SECTION 9: Part 5, Ch. 1-3



Shackleton and five crew members ready
 to board the Caird and go to South Georgia



Having finally reached Elephant Island, the men rejoiced and celebrated a new chance and hope for survival. Setting up camp, eating a hearty meal, and sleeping like they hadn’t in years were only a few of the tasks the men did on their fist day on the island. Unfortunately their celebrating was short-lived, since, in the next few days, they had to search for a more livable area to camp on for the time being. After finding a suitable place, Shackleton had to make a difficult decision to send himself and a crew of five men on the Caird to go to South Georgia in the hopes of finding relief and safety finally. With the winds on their side, they soon make preparations and head off.

Almost any person can imagine a time when they set off to do something, but were unsure about the future and what it would bring. Saying goodbye to people that we care deeply about, and yet in the back of our minds, we wonder that could be the last time we ever say those words. When a teenager goes off to college, when a soldier goes off to war, when a family is moved to another state because of a job, these are all times when a “goodbye” is a little more than just any other “goodbye”. They are more tentative and uncertain, and this is exactly what the crew was feeling when they said their farewells to their fellow men heading out to South Georgia.

I feel the literary term that best fits in this section would be tone. After the crew has realized their reality, they become more gloomy than usual. The possibility of being split up for good hangs over their heads and disheartens them a little bit. Lansing’s tone of finality is a good supplement to help readers understand just how different the attitudes of the crew will be now. Lansing describes it well as he says, “But the tension in the air was unmistakable. Both groups knew they might never see one another again.”