with it. Who was to blame? Should they have left Yasuko and Beck? Was it right of Boukreev to climb without supplemental oxygen? How did the survivors live with themselves afterwards? Do people keep making the same mistakes each year on the mountain?And, perhaps the most interesting question: what would you do? I'd encourage you to ask me any questions you continue to have after today while you work on your assignments. The best way to do so is probably through Twitter (@richeben) or email ([email protected]). Take care and good luck with the rest of the year, Mr. Riche. Here are your goals for today: 1) Post one powerful line from this last section of the book as a sticky note on the Padlet wall below (scroll past the forum). You should see one example there already. Double-click wherever you'd like to put the quotation and then go for it--you are limited in terms of characters. 2) Go to the forum for this section and Discuss the topic I've posted. Continue to use the Miscellaneous Forum to post your own questions and to answer each other's questions. 3. Read "Remembering Those Who Died" from the PBS Website--a memorial in the words of the survivors. 4) Email me the following at [email protected]: (in part, I'm just looking to see who has made it to the end of the book, but I am also interested in what you thought of the book and in answering your questions, so I am trying to force the issue) (A) What is your opinion of the book? Would you recommend it to a friend? Why or why not? (B) Ask me one question that you have about the book. Clarification/plot questions are fine, but I'd prefer if you make me think a bit. Ask me something about human nature in general, for example, or about how much I trust Krakauer's narrative--whatever you like. I'll get back to you within the week. Finally, check out this list of books (with links) if you liked Into Thin Air: OTHER OPINIONS - High Exposure: An Enduring Passion for Everest and Unforgiving Places - David Breashears - The Climb - Anatoli Boukreev MORE BY KRAKAUER: - Into the Wild - Jon Krakauer - Eiger Dreams - Jon Krakauer ADVENTURE/MOUNTAINEERING STORIES: - The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival John Vaillant - Touching the Void: The True Story of One Man's Miraculous Survival - Joe Simpson - K2: Life and Death on the World's Most Dangerous Mountain - Ed Viesturs - Between a Rock and a Hard Place - Aron Ralston - To the Last Breath - Francis Slakey - Above All Things - Tanis Rideout (check out this interview with the author on CBC Radio's The Next Chapter) - Into the Silence - Wade Davis |