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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 year was the final section of the book added?

2. Who made the last successful ascent of the North Face in 1961

3. To what does Harrer attribute the fact that Longhi was unable to climb up the rope after he fell?

4. How many women were in the team who attempted to climb the North Face in July, 1962?

5. What did Tonella think of Corti's description of what happened?

Short Essay Questions

1. After bivouacking above the Spider, how did Helmuth Drachsler and Walter Gstrein reach the summit?

2. Why does Harrer call the climb by Radovan KuchaÅ™ and Zdeno Zibrin cautious?

3. Describe the climb of the first women to attempt the North Face.

4. What does Harrer say about Corti's knowledge of the North Face of the Eiger?

5. At the end of the chapter "The International Rescue Team," what does Harrer suggest might happen in the future regarding Nothdurft and Mayer?

6. Describe the attempt to climb the North Face by Brian Nally and Barry Brewster in 1962.

7. What were Nothdurft and Mayers' families reactions to the tragedy?

8. What contradictions are there in Corti's accounts of Nothdurft during the climb?

9. What was the weather like during Erich Vanis, Hans Ratay, and Karl Lugmayer's first night on the mountain in 1952?

10. Describe Erich Friedli, Jr. and Arnold Heinen's climb in 1963.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the roles of skill and chance in climbing the North Face of the Eiger.

1) How does Harrer address luck or chance in success or failure of climbing the North Face? How big a role does luck or chance play in success or failure?

2) What skills are necessary to climb the North Face? How can skill mitigate bad luck or ill chance, if it can?

3) What role does skill play in a successful climb of the North Face? How essential is skill, and are there any substitutes for it?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss teamwork and friendship in Harrer's book.

1) How is teamwork important to climbers? How do climbers help each other?

2) How is a solo climb different from a climb by a team or group up the North Face?

3) What is the role of friendship or camaraderie between climbers? How is Harrer's relationship with Fritz an important part of his portrayal of his own climb up the North Face? What other friendships are important in the book?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss conflict in Harrer's book.

1) In what ways is there conflict between man and nature in the book? How does the Eiger function as an antagonist?

2) In what ways is there conflict between man and himself in the book? How does Harrer struggle with himself? What internal conflict is there in other climbers in the book?

3) In what ways is there conflict between man and man in the book? What personal and national conflicts, enmities, and rivalries are associated with mountain climbing?

(see the answer keys)

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