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Post by dcomeaux on May 31, 2024 19:39:23 GMT
I was excited to see this listed in our readings as I have had to watch a video of a telling of sorts on this one so it was not entirely foreign to me. It was nice to read this one rather than watch it. I printed this one out as I like to highlight and annotate my thoughts as I am reading. I will share a few of my thoughts below. - On page 65 it discusses the temperature being 50 degrees below zero which is 107 degrees of frost. But it "was nothing more than 50 degrees below zero. That it should be more important than that was a thought that never entered his head". The man is not thinking about the issues or consequences he is going to face on his trek at all.
- Something that just struck me as odd - on page 66 the man said that he was glad he did not have a sled. Why was he glad? Would that not have made things easier and quicker for him? Was he just trying to prove to himself (and others) that he could make the journey in the cold that he was not familiar with?
- The last thing I will note (I have others I noted but I will not list them all) is on pages 67-68 where it says, "He was not much of a thinker" and also where the man is thinking to himself about using a nose guard that would have covered his nose and face. he says, "But it did not matter much...What was a little frost? A bit painful, that was all. It was never serious". I found this one specifically intriguing as the frost and lack of fire (he did not think of where he placed his fire) is what cost him his life so it was more than painful and quite serious after all.
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Post by meagangcurrie on May 31, 2024 20:13:06 GMT
I want to comment on your second observation, about the sled. It wouldn't make sense for the man to think "he could do it on his own". I say this because near the beginning of the story the author states, "He was quick and ready in the things of life, but only in the things, and not
in their meanings." If he thought it was a challenge suggested by the old man then that would be a negation of the author's statement. Then what was it? If the man was "quick and ready in the things of life" why did he not think to bring a sled? That is the question we are left with. Perhaps it was the intense weather conditions that was leading him to think about certain things. As the weather grew worse, perhaps the man thought to himself that he could make it to his destination with no help. The attempts to survive began to appear more desperate near the end of the story and his actions appeared more frantic. These actions were stirred by fear rather than just the man's observations. The answer to the question could also be as a simple as the man did not wish to bring a heavy load. Think about it, what would a sled provide for him? The Yukon is a mountainous region and the weather was intense. Pulling a sled up an incline is difficult and it would be difficult for him to sled down the mountain as he probably could not see well. Let us also note that it was dark, the author even states that the sun was absent from the sky. Perhaps it is up to each reader's own interpretation.
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Post by dcomeaux on May 31, 2024 20:45:43 GMT
I guess it depends on what you think of when you think of a sled. Maybe what I am thinking of is not technically a sled and maybe that is the issue with my train of thought. I am thinking of something that is pulled by a dog or something similar. My opinion also may be skewed by how I perceive the man. My interpretation of the man is that he is careless and somewhat overconfident. He seems to be very...self-assured. He dismisses several warnings about traveling alone and even thinks to himself that the older men are "womanish" when they say not to travel alone in the cold weather. I think all of that together is what colors my opinion of the man and the story in general. On the other hand, I completely understand your point of view as well. I suppose it just depends on what side of the fence you are standing.
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Post by mjunious on Jun 3, 2024 17:32:12 GMT
Full disclosure, I have never trekked up a mountain in negative 75 degree temperatures alone in the dark, so I am no expert on the man's situation. The sled, reminded me of this description of the man: "He was quick and ready in the things of life, but only in the things, and not in their meanings". It made me think of a possible connection between the stories of light and the character's ability to find meaning. In this story, it is not until his light is extinguished that the man understands that it might have been worth bringing the sled, despite it being more weight, because the dog could have pulled him out of the mountain or he could have used it in aide to preserve his fire. In "...Owl Creek Bridge" he has to shut out the light "...in order to fix his last thoughts upon his wife and children", which at that moment probably felt more meaningful in his life than the cause he is about to die for. Hemingway gives his characters a "well-lighted place" to escape from their problems. Maybe these characters are dwelling on insignificant things that are preventing them from seeing the meaning in their lives?
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