Greed In Jon Krauker's Into Thin Air

In the Importance of being Earnest, food seems to be an example of greed a n impatience. For example in act I Algernon eats all of the cucumber sandwiches he waits for his aunt without admitting that he has eaten all of them. That is greedy because he could not let jack eat the cucumber sandwiches, and it is impatient because he would not wait for his aunt to get there to eat the sandwiches. Wilde satirizes society by metaphorically saying that we as a society during this time is starting to become more greedy and impatient.

In Jon Krakauer’s book, “Into Thin Air”, there were a significant amount of deaths involved. Eight people lost their lives on the most disastrous Everest expedition in history. Was anyone responsible for these deaths? This question has many answers based on different people’s opinions. I think that the person that is held accountable for their deaths should be Jon Krakauer. He was selfish and didn’t do much to help others when they needed it.

Society has thrived against adversity with virtues of hope, fueled by the belief of a higher power. In The Book of Martha, by Octavia Butler, the protagonist, Martha, seeks a solution to end humanity’s greed, which will eventually lead to their inevitable demise. For centuries, religion has had an impact in the way societies view ethical and moral issues. Human kindness has always been at the core of each act behind religious beliefs. These acts of kindness have been made with the intention to progress ourselves as a society and as a community. An interview with Father Jesus de la Tapia, from The Parish of Santa Rosa, highlighted the social impact that these acts of kindness can bring to our community. Although Martha’s actions are those set in a fictional story, her belief in God and ability to bring humanity together, are actions which can be seen in our community, making it a better place.

What pushes Krakauer and his team to do it? Is there foreshadowing present to hint at a terrifying event or someone’s demise? What about these vivid images in this novel make me so solicitous about the upcoming events yet to take place? Jon Krakauer exploits a few literary devices to force me, the reader, to ask myself such questions. Literary devices, such as foreshadowing and imagery, are put into effect in Jon Krakauer’s novel, Into Thin Air.

No Country for Old Men (2007), is directed, written, and edited by Joel and Ethan Coen. This film is a Western-thriller that involves authority, crime, corruption and power. Llewelyn Moss, played by Josh Brolin, is out hunting one morning and discovers the remainder of a drug deal gone badly. After finding a few dead bodies, abandoned vehicles and two million dollars, he takes the cash from the scene of the crime and hides it in the air vent of a hotel room. Chigurh played by Javier Bardem, is a psychopath who was hired to recover the two million dollars. He kills and threatens everyone in his path while hunting down Llewelyn. Sheriff Bell, played by Tommy Lee Jones, is also trying to locate and protect Moss from Chigurh. Chigurh uses a tracking

Oftentimes, to further their lifestyles, people hide behind a fictitious version of themselves. Eventually, one finds their mind twisting and turning, detracted and dismembered, unable to bear the gravity and distress of their conflicting personas. Take, for example, the character Macbeth in the play Macbeth, who to remand power reveals his true unstable persona while continuing to maintain a virtuous one to the public which results in a tyrannical dominance of his instability. Because of Macbeth’s actions, Scotland is thrown into chaos when his unstable personality completely dominates him and leads to his demise at the hands of rebels affected by his greedy and indecent actions. In the play Macbeth, Shakespeare uses light and darkness imagery to convey how Macbeth’s ambition and greed led to corruption, signifying the negative societal effects tyrants have because of their greed and ambition.

Into Thin Air is a novel which provides a personal view from Jon Krakauer about a treacherous disaster on Mount Everest in 1996. After reading the novel, I can say the book came out to be much better than expected. Initially, I assumed that the book would simply guide a reader from Kathmandu to the summit, but the book held much more value within its pages. Although there is one component of the story that I disliked, I can still say that Into Thin Air is a very interesting novel which could both inspire people to climb Everest or stay away from it.

The book Into Thin Air, written by Jon Krakauer, explores the struggle of man versus man and man versus nature. The very different personalities proved costly to everyone involved on the expedition. The team of climbers that were hiking toward the summit of Mt. Everest on May 10, 1996, was oblivious to what lay ahead of them. No matter how advanced the hikers were, Everest on this day would test the will and endurance of everyone attempting to reach the summit. The one element that no one person could elude was pain.

Throughout the years, it has been common knowledge that greed is the powerful thing that rules with fear and drives many of the people in this world to their own demise. Sometimes, it’s not even their fault, and they are just paying the price of another person, who always in the end, gets paid back with punishment. And such it is in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Hound of the Baskervilles, a tale written in 1901 of the innocent, the guilty, and the mysteries around them. The story is the investigation by Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes of the mysterious death of the late baronet, Sir Charles, whose nephew, Sir Henry, was the inheritor of the estate and fortune located upon the eerie moor. The Baskerville line, it seems, is plagued by a hound who walks upon the moor at night, all because of the greed of the evil Hugo Baskerville, who lived many generations before Sir Charles. While there, things get quite heated, with the discovery of a not only of murder plot belonging to Mr. Stapleton against all Baskervilles, multiple deceptions and disguises, but ultimately the answering of the impending question - was the family ghost real? Doyle develops the theme of the novel that greed is a powerful motivator by illustrating that greed leads to impulsive behavior and actions because greed pressures people to take extreme measures, alters men into monsters,

The Extra, by Michael Christie, is about a mentally disabled man living on welfare with a friend. We see what their lives are like, and we see their opportunity to get a well-paying job. This short story is about greed. It is about how humans will be greedy. The whole text is littered with deceiving relationships based on greed. One good example of this deception and greed is the relationship between the main character and Rick. Rick has convinced the main character that he is a good guy who has had a hard life and deserves better. Rick of course is taking advantage as he controls all the money. Rick tells the main character that he held all these jobs, that his wife left him, taking all his hard earned cash, his house, and kids, and that he was overall a smart sharp

Krakauer starts the beginning of Into Thin Air by telling the reader about Everest’s first climbers and expeditions. Everest was a mountain that no man could conquer and over time it was the goal of many to become the first person on top of the world. After this occurred the commercialization of Everest sky rocketed, which leads thousands of people climbing Everest every year. In order for clients on expeditions to climb, sherpas fix ropes, carry equipment, and set ladders in place for the trips to run smoothly. Krakauer describes the characters with great descriptions to make the reader attach to them and care when their fate is sealed. Eight climbers were stranded at the top of the world, all at different mental and physical abilities. Saving, abandoning, and dying will occur all at once on the night of May 10th. Death grasps many of climbers and takes them away, but a few manage to escape from death’s

Greed is an all consuming emotion. It can drive even the noblest men to do great evil, it can become addicting as the power one seeks is granted, leading the individual to become a power. Greed is defined by a selfish desire to have power, wealth, status, recognition, etc. Greed is a driving force in Shakespeare's play, Macbeth. The main character, Macbeth the Thane of Cawdor, acts immorally,against his better judgment throughout the play. He briefly comes to regret his actions, however his hunger for power is too great and he falls back. In this play, when characters achieve what they desire they come to want more, their quest for power becomes so all consuming that they essentially lose their morality and come to do evil things such as

“Nobody ever did, or ever will, escape the consequences of his choices”~Alfred A. Montapert. The choices made throughout Into Thin Air, were decisions that affected Jon Krakauer’s and others lives.

In William Shakespeare's tragic play, "Macbeth", there is blood, power and greed; all of which can be read with literal and metaphorical interpretations. They intertwine at different points in the story and have different effects on each of the characters including: Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, Malcom, and Macduff. These three ideas create a cycle throughout the story, particularly for Macbeth, as greed leading to the spilling of blood, which can give someone power is ultimately his demise.

The article by Thomas Cassidy, points out the instrumental role that greed plays in the modern corporation. Modern Economists have always seen greed as not only a necessary element in the corporate environment, but as also a vital part of the successful evolution of a public company. As the article points out, “Economists from Adam Smith to Milton Friedman have seen greed as an inevitable and, in some ways, desirable feature of capitalism. In a well regulated and well balanced economy, greed helps to keep the system expanding”.