List some of the problems the men face trying to get down the mountain. Include quotations from the text (pages 85-94) to support these ideas.

  • The weather- Both Joe and Simon explain the difficulties of frost bite and snow storms created by the powerful winds and avalanches on the mountain. The brutal weather was a problem when trying to get down the moment as frost bite was taking over their hands and it was begging to take away the feeling. “The storm had steadily increased until the spindrifted flowed continually down the slope, and threatened to push me off when i dug the seats. ” The wind gasted across the face, blasting the snow into exposed skin.” 
  • Joes broken leg is the main problem that interfers with their desendence-  Because of his broken leg, they had to find alternative ways to get down the mountain. It slowed down time and complicated their plans.
  • The inability to see was a huge problem for the men as it was a factor as to why Joe went over the edge, and hung from above a monstrous crevasse. 
  • All of these factors link together and are the reason why Joe ended up in the situation he was in. If Joe hadn’t have broken his leg they would not have needed to decend down the mountain in that way,  If there was no white out, and the weather pattern was different, Simon may have been able to hear Joes cries and warnings to stop. All of these factors reissuing the idea of how the outcomes of Joes fait could have been much different if only one of these factors didn’t exist. 

How does Joe, recreate the tension felt when he is lowered over the cliff “into the void”? Consider any structural (syntax), language or narrative techniques he uses to recreate the intensity of this experience. (pages 94-96)

Joe recreated the tension of the situation when he was hanging in space, by describing what he sees, what he felt, and what he thought. With Joes ability to describe the scene in great depth, and with emotive language eg,”I waited silently, hugging the rope with my arms to stay upright, and feeling shocked as I stared between my legs at the drop.” a good image is painted in the readers head with a clear idea of what it may have looked and felt like. Joes choice of words and the description of the setting is what helps us to understand. The language used, like for example when Joe swears at himself in a aggravated tone, we can understand how he may be feeling, and how the tension of this scenario was captivating in many ways. 

 

Join the conversation! 1 Comment

  1. Accurate and detailed answers overall, Meg – Well done. You have provided an accurate list of events that create rising tension in this section of the text.

    You begin to provide supportive evidence in your answers but continue to include keywords/phrases from the text to validate the points you are making.

    Make sure that you secure your points about how “tension” is created, in your final response 🙂

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