Overview: Into Thin Air By Jon Krakauer

ntroduction Information - Riley Miller
Title- Into Thin Air
Genre- non-fiction
Author- Jon Krakauer
Purpose- To tell his life changing experience
Occasion- To share his experience that changed his life, and many other peoples lives

Setting and Historical Context
In the book Into Thin Air the location of the story is Mt. Everest, the world's tallest mountain. The disaster happened in late April and mid-May 1996. Jon Krakauer and his team climb up all 4 base camps before reaching base camp 4 and hiking to the summit. All the climbers were in awe that one minute the skies are clear, and then the next minute the skies are stormy and deadly. I would think they could tell that a storm was coming from being that high up, but Mt. Everest

He is also the narrator. He has to battle his way back down the mountain side of the antagonist, Mt. Everest. The whole trip on Mt. Everest was a huge conflict, but mostly on the descent down. Jon Krakauer has to figure out a way to survive and make it back down alive. The mountain is not forgiving, and there is no easy path on the way down the mountain side. He can't give up and just lay down. He has to find the courage to overcome this seemingly impossible obstacle. Everyone should learn that lesson of never giving up and always fighting, and finding a way to get past their

79) (Simile). "The wind kicked up huge swirling waves of powder snow that washed down the mountain like breaking surf, plastering my clothing with frost." (pg. 125) (Simile).These smilies really compare, and show the reader the harsh conditions the climbers faced everyday. The main paradox in the book is that experience and preparation ultimately means nothing on Mt. Everest. In particular, no one thought that such a tragedy could occur on an expedition guided by Rob Hall, the most celebrated Everest guide dog of the decade. Jon Krakauer often uses personification to describe Mt. Everest and the harsh forces of nature on its slopes, making it seem that they are actively fighting the climbers as they attempt to reach the summit and survive the descent. An example can be found on pg. 59, where he describes the sounds of a glacier: "Retiring to my tent at night, I was serenaded by a madrigal of creaks and percussive cracks, a reminder that I was lying on a moving river of ice." At the height of the storm, Jon Krakauer is so tired and in pain that he temporarily gives up moving and sits still. It is ironic that he finds this better than to the intense struggle of continuing to move, even though he knows staying still means death. Rob Hall and Yasuko Namba have the same experiences, where death seems like the more reasonable option compared to the