IR Blog Post 4

The Endurance by Caroline Alexander

"I am not very susceptible to emotions, but as those noble peaks faded away in the mist, I could scarce repress the sadness to leave forever the land that has rained on us its bounty and been salvation. Our hut, a lone relic of our habitation, will become a centre around which conveys of penguins will assemble to gaze with curiosity and deliberate its origin. Good old Elephant Isle" (Alexander page 185)

These words were said by Hurley after the rescue of the crew. After being stranded on the ice for 10 weeks, they were finally rescued. The crew had been in such horrible conditions that when they got to Elephant Isle, they felt much safer, although there was still blizzards and freezing winds. Living in a small hut made out of a few lifeboats, they camped there for weeks, waiting to see a boat sail across the shoreline. Although Elephant Isle did not have a "homey" feel, the crew still felt grateful for its masses of food and water. At this moment, Shackleton is the tiredest he has ever been. "I have done it. Damn the admiralty, not a life lost and we have been through hell" said Shackleton. Shackleton's leadership had brought these men to safety, and without him, many would have died.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSAE09AKkLU&feature=related

The video above shows the end of the journey. After they spent so long on the ice, they made the trek to Elephant Isle in search of rescue. Although they didn't get help right away, the Island was plentiful in resources. As Shackleton left on the life boat to go find rescue, most thought that he would never return. The only thing that kept to crew sane was Shackleton's presence, and most thought that everyone would die without him. But Shackleton did return with a large steam boat. Once they were seen by the boat and sent back home, Shackleton was not recognized as a hero. People back home said they were all just lucky that they got to miss two years of the World War. Throughout the story, there have not been many symbols, but i see the ice as obstacles. Ice originally brought down the ship, and ice has stopped Shackleton from finding rescue. The ice always seems to be in the way inhibiting the men from success.

http://www.nzetc.org/etexts/Gov08_06Rail/Gov08_06Rail029a%28h280%29.jpg

This picture shows Shackleton returning on his lifeboat. This image captures the emotions that the men were feeling. After being lost and confused for so long in the harsh cold environment, there is finally some light. An emotion that is almost never captured on camera is the feeling of rescue. This photo does so perfectly. This unique image helps me to see the gravity of the situation. They were waiting for weeks and weeks to see this boat and it had finally come.