tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1393767047761198934.post6373910229228273572..comments2014-07-09T00:29:40.725-04:00Comments on Reading the Extreme in World Adventure Narratives: Learning from examplesjashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04174652571648541889noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1393767047761198934.post-52705462210772019732013-04-18T11:14:45.754-04:002013-04-18T11:14:45.754-04:00I would agree that accounts such as Harrer's a...I would agree that accounts such as Harrer's allow those who wish to climb to do so armed with the information gained from "experiencing" (via the armchair, as it were) the mistakes of others. However, I would disagree with Nicole's point that the increased rate of success on the mountain led directly to the 1957 disaster. For that to be true, one would have to assume that every person on the North Face was a historian of sorts, and was even aware of all the events Harrer touches on in his book. It is clear from the narrative that this is not the case, and that the 1957 climbers were not suffering from a false sense of security resulting from too much information, but rather from none at all.Clairehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06070619566410583743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1393767047761198934.post-70032272850361816622013-04-18T00:21:54.869-04:002013-04-18T00:21:54.869-04:00I think your comment about real-life armchair adve...I think your comment about real-life armchair adventurers, those who are close to the events they are watching in person, is really interesting. My impression from the book and Harrer's attitude towards these observers is that he did not expect or want them to be involved in any aspect of the climb. In fact, he comments negatively on their responses to the climbing they witness and their inability to form correct judgements about the actions unfolding before them. The only spectators that he treats with respect are the guides and rescuers. It must be noted that the rescuers are always other climbers or experienced guides. Thus, he only appreciates the spectators that are members of the mountain climbing club, and this membership prevents them, by definition, from being arm-chair adventurers. The tension between reading about these experiences from afar, often in both time and place, and actually witnessing them as they unfold is an interesting one as some spectators, especially in the Alps, are qualified by their membership in the mountain climbing club and their experience with these mountains to provide aid and to participate in the drama unfolding before them. I'm not sure if the simple tourists that pay exorbitant rates to watch through the telescope are qualified to call for aid. From Harrer's telling, it seems like they often don't call for help. Instead, they seem to wait for guides and other climbers to spring in to action.Eryn B.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05163144963350501488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1393767047761198934.post-30821174704115982622013-04-16T08:49:52.609-04:002013-04-16T08:49:52.609-04:00In response to the first point, I would say Harrer...In response to the first point, I would say Harrer does speak to learning from history, especially since this was the 'golden age' of mountain climbing in Europe and new discoveries, equipment, and routes were being made every year. However, the final chapter of the main part of his book was dedicated to the 1957 tragedy in which the apparent, startling incompetence of the four men who were on the North Face is commented upon innumerable times. It's a double-edged sword: learning from past successes and failures inevitably produces more successes, and more successes causes people to forget about / underestimate the dangers of the mountain, resulting in less competent people attempting to summit and instead creating further disasters as in 1957.Nicolehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16558600512967845763noreply@blogger.com