Into Thin Air Essay

Another quote is, “By the time he arrived at the tents late that afternoon Ngawang was delirious, stumbling like a drunk, and coughing up pink, blood-laced froth,” (Krakauer, 113). This is another quote that goes along with people having trouble breathing because the air is thin and starting to almost hallucinate. The last quote is, “The ratio of misery to pleasure was greater by an order of magnitude than any other mountain I’d been on,”(Krakauer, 140). With this quote Krakauer is explaining that while climbing the mountain you are mostly suffering than enjoying the climb. The film, Into Thin Air: Death on Everest does a good job on showing the suffering that’s in the book.

The text is an extract from chapter 8 in Jon Krakauer’s adventurous nonfiction book, Into Thin Air, based on the 1996 Mt. Everest disaster. In the text, the author utilizes simile, alliteration, and symbolism to describe the hazardous climb in Mt. Everest to the readers, which the danger further illustrate the theme of conflict of values.

As an experienced mountaineer, Krakauer’s childhood dream had been to climb Mount Everest. This lingering dream was triggered with a full blast when he accepted the offer of being on Rob Hall’s leaded expedition as a reporter for Outside magazine. Krakauer had to change his attitude from a free-willed climber to an obedient client on the team and was concerned about his other fellow clients when they were first acquainted. “ In outlook and experience they were nothing like the hard-core climbers with whom I usually went into the mountains”. (Krakauer 39) In previous years, Krakauer had always climbed alone or with some trusted friends. He came to realize that one must completely rely on the guide instead of other clients on a guided expedition. After meeting the other clients, Krakauer develops a sense of superiority as he is one of the most experienced climbers on the team. It shocked him when the author found out that clients Beck Weathers, Stuart Hutchinson, and Lou Kasischke never tried on their mountaineering boots beforehand and Hutchinson even failed to notice his crampons (steel spikes that are attached to the bottom of boots to help with ice climbing) did not fit his boots. As the expedition drags on, Krakauer became more acquainted with the rest of his team members and has a change in mindset. “I learned that between the demands of their families and their high-powered careers, few of my fellow clients had had the opportunity to go climbing more than once or twice in the previous year…. But maybe I’m just being a snob, I scolded myself.” Krakauer admits through this context that he is deeply concerned about his inexperienced teammates although he realized that it is not up to him to worry about such things. He came to realize that although many other clients were extremely unexperienced, their goal to summit the

Krakauer worked a dead end job that was going to get him nowhere, until one day he built up the courage to quit his job, leave his home town, and make his dreams a reality. He drove from his home, with nothing but his car, and two hundred dollars to his name. Krakauer felt that by climbing The Devil’s Thumb, he would find himself amongst the frozen rocks and deep crevasses. He thought that if he could not climb this mountain, then his life meant nothing. He strove to be respected in the eyes of others, and he thought that if he did this, then he would

Just before reaching the summit, despite the fact that he was having difficulty breathing, Krakauer was actually quite calm but disoriented, and relatively excited about the prospect of reaching the summit. However, at the moment of his summit, he did not feel the elation that he expected, but rather apprehension and dread about what he knew to be a difficult descent.

In the book “Into thin air” by Jon Krakauer, Krakauer sought to report and write about his climb up mount everest. He knew it wouldn't be easy, but he did not and could not have predicted the barriers and conflicts that were inflicted upon him, by the mountain and it’s atmosphere. Due to these barriers and conflicts, it would be naive to say that the main conflict wasn’t man vs nature. Nevertheless, Krakauer had the worst experience of his life, climbing and fighting against the physical and mental effects of Mount Everest.

As much as I thought that the first chapter should have been removed, the book, overall, changed the way I viewed Mount Everest. The novel helps to understand that there is much more than just climbing up and down. For instance, when Krakauer talks about expenses and equipment, he says, “That autumn the ministry raised the permit fee again to fifty thousand dollars plus ten thousand dollars for each additional climber.” This shows that there is an extensive amount of planning and equipment to be covered. Krakauer also tells that a storm on Everest can be much more deadly than a storm at sea level. At the end of chapter twenty, he says, “Brice Herrod is now presumed dead, the twelfth casualty of the season.” Its descriptions like these which make me view Everest as both a great challenge, but also a potential deathtrap.

One of the most important qualities that an elite climber must have is leadership. The elite climbers and guides must be able to meet a number of new people that are strangers to each other and build some sense of a team. Krakauer does not have a strong background in leading groups or building comradery, which is key for a climb like Everest. Krakauer says himself, “In climbing, having confidence in your partners is no small concern” (40). He also mentions how the actions of one climber can “affect the welfare of the entire team” (40). The type of group he climbed with on

The first reason why Krakauer is responsible for the crew’s death is because he recruited them. Krakauer knew who he was recruiting, some experienced and some who relied heavily on the guide’s help. “I want you all to remember we have absolutely no chance of getting to the summit of Everest without their help.” (Krakauer 4:43). This shows how weak each member is without the help of a professional guide. While Krakauer knows the death rate on the trek to the top of Everest is high, he knew deep down it’d be a bad idea to bring inexperienced climbers onto this dangerous mountain.” Ever since 1922, when seven Sherpas were killed in an avalanche during the second British expedition, a disproportionate number of Sherpas have died on Everest—fifty-three all told.” ( Krakauer 4.17). This quote proves how dangerous Everest is even for experienced and

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

In the passage “Into the Death Zone” by Sean McCollum Jordan attempted to climb Mt. Everest and succeded but his father was not into the idea of her going. Jordan’s father told her that it was a dangerous idea to climb Mt. Everest because many people did not survive. There were 11,000 who attempted the climb, 220 people died, 4,500 summits, and 150 corpses still on the mountain. Mt. Everest is 29,034 feet high. Jordan only being 13 year old attempted after convincing her father being one of the youngest to do it. But what if she did not make it or became seriously injured. Her father would be extremely disappointed in her and he could do nothing but to let it go. Her father warned her and she would probably stop climbing because of her father’s

Vulnerability impacts any individual throughout each new and interactive experience. To become vulnerable is to open up to the consequences of frantic outcomes. Individuals will lead to vulnerability to cope with a trauma that has created a solemn change to a lifestyle. Jon Krakauer explains how the trauma of Mt. Everest changed his outlooks on reality, through different coping mechanisms. Krakauer uses his writing in his book, Into Thin Air, to cope with the guilt of surviving the terror that occurred upon Mt. Everest, as well as to understand what actions caused each outcome. Within an excerpt from Into Thin Air, Jon Krakauer is reflective towards his audience of how vulnerability shaped the experiences upon Mt. Everest to cope with the

Many people have dreamed of climbing the tallest mountain on earth, Mount Everest. However one must possess certain physical and mental attributes to accomplish this giant feat. “Courage is not having the strength to go on: it's going on when you don't have the strength.” Ed Viesturs knows first-hand what having courage is all about although you’ve used all your strength. He kept going to reach his goal even after he faced life threatening obstacles.

On May 10, 1996 six people died trying to reach the summit of Mt. Everest. These people were parts of two expeditions that were in the Himalayas, preparing to ascend the summit for six weeks. The first group was under the direction of Rob Hall, who had put 39 paying clients on the summit in five years. Hall was considered the leader of the mountain and the man to see no matter what the discrepancy. Group two, headed by Fisher, who like Hall, was trying to start a profitable business in providing the experience of climbing Mt. Everest to all for the price of 60 to 70 thousand dollars. Unfortunatly, neither man would live to tell the tale of this expedition.

This novel, Into Thin Air, has impacted me in a multitude of ways. The first being the surprise that I felt throughout the book. All of the deaths and mishaps showed me that climbing Everest is not as easy and as simple as I thought it was. Krakauer also crashed a wave of sorrow on to me, as I felt bad for all of the people who lost family and friends in the disaster, or experienced it. Along with this, I was also impacted because the author was very informative about Everest and its history. He delved deep into the past beliefs about the mountain, the measurements, and different ways people have ascended the mountain. Before reading Into Thin Air I was very much clueless about any history or information surrounding the mountain.