"The Final Choice"

Touching the Void Seminar Paper~Five Important passages in chapter 6 “ The Final Choice”

1.) “He was still grinning, and his confidence was infectious. Who said one man can’t rescue another, I thought. We had changed from climbing to rescue, and the partnership had worked just as effectively. We hadn’t dwelt on the accident. Thee had been an element of uncertainly at first, but as soon as we had started to act positively everything had come together.” (Simpson 87).

This passage is important because it shows the partnership Joe and Simon have, and their willingness to work together no matter how much it takes. Not dwelling on the terrible accident that had happened they were able to think about the positive side of things, and that in itself is significant.

2.) “Simon knew all the time that he could descend alone quite safely if he chose. I began to thank him for what he was doing, and then quickly topped myself. It would only emphasize my dependence on him.” (Simpson 89).

This passage is great because Joe knew that he really was depending on Simon and because of what Simon was doing he was going to live. Simons chances of getting off the mountain were a lot greater by himself, and they both knew.

3.) “It was a measure of how cold I had become to see how long it took before I thought of hammering an ice screw into the slope. The wind and constant avalanches had fogged my mind after numbing my body.” (Simpson 90).

When I read this passage I just thought wow, it really shows the significance of how drained they really are. Its amazing how drained they are, yet are still able to think somewhat and concentrate on what they need to achieve to survive. 4.) “I waited for the pain to subside in my knee. Several times I felt it twist sideways when my boot snagged, and each time the movement was unnatural. There would be a flare of agony as the knee kinked back, and parts within the joint seemed to shear past each other with a sickening gristly crunch.” (Simpson 86).

This passage shows how much pain Simpson is in with every movement. It tells of the insurmountable feat he must achieve to save his own life.

5.) “As he spoke he reached out and caught hold of my waist, tugging me gently towards him. He was careful, almost tender, in the way he spun me around so that I was facing out from the slope when I came to a stop beside him. He clipped me into a second ice screw that he had placed beside the one on which he was hanging, and directed my uninjured leg to a foot hole that he had hacked from the ice. I realized then that he had been fully aware of the pain he had been putting me through, and this concern was a quiet way of saying, it’s alright. I wasn’t being a bastard. It just had to be done.” (Simpson 92).

This passage is actually my favorite one, I think it shows how great of a friendship Joe and Simon truly have. It was also the first part in the book that Simon actually show some sort of great sympathy for his friend, and what he was going through. I think he always did feel sympathy in his heart for his friend, but to show it makes it seem a bit more real. In a way you could say that it was just as hard for Simon as it was for Joe, not because he was going through pain, but because I think its emotionally painful to see your friend go though that, and have to help him the whole way.