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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What quality does Maix say Harrer has that qualifies him to write about the Eiger?

2. What do Rebitsch and Vörg find when they start up the mountain?

3. How many parties left the Eiger without an attempt to climb the North Face in 1937, due to bad weather?

4. After Buhl collapsed, who took the lead of the party?

5. What did Von Allmen make, as he waited for Toni Kurz and his group of climbers?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the end of Sedlmayer and Mehringer's attempt to climb the North Face.

2. Describe Maix and Harrer's collaboration.

3. After Buhl, Jöchler, the Maags, and the French traveled up the Spider, in what arrangement did they bivouac?

4. Was there rivalry between the parties attempting to climb the North Face in 1937?

5. Where did rescuers start from to try to rescue Toni Kurz?

6. Describe the ascent of Buhl, Jöchler, the Maags, and the French through the Ramp.

7. What knowledge did Sedlmayer and Mehringer have and lack when they attempted to climb the North Face?

8. What did Rebitsch and Vörg do, after a harrowing climb on the mountain, when they learned that Gollackner had died on the mountain?

9. What happened to Bartolo Sandri and Mario Menti, who attempted to climb the North Face early in the summer of 1938?

10. What metaphor did the author use to describe the societal function of mountain climbing?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the character of the mountain in the book.

1) How does the nature of the mountain change over the course of time in the book? In what ways is this change natural, and in what ways is mankind responsible for change in the mountain?

2) How does the mountain function as a character in the book? Is it ever personified? How so? What qualities does the mountain have?

3) How does the mountain affect the climbers, guides, and locals in the book?

Essay Topic 2

Extreme mountain climbing pushes the limits of human ability. Discuss this aspect of climbing in Harrer's book.

1) What drives human being to push the limits of human ability, according to Harrer? Is this a worthwhile pursuit?

2) How do the limits of human accomplishment change over time? Does climbing the North Face become less of an accomplishment in any way over time?

3) What does it mean to say that a task is impossible? How does the impossible become achievable?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss nationalism, rivalry, and prejudice in Harrer's book.

1) What is Harrer's viewpoint on international cooperation and on different nationalities in the book?

2) What role do national rivalries play in the race to climb the North Face and in the following attempts?

3) What is Harrer's opinion about Italian climbers, and how does it inform his presentation of Corti's ill-fated climb? Can Harrer's presentation be relied on? What other biases does he seem to hold?

(see the answer keys)

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