Student Essay on Motives: the Climb Vs Into Thin Air

Motives: The Climb vs. Into Thin Air

In Into Thin Air, by Jon Krakauer, one receives a story of the 1996 Everest Expedition with a twist of drama and graphic detail that enables the reader to feel on the edge of their seat. Within this tragic accounting of the events also lies the quest for Jon Krakauer to solve the question as to why the events occurred the way that they had. Krakauer was a client on the Adventure Consultants team led by guide Rob Hall, and he also was a journalist for the magazine Outside.

Shortly after the disaster had occurred Jon Krakauer wrote an article called "Into Thin Air" in Outside. Soon after finding out about the article Boukreev was very upset with what Krakauer had said in terms of the disaster and Boukreev, himself. Anatoli Boukreev was also involved in the 1996 Everest Expedition. However, he was working as a guide on the Mountain Madness team under Scott Fischer. Because of what Krakauer said about Boukreev, and the way he portrayed the events that occurred Anatoli Boukreev was determined to write his own account of the 1996 Everest Disaster.

With that said, there were two versions of the 1996 Everest Expedition, and although they are both very similar in facts of what had happened there are great differences between the two books. One example of these differences is the explanation of how Ngawang Topche Sherpa had become ill with High Altitude Pulmonary Adema (HAPE).

Ngawang Topche Sherpa was one of Scott Fischer's Sherpas on the Mountain Madness team. And while carrying heavy loads up and down the mountain from Base Camp to Camp II, Ngawang had become sluggish in his work and was taking a lot of breaks (Krakauer, P.112). Because of Ngawang's background as a highly experienced and capable Sherpa form Rolwaling, Scott Fischer became worried and upon meeting up with Ngawang told him to descend to Base Camp (Krakauer, p.112). Ngawang, however, did not descend and went to Camp II where he became very ill with HAPE, and had to be taken down the mountain by two clients (Pete Schoening and Tim Madsen). Neal Beidleman and a group of Sherpas came to help with the rescue. Shortly after Ngawang had been brought to Base Camp his condition grew far worse; he had become so ill he was evacuated to a hospital in Katmandu (Krakauer, p.115). Later Ngawang Topche Sherpa died (Krakauer, p.118).

The telling of this event in both Krakauer's, and Dewalt and Boukreev's books are very different. Krakauer elevates the situation far more than Boukreev and Dewalt, spending several pages on the details of the over all matter. Meanwhile, Dewalt and Boukreev spend roughly a page accounting for what had happened to Ngawang Topche Sherpa. I can account for the differences in the stories through understanding that the motives of the two authors were different. Jon Krakauer wanted to know why the disaster occurred, and who was to blame, while Anatoli Boukreev did not want to place blame, and simply wanted to state how the event happened to the best of his knowledge.

The biggest difference between the two accounts of how Ngawang Topche Sherpa fell ill was the overall dramatization of the situation. During Jon Krakauer's book he pushes for the situation to be excessively dramatic while describing the order of events. However, in The Climb G. Weston Dewalt and Anatoli Boukreev are very matter-of-fact in their retelling of this situation. An example of the over dramatization (in order to lead the reader) in Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer, is the introduction to Dr. Mackenzie on the radio with someone at Camp II. Dr. Mackenzie is extremely unnerved while saying, "Give Ngawang acetazolamide, dexamethasone, and ten milligrams of sublingual nifedipine... yes, I know the risk, just give it to him!" (Krakauer, p.113) Later she goes on to say, "Please, trust me on this!" During this passage one notices a feeling of frustration, as well as urgency to whoever wasn't taking the order; because Krakauer is forming his own opinion on how this event took place, he is also indirectly forming an opinion for the reader as well. The same situation is also described in Dewalt and Boukreev's book although it is less theatrical and more factual. They say here, "The advice from Base Camp, however, was to intervene with drugs, because Ngawang's symptoms suggested he wouldn't be able to descend on his feet" (Dewalt/Boukreev, p.90). This concise version of someone at Base Camp radioing to Camp II is a more direct and to the point adaptation of the event. This narrative is far less appealing because of G. Weston Dewalt and Anatoli Boukreev's desire to simply state what happened.

While on his quest for answers Jon Krakauer makes it a habit to point the finger and place blame on several accounts. During the accident with Ngawang Topche Sherpa Krakauer leads the reader to believe that there are a number of reasons why the event happened. And that many of those reasons are leading to Scott Fischer (guide of Mountain Madness). Krakauer quotes Adventure Consultants guide, Rob Hall, saying that, "if it had been one of Scott's clients who had been this sick" the situation would have been different (Krakauer, p.117). Krakauer suggests that Scott is irresponsible with his Sherpas and further goes on to criticize Scott Fischer's acclimatization plan. For Example, "Unlike Hall, who insisted that our group stay together... Fischer believed in giving his clients free rein... during the acclimatization period," because of this so called free rein Krakauer goes on to say, "Ngawang's rescue thus fell to Klev Schoening and Tim Madsen," (Krakauer, p.113) who were two clients on Scott Fischer's team and who had not yet finished their acclimatization. With that said, Krakauer implies Tim Madsen also fell ill, because of the poor acclimatization plan, and consequently Scott Fischer's lack of concern for his Sherpas (according to Jon Krakauer). Furthermore, Krakauer goes on to criticize Scott Fischer's Base Camp manager, and team doctor, Dr. Ingrid Hunt. He says that "Rob Hall paid two highly experienced staff members to do what Hunt did alone, without pay," as well as saying that "the demands of simultaneously running Base Camp and meeting the needs of some twenty-five people... proved to be more than she'd bargained for" (Krakauer, p.117). Because Scott Fischer only had one person for Base Camp manager and doctor, as well as a less restricting acclimatization plan, and a sense of carelessness towards his Sherpas Ngawang Topche Sherpa became ill with HAPE and eventually died. These comments are embedded in the discussion of the Ngawang incident in order to veil Krakauer's own opinion and his own goal to place blame.

As for G. Weston Dewalt and Boukreev, in regards to placing blame, there really is none. Anatoli Boukreev states that, "my surprise in this situation was that Sherpas who were in Base Camp didn't go up immediately upon hearing the news of Ngawang Topche Sherpa's distress," (Dewalt/Boukreev, p.90). Ngawang Topche was the uncle to Lopsang Jangbu (another Sherpa on the expedition) and so it would make sense that the other Sherpas would rush to the aid of Ngawang. Although, the Sherpas did not quickly leave Base Camp as would be expected they instead, as Anatoli Boukreev said, "didn't go up until later in the day," (Dewalt/Boukreev, p.90). Anatoli Boukreev and G. Weston Dewalt allowed the reader to make up their own mind as to whether or not to blame the Sherpas. In doing so Boukreev said, "you shouldn't automatically assume that in a critical situation the Sherpas will perform to your expectations...not that they are incapable, instead, it is the matter of risk, asking them to do something dangerous that falls outside their assigned jobs and the responsibility they are paid to assume," (Dewalt/Boukreev, p. 90). G. Weston Dewalt and Anatoli Boukreev use this lack of excessive details and over-the-top description because of their goal to convey the events that occurred on the 1996 Everest Expedition in the most matter-of-fact manner as possible as well to allow possibility and flexibility in a story that is so hard to retell.

There is a story for the 1996 Everest Disaster and that story is written within the two books Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer, and The Climb by G. Weston Dewalt and Anatoli Boukreev. Because of the two very different sets of authors the portrayal of how the events occurred is very different between the books. Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer is a dark tragedy that poses as an answer to all the unanswered questions that Krakauer has been asking himself ever since the disaster occurred. It leads the reader into doing exactly what Jon Krakauer was doing while writing the book, which was trying to decide where to place the blame (Scott Fischer, Anatoli Boukreev, and Dr. Hunt). Although, Krakauer has the structure of the events there is a theatrical side to his story that is leading to the reader, and this is why Anatoli Boukreev set out to write his book The Climb. Anatoli Boukreev told his story to G. Weston Dewalt while he put the pieces together in the most factual manner possible, was the goal of Anatoli Boukreev. Therefore the accounts of the occurrences are written with two different motives in mind: solving the puzzle, and stating the facts.