I think I should first say that I have a super old copy of
this book, so I’m not entirely sure whether everyone else has pictures in their
version. My version, which appears to have been added to Hamilton’s library in
1942, has a number of illustrations, some of which are quite helpful as they
provide a visual for some of the more technical aspects of the writing, and
others are simply quite amusing (people in mid air, lots of slack in the rope,
as they fall of a part of the mountain and everyone else appears to be just
watching). I enjoyed the range of the types of sketches, which included notes
on equipment, geology, notable figures, and scenes from the various expeditions
in the Alps.
In regards to the writing itself, I found it to be pretty
dull. I was constantly reminded of Herzog’s Annapurna because of the
militaristic language in which Whymper refers to the mountains he’s climbing. I
found that my interest peaked up when the summit efforts became a race against
the Italians. The question of who was going to make it to the summit first kept
me interested in reading. I can’t tell whether that my interest stemmed from
the fact that it was a competitive effort to be the first ever to reach the
coveted summit, or whether it was instead just the competitive spirit itself.
It probably would not have been as exciting if the mountain had already been
climbed before.
Similar to Hannah, my interest quickly disintegrated into
disbelief when they started throwing rocks at the Italians. I couldn’t believe
it! My first thought was oh my goodness, one of the rocks is going to hit
someone on the head or start an avalanche or something is going to go horribly
wrong because of throwing rocks. I did not like their choice one bit. I usually
associate climbing as having a pretty tight community, but this is just the
exact opposite. Why not allow the Italians the opportunity to continue to push
to the summit? What on earth inspired them to throw rocks instead of respecting
the efforts that the Italians had made thus far and encouraging them to
continue? The action definitely reiterated and reemphasized all of the
militaristic language used throughout the narrative.
Two things. First, I'm jealous of the pictures you describe in your copy, they seem somewhat ridiculous. I downloaded an ebook copy of this narrative and read it on my computer screen, which was conveient (and more importantly, it was free), but I definitely missed out on the presentation of the physical copy. Second, I think the rock throwing episode fits within Whymper's character, as ridiculous as it seems to us after reading about the emhapsis on safety and teamwork in other texts. Even compared to Herzog and other dedicated mountain-conquerers, Whymper seemed to carry himself without much concern for anything but the eventual fulfillment of his personal ambitions. Not only does he drop rocks to alert the Italians of his triumph, but he seems pleased when they interrupt their ascent to seek shelter from the falling rocks. Its a moment of immense immaturity, and I think that's a characteristic of Whymper's character throughout the narrative.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the pictures in my book were one of the few things I found amusing about the text. And similarly, I found myself struggling to keep my eyes open as Whymper belabored the importance of climbing rope or reviewed with painstaking detail the intricacies of his tent. His references to "assault" and "attack" on the mountain also made me think of Herzog, probably my least favorite text of the semester next to Whymper (which doesn't mean neither texts are valuable, Janelle!). Speaking generally, the older the narrative seemed to go back in time, the less I seemed to enjoy the read. I even found Muir's writing style a bit dull, which surprised me because Muir is my idol. I had never connected the rock throwing to the overwhelming militaristic vibe of the text, but I definitely now see the relation. I also find his emotionless recount of his companion's death similarly militaristic. I wouldn't be surprised to hear that Whymper carried a rifle up the mountain with him.
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