the climber's death

[cj001f]

Thanks Lowell.

[skykilo]

Good article, thanks Lowell and Lito!

 

"No man is an island..."

[astrov]

Thanks for reviving this thread, there has been some great discussion here. In parituclar I like what Norman_Clyde said (reminds me of that story in "The Pugilist at Rest" by Thom Jones featuring a badass ER doctor) and what stonehead offered about Promethean urges.

 

I was writing in a journal at the time you all were discussing this online- at the time I didn't have internet access. So here is what I had been thinking. Kind of a variation on the Promethean theme. Discuss. Attach additional pages if necessary. (Don't worry, it's not about Lord Jim).

 

11-24-05

 

An air of heroism is necessary if one is to see oneself as a celestial being, fixed bright above the benighted, quotidian, pathetically egalitarian crowd. As Josef Conrad observes near the beginning of "Lord Jim", it is easy to bow to the law's common demands, but it is only the crucible of catastrophe that can expose weakness in a man hitherto unsuspected. In these grave, momentous climaxes, no legal system can direct him. He can rely only on the semblance of self-possession and mastery which he may have accumulated in fits and starts through life if his cool head is to prevail. Some seek these mettle-testing trials, but making any preparation for them seems to mute the brightness of the triumphant ring that follows when these challenges are invariably dispensed of forthwith.

 

This is why mountaineering literature seems to be an exercise in authorial ambiguity; with all presented facts militating towards impressing the reader of the author's qualification, modesty, expertise, and general providence in selecting Mt. Death as his next summit, and at the same time strongly suggesting the insanity, brutality and impossibility of the task before him, given his present bad luck, illness, equipment shortage, etc. The goal of adventure (broad generalization) is that glorious catharsis that comes from cheating death, from ascending above the mere equalizing prohibitions of societal law, and instead tempting the laws of Fate itself; no, not just tempting, but letting them squeeze your family jewels in a vise, since at this high level of engagement, the prohibitions of Fate take on a personalized, specific nature, like "Don't climb Mt. Death given that you haven't had a sip of water in nearly two days, and have dropped one of your ice axes, have no oxygen, and a storm is setting in, and night is falling, &c." Furthermore, the flirtation with death becomes so intimate that the actual point at which probability cannot be thwarted any longer becomes immediate and tangible. A mountaineer can see that death awaits only a few steps higher, and can see the spot in the snow quite clearly where, if he were to dare, there would be no more endeavor. Mountaineers have turned back a hundred feet from the summit (and less!) after spending years approaching the place. The thrilling specificity of the prohibition is the enticement. If you, mountain climber, proceed any farther on this particular climb, on this day, given the conditions around you, you will die. This is not a general moral precept applicable to the slothful, indulgent many!

[montypiton]

Wow - I'm pleased to see how many take this seriously - and so much is truly worth reading - several posts stand out for me - the gent who took the long factor-2 in Austria, the gal who lost her fiance, Mr. Skoog --

 

I've lost some partners along the way - one of my early mentors died teaching a club class - and I have twice climbed into circumstances where my survival was a result of a change in weather (both times on "expeditionary" alpine climbs where I got pinned down up high, ran out of food & fuel, and was 'as good as dead' if storm continued)

 

I have found my own "near-death" experiences invaluable. One mentor (this one still lives) insisted that one cannot live authentically who has not accepted his/her own death. To avoid activities because "I might die doing this" is to live in denial. Climbing, and other "high-risk" activities are valuable precisely because they confront us with our own mortality. Staring death "bang in the eye" is far more empowering than a simple adrenaline rush. After confronting death, what is left to fear? Each of us knows we are going to die living, yet we continue to live..

 

An old trappist monk once told me that he could tell from photographs of Messner and Habeler that these men were mystics (he said he could tell by their eyes) - and he counseled me to keep climbing as a way of getting closer to God. I have followed his counsel, though perhaps not as closely as I might have -- I turned down a couple of significant invitations because I was too proud to let my partners pay my way...

 

Anyway, the short answer is "Yes - if I knew I was going to die climbing, I would continue to climb"

[Alpinfox]

From PATHS OF GLORY

 

two anonymous French WWI soldiers talking the night before tomorrow's assault on a heavily fortified German position

 

 

1 - I'm not afraid of dying tomorrow, only of getting killed.

2 - That's as clear as mud.

1 - Which would you rather be done in by? A bayonet or a machine gun?

2- Machine gun, naturally.

1-That's my point. They're both pieces of steel ripping into your guts... only the machine gun is quicker, cleaner and less painful, isn't it?

2 - What does that prove?

1- That proves most of us are more afraid of getting hurt than getting killed. Look at Bernard. He panics when it comes to gas. Gas doesn't bother me a bit. He's seen photos of gas cases, but it doesn't mean anything to me. But I'll tell you something. I'd hate like the devil to be without my tin hat. But I don't mind not having a tin hat for my tail.

2 - Why's that?

1 - That's where your brains are. Because I know a wound to the head will hurt more than one in the tail. The tail is just meat, but the head-- the head is all bone.

2- Speak for yourself.

1- Tell me this. Aside from the bayonet, what are you most afraid of?

2- High explosives.

1- Exactly. It's the same with me. Because I know that it can chew you up worse than anything else. Look, it's like I'm trying to tell you. If you're really afraid of dying... you'd be living in a funk all the rest of your life... because you know you've got to go someday, any day. If death is what you really fear, why should you care about what kills you?

2-You're too smart for me, Professor. All I know is nobody wants to die.

[bstach]

I'm taking this question to its logical conclusion. I know I am going to die doing *something*, so I have resolved to do nothing. I just hope it doesn't kill me.

[Lowell_Skoog]

I'm taking this question to its logical conclusion. I know I am going to die doing *something*, so I have resolved to do nothing. I just hope it doesn't kill me.

 

If that is a logical response to this question then playing Russian roulette is equally logical, from a different point of view.

[JosephH]

Back home we always just said "the deader, the better..."

[bstach]

Not sure I follow your logic, Skoog. Can you explain your Russian Roulette comment?

 

Anyway...I thought it would be obvious that my post was a cheeky answer to an equally inane question.

 

Granted, did lead to some interesting discussion.

[Dr_Flush_Amazing]

I'll fight like hell to hide the fact that I've given up.

[Lowell_Skoog]

Not sure I follow your logic, Skoog. Can you explain your Russian Roulette comment?

 

If it is logical to "do nothing" to avoid something that might kill you, then it is equally logical to say that if climbing is worth doing, Russian roulette may be worth doing. To some people, it might be.

 

I thought it would be obvious that my post was a cheeky answer to an equally inane question.

 

I think the question in this tread is anything but inane. It provides an opportunity to consider what your values are.