Tannis

The novel, Into Thin Air, is about a mountaineering expedition up Mount Everest, which is the tallest mountain in the world. This story is told through the eyes of reporter Jon Krakauer who was hir

The novel, Into Thin Air, is about a mountaineering expedition up Mount Everest, which is the tallest mountain in the world. This story is told through the eyes of reporter Jon Krakauer who was hired to write an article for Outside Magazine about the commercialisation of climbing up Mount Everest. Krakauer ’s journey and novel ended up very different from what he thought he was getting himself into, which lead to him to write about one of the most disastrous expeditions in the history of this Mountain.

Jon Krakauer's novel gives us an honest look at how society commercializes nature to the point where safety and respect for that nature become less of a priority and economic gain becomes greater. Krakauer also concludes that these sorts of things are unlikely to change as people are often driven by money to survive. Krakauer states, “Nepal and China - are staggeringly poor. Desperate for hard currency, the governments of both countries have a vested interest in issuing as many expensive climbing permits as the market will support” (Krakauer 356). The prices to climb the mountain are unbelievable as Krakauer noted in the novel, “...permit fee…$70,000 for up to seven climbers, plus up to $10,000 for each additional climber” (Krakauer 27). His question of commercializing makes us think further into the universality of human greed at the expense of nature and life.

What’s extremely interesting about this novel is Krakauer’s attempt to try and make sense of this tragic disaster as well as respect the mountaineers that passed away. The author’s ability to pay attention to detail and include his extended research helps readers better understand the novel and gives us a better visualisation of the events that occurred. The way he explains every step of the climb with outlined detail makes readers feel like they lived this tragic disaster as well. This novel will keep both climbers and non-climbers captivated.

This novel is a great example of how humans take advantage of the natural environment and use it as a commodity for personal gain even if it as the expense of human life. My question to other readers after reading this novel would be; “how far are humans willing to risk lives for commercialization on adventure trips”?