Post 4

This section is very motivational! These men endured the worst possible events that could occur. After splitting up on three boats and the boats actually being split up, who would've thought that they would reunite! All three boats make landfall together after 497 days at sea. Motivation is the word to say the least. One part that I really enjoyed was when they said the man that will lose his feet could touch landfall first. This must've been a very touching moment for him being that he's been at sea for 497 days and before he loses his feet (which is unfortunate), he will be first to touch land. Although the seamen endure many different obstacles, Shackleton provides ways to make the seamen feel motivated and certain that they will make it through this difficult time. They went through freezing and windy conditions, little food, few clothing, and many sleepless nights. I don't understand how these men could endure such pain. It takes a lot of self motivation as well which is inspiring.

Section 4

The more you read this book the more you appreciate exactly what these men are going through. When in the last sentence of this section they say how excited they are to see land because they haven't seen it in over a year, that should say everything you need to know. I thought it was cool how they told the guy who would be losing his feet to gangrene that they would allow him to be the first person to ever step foot on the island because in a situation as dire as all of them are in, and especially him, they need any morale boost they can get. I thought for sure one of the boats was going to be lost when the waves got big and the boats started taking on water. This book is truly a great testament of human will and perseverance and I am intrigued to see how it ends, and curious what causalities/significant injuries will be sustained by the whole crew in the end.

Section 4

In the beggining of this chapter I felt like they had some hope since they left patience camp and started on their sea venture again. The story started to show that this wasn't the case from the first chapter where the man fell in the water while in  the tent on the boat. This was a shame because he had to air dry in that freezing air. The men were having trouble sleeping and Shackleton eventually lets them eat whatever food they want so they can sleep. They finally get to the elephant island and the one man had a heart attack and they were in very poor circumstances with there health. This is a shame. I wander if they even thought about this result when they first ventured out.

Post #4

This section of the book is by far the most nerve wracking. It seems that everything that can go wrong did go wrong. The first chapter begins with the men being forced into three boats (the James Caird, the Dudley Docker, and the Stancomb Willis) with Patience Camp quickly fading from their view. The men aren't concerned with anything besides escaping the ice and surviving the harsh sea. The team manages to make decent headway before stopping on a heavy floe for a night's rest. During their short time on the floe, it cracks, sending Ernie Holness into the freezing cold water and Shackleton into the darkness. The following day the men abandon the floe and continue their journey.The men then end up on a "floe berg," which also ends up disintegrating beneath their feet.From this point on the men stay in their boats and suffer through multiple cold, sleepless nights. What these men endure is amazing. They suffer through exhaustion from constant rowing, freezing cold salt water, high winds, close living quarters, high waves, sinking boats, frozen stiff clothes, and sleepless nights. The three boats even end up getting separated, which led  the men to believe that their crew mates were permanently lost at sea. I do not think I would have been able to make it through those kinds of living conditions. It was truly inspiring to see that despite their disheartening situation the men never gave up. Their motivation did not dwindle. Thankfully this sections ends on a high note for the men. The Caird and Willis mange to reunite with the Dockers while both groups approach the first piece of land they have seen in 497 days. All three boats make landfall and the crew is finally on solid, unsinkable land.  This section of the book kept me on the edge of my seat. I was so worried about the crew because it seemed like some of them weren't going to make it. Their motivation never ceases to amaze me. Even in the toughest situations they managed to pull together and pull through whatever is thrown at them.

Section 4

I found this section the most suspenseful of any other section. I was on edge reading the whole thing waiting to see where the crew would end up. Being on those small boats for days just trying to get to any sort of land, even ice bergs, sounds horrendous. They traveled through the nights exhausted and soaking wet. I would think the most challenging thing would be to keep all of the boats from separating from one another. One big wave of open sea, you may never make it back. Shackleton handled it all pretty well though.
The worst thing that happened was in chapter 3 when the crew discovered that Worsley made a mistake in calculations and Shackleton changed their destination AGAIN. That killed a lot of the crews morale. That night was terrible as well with everyone thirsty and going to the bathroom all night while being docked in the middle of the sea. Shackleton constantly tried to keep everyone together and upbeat for their journey. He even told Blackboro he could go ashore Elephant island before anyone. Blackboro was too distraught to even move onto the island, Rickenson ended up having a heart attack, and Greenstreet's feet were frostbitten were hard to walk on. At least they were on land.

Section 4

In this section the men's spirits were  detereorating worse. They were working and struggling harder to get to Elephant Island. They could see the island not too far in the distance but they knew that it would take a long time to get there. Not only their spirits were detereorating, but also their health. Some of the men were suffering frostbite  as well as gangerine on their feet. Rickenson even suffered a heartattack. Other men were becoming injured trying to get themselves and their crewmates to safety. Food was still in scarse supply and rations were becoming ever smaller. In the end of the last chapter of the section, the men had finally gotten to land. It took them over a year, and many sacrifices, to do so.

Endurance Post 4

As conditions got worse for the men, their attitudes remained the same. At this point the men had little food, they were cold, and barely slept. Dealing with these kind of conditions makes it worse for the journey. If they run out of food the men will starve to death, if they don't sleep they will start hallucinating and this takes a beating on their health, and if they don't stay warm they will freeze. Knowing this about the men makes me want to help them. Even though the men were in rough conditions they didn't have anything to say about it; no complaints. I don't know how these men are still standing, they just keep dealing with disappointments, they are probably wondering when it is going to end. From the way it sounds they were uncomfortable not only mentally, but physically. I feel as if the men are definitely wearing down and losing their motivation. I know if I was in their situation I would have been gone when they started eating blubber!! YUCK!!!

Post #4

Finally the men were on land! I love the line at the end of this section about how they were finally on "solid, unsinkable, immovable, blessed land." This part started very rocky as the men were in the ocean in the three boats dealing with pressure and wind and chunks of ice. They had to be even more alert than before so as to make sure they were not crushed by large floes and did not get separated from one another; which does wind up happening. They had to sleep in the boats because boarding a large chunk of ice was way too dangerous. It was a whole new experience for the men to deal with. Despite these conditions however they still kept pushing on. Their motivation is seriously very inspiring. After facing hardship after hardship they don't simply give up; they keep on fighting. Many of the men have health concerns that are raised in this part. One in particular being Blackboro who's feet have become ganglion and he probably won't be able to walk again. In a way it is kind of ironic since he was the stowaway. Another part in this section that stood out to me was when the Docker got separated from the other boats and there was a lot on confusion uncertainty in the air. Those on board the Docker thought that the others were goners. Luckily they spotted them come morning and on that same day washed up onto land. While this is very exciting at the same time the men are still in the middle of nowhere really. Their future is still very uncertain and while they have survived thus far I wonder what will come their way next.

Post 4

As I get further along in the Endurance, I began to feel dishearted for these seaman and all that they have gone through this far. The are not sleeping in the most desireable place. The food that they are eating such as seal blubber and dog is not something anyone thinks of having for a meal. On the top of that, they are sleeping on top of ice and some days water. Up until part four, they came across land. These men have not seen land in months! All of the things they have been through, I would appreciate the land because I wouldnt have to sleep on ice, water, and slush but now they are sleeping on rocks. One man actually had an heart attack! The things these seaman endure are unbelieve but they still have the will to go on this adventure. If it was me, I think I would have been stopped.

Post Four

When survival was no longer an option on the floes the men knew it was time to set foward.  Especially when one of their men fell right through the ice into the freezing water.  Patience Camp was finally in their past.  Once set sail and even separated the current took them far East.  Trying to find land where there was supposed to be supplies and food the men did not give up.  Shakleton was afraid the men were losing their optimism, and were at their breaking points.  The men lived in their boats, and had no protection from the outside temperature, weather conditions, and splashes of frozen water soaking them.  Blackboro's feet were announced dead.  His leather boots were wet and he could no longer feel his feet.  Hudson's hands were frostbitten, and he was in pain otherwise.  Everyone was sick, hungry, thirsty, and exhausted in everyway.  Once ashore land, the men found eachother and set up a safe camp to rest.  It was exciting for them to have made some kind of progress or change before continuing forward anymore.  Although the men had had enough way before now they still keep moving.  The mindset of these men is amazing.  Having recently losing power from Hurricane Sandy we should not be complaining that it is cold, when a story like this is so much more severe.  Motivation in the men is underlying their conditions for now.  I am impressed with where they are in this section of the book. 

Chapter 5 Shackleton vs Maslow...

The book  keeps  getting better and better...Did Maslow ever read about Shackleton's Journey?  I would say not ...because if he did...The pyramid would be upside down!  Maslow contends that the most basic needs but me met first before one can have a strong desire or focus motivation upon...Chapter 5 displays the how the men thrive on morality,creativity,spontaneity and problem solving with confidence and respecting of others, long, long before there needs of food. clothing and shelter are met. 
I could tell you excerpts but that was not what this blog was to be about.  I will tell you that Wild keeps the spirits up and motivating saying that the ship will be there this week ( and he says it every week).  The spirit of the group is not damped...they give multiple reasons why the ship is not there yet...They kept there sipirits up one way....Dreaming...and it works...thru the cold, hurt, hunger, thrist and even loss of extremities...these men are thoughtful and resilient.
But...Orde-Lees says, "There is no good in decieving ourselves any longer"(215)
Guess we will have to see if the dream stays alive,

Endurance: Post 4

This section of the book has been the most entertaining to me by far.  It started out from one extreme and by the end of the section it ended up in a whole different direction for the better. On page 158 it says, "Shackleton searched their faces for an answer to the question that troubled him most: How much more could they take."  At this point the men were all over the place from feelings of wondering if they were going to survive throughout the night, or if they were going to stay determined to hold out longer.  It shows how much they truly stuck together like a team in this section of the book.  Shackleton mentioned in chapter three that he was convinced that their best chance of reaching safety would be to remain together as one.  I think that was one of the best decisions that Shackleton has made rather than the men splitting up and going their separate ways.  I think they had a much better chance of safety and survival to remain together. However, Shackleton did agree with Worsley and allowed them to proceed independently later on in this section of the book. Shackleton thought it would now be best if the boats separated to try to make land along the southeast shore of Elephant Island.  On page 165 it says, "Shackleton suggested that they try chewing seal meat raw in order to swallow the blood. Pieces of the frozen meat were quickly handed out, and after several minutes of chewing and sucking, the men obtained enough of the bloody juice so they could at least swallow." Also on page 166 it says, "It was pull or perish, and ignoring their sickening thirst, they leaned on their oars with what seemed the last of their strength."  I cannot even begin to imagine being so desperate of thirst that I would have to drink blood just to be able to swallow and keep myself from dehydration.  That is completely disgusting, but under such circumstances they had no choice and needed to do so in order to survive.  At the end of chapter four it says, "A moment later they were chewing and sucking greedily, and the delicious water was running down their throats."  When the men spotted pieces of ice floating amongst the waves, they leaned over the side of the boat and started to scoop them up with their hands.  The men were extremely happy when they were finally able to have actual water to drink. I thought it was very considerate of Shackleton to let Blackboro be the first person ashore on Elephant Island. "They were on land. It was the merest handhold, 100 feet wide and 50 feet deep.  A meager grip on a savage coast, exposed to the full fury of the sub-Antarctic Ocean.  But no matter what, they were on land.  Solid, unsinkable, immovable, blessed land."  All in all, section four came to a closure with a wonderful, relieving ending. 

Part Five: Parting Ways

The fifth part of the book starts off with the men having just stepped foot on Elephant Island.  The mood is interesting though.  Because of the hardships they endured on the water, the men are quiet, perhaps somber, at the beginning of their stay on the island.  Their exhaustion was probably beyond what anyone in our class could ever possibly conceive.  Arriving at the island was not the last task though, they still had to find a suitable location to set up their camp.  Shackleton allowed them the luxury of sleeping and eating, for the sake of gaining back some lost strength, but after a survey of the area it was decided that their current location would not fare them well and so they needed to find a more suitable place to set up camp.

Even after moving to a new location the men became aware that the island most likely did not possess a location that could be labeled as “hospitable”.  Regardless, the men found the best that they could and chose a spot where they would be able to hunt penguins.  It seemed that their new camp would at least be survivable despite its inhospitable conditions and harsh weather.

With life on the floes over and an uncertain future unfolding for the men on Elephant Island, Shackleton knew it was time to develop a plan to push further and find help.  On April 20, Shackleton settled on the decision that some of the men would take the Caird, which was the most sea-worthy of their three vessels, and fight the seas to reach South Georgia.  In choosing this destination they would be embarking on a voyage through seas that were considered to be some of the stormiest known to man.  Shackleton chose only five of the men to make the trip with him: 

Worsley for his navigational skills, which were absolutely necessary;

Crean for his “rough, tactless nature” and history;

McNeish and Vincent, to avoid their causing trouble among the men staying behind;

and, McCarthy who was chosen simply for his experience and build, which was described as being “like a bull”.

The coming days were spent building a shelter and helping Shackleton and the other men chosen to seek help prepare to leave.  During this period of preparation, Shackleton pragmatically and realistically took measures to guide the future of the men in the event of his failure to reach South Georgia.  In Hurley’s journal, he made a statement that would leave Hurley in charge of the photographic materials that resulted from the trip.  Hurley, along with Lees, were left knowing that if the men did not make it South Georgia they would be responsible for taking charge of future rescue as well as the on island responsibilities that Shackleton was leaving behind.  Shackleton also wished that these two write the book outlining their journey (Interestingly, the acknowledgements section at the end of the book mention Macklin as what appears to be the major contributor to Lansing’s book).

Aside from Vincent and McNeish falling into the water and narrowly avoiding the loss of a tankard of water, parting was done as swiftly as they could.  Cheers and shouting were exchanged as the Caird was setting off, but the men on the island soon began to think of their helplessness and the long wait that laid ahead of them.  As always, the crew maintained a sense of confidence foreign to the average person.  One of the first things the men did was convert the boats into a hut. 

Island life was made no easier after the Caird’s departure.  As Macklin wrote:  “Fate seemed absolutely determined to thwart us.”  Even under such adverse conditions, the men lived as best they could.  The hut provided the opportunity to take care of some of the medical ailments of the men.  Notably, Macklin and McIlroy spent much time performing medical duties.  Greenstreet had frostbite on his feet which required him to remain in his sleeping bag.  They pulled on of Kerr’s teeth.  Rickenson slowly recovered from the heart attack he had suffered on arrival to the island.  Wordie faced an infected hand.  However, two cases in particular were quite nasty and had to be dealt with on the island.  First, Blackboro faced amputation surgery, during which his only anesthesia was chloroform.  Hudson’s pain in his butt had become a nasty abssess that, once dealt with, produced more than two pints of “foul-smelling liquid”.  These are procedures that done today would cause a person to cringe and dread.  The attitude of these men to put all else aside and do what must be done is most admirable.

Much of the life was mundane and filled with anxious waiting.  The men experienced huge ups and downs in morale – the stability of the past was no longer apparent.  They did whatever they could to pass the time until, hopefully, Shackleton would return with the rescue they needed.  Running out of tobacco, conditions inside their cramped hut, and wondering if and when Shackleton would return made life all the more harder. 

Their life on this island astounds me.  I’m not even sure how to relate this experience to the readings from our textbook, these experiences are beyond the normal study of human motivation.  Again, this is a question of survival.  What else could they possibly have done besides survive?

Section 3

Im section 3 the men were focused on food. All they could think about was food. They were still still trying to be uplifted even though they were very frustrated in this chapter. The men were also frustrated with Shackleton this chapter when he told them of the dogs fate. They didn't understand why they had to take the dogs lives to eat instead of seals. They finally got sea lion to survive off of even though they had already killed the dogs. It was quite sad to know they were this hungry they had to use this as a survival measure.

Post 4

Wow! This section was very intense. I found the men's motivation and bravery to be outstanding. Although some of the men did start to hit their breaking point ( I can only imagine why), some did not and they are very strong courageous men. I keep forgetting that this a true story, and real men actually experienced the events mentioned in this book. I found some of this events to be very intense parts of the book. For one, the whales surrounding them popping out of the sea around them, the crew being separated, not knowing if they would be able to regroup, and the freezing cold waters they were stuck in with 30 foot seas crashing down. I could not imagine being someone who was stuck in this mess. I do not think I would have the motivation to push through and try and survive this test. Their motivation is profound, and I am happy to be able to read this story, and admire their significant motivation.

Journal # 4

It was very frightening for them to leave Patience Camp because while doing so there were whales popping up around them and some even came a little too close. There were also birds flying overhead causing the men to duck their heads from the droppings. There were three boats they took out the James Caird, Dudley Docker, and , Stancomb Wills. These boats were primarily pulling boats but also for catching bottlenose whales which I thought was interesting. The Caird is 22 feet 9 inches long.  The boats weren’t overloaded with men either the Docker held nine, the Caird held eleven, and the Stancomb Wills carried eight. At night they have a watchman which I thought was very clever of them to have. In the middle of night Ernie Holness fell into the ice with his sleeping back because the broken flow. He is ordered to keep moving until his clothes dry. I could not imagine the pain of the ice cold water cold feel like. The fireman Bill Stevenson had also fallen into the water. Shackleton ordered to leave some ice tools and dried vegetables. They launched the boats again and found that they were in the open ocean.  Once they settled on some ice that they found, the next morning they woke up to 30 foot waves that were shaking the ice. They need to escape, Greenstreet wrote in his diary, “…a very anxious time as our floe was rocking and rolling heavily being…” (Lansing, 151).  Thankfully, they launched the boats again and left that dangerous situation. Unfortunately, there was so sleeping that night.

The question is, how much more can they handle?  Shackelton has noticed that some men might be at their breaking point while others are still determined. Due to their lack of sleep and the cold he said everyone can eat what they wanted.  Sleeping arrangement as always, are tough. On the Caird they made room for 4 sleeping bags and took turns trying to sleep. On the Docker, they only had enough room for the men to sit upright and try to sleep. They continuously wiggled their toes to make sure they didn’t freeze.  Eventually, they saw land that they called Elephant Island but the crew ends up getting caught in a current which caused them to move stagnantly.  To try to make some distance before the darkness hit they had to split up. Shackelton couldn’t see the Docker anymore and try to signal to them but they didn’t answer. Worsley was the leader of this ship. Worley tried to use his pocket compass and when the daylight hit they realized they were right next to Elephant Island.  Worsley had always passed out due to exhaustion but woke up in time to order the men what to do.

The Caird and the Wills had a rough night as well. The Wills kept hitting waves and the men sat knee dip in water. Shacketon was worried if the rope broke the Wills ship they would never make it. When it became daytime the Wills stayed next the the Caird and ended up next to Elephant Island as well. They found a small beach to dock on.  In the end, they all ended up finding each other because to Docker had to search fourteen miles for the beach the others were on. 

Part Four: Searching for Land

The men finally hit the waters when survival on the floe was out of the question.  This began an extremely dangerous leg of their journey.  A new water-specific danger surfaced, quite literally.  Whales were all around them.  Camping options were few and far between and one of their first attempts after leaving Patience Camp and their first attempt landed one of their men in the icy waters after a crack split right under his tent.  Things did not get easier from here.  In fact, Shackleton eventually let the men know that there would not be any more camping after how futile their attempts were after leaving Patience Camp.

Originally, they planned to set their course for Clarence or Elephant Island (which is where they ended up), but the conditions changed and they did set sail for King George Island and then on to Deception Island.  Deception Island was thought to be a good goal because there would supposedly be supplies and food there.  Even these plans were disrupted by the unpredictable weather and other variables affecting their course.  They had to fight hard after getting caught in a current that took them much further east than they should have been.  After even more set-backs, they again looked to Elephant Island as a possible destination.

Without the option to camp, the men lived in the boats which was a challenging experience.  There was no cover from the elements and the water that splashed into the vessels soaked them.  Their felt boots kept their feat soaked in icy water for extended periods of time.  Blackboro, the young man who had stowed away on the Endurance was wearing leather boots and complained that he could no longer feel his feet after several hours.  Hudson was developing an intense pain in his butt as well as frostbite in his hands.  They were overcome by thirst and hunger.

Just as Elephant Island became an attainable goal, the boats were separated.  The Docker disappeared.  The men in the Caird and Wills lit a candle at night so that the Docker may see them.  When they approached the island they found it difficult to locate an appropriate and safe point to bring the boats to shore.  The Caird and Wills searched the shore as the Docker was also looking for landing.  Both groups were unaware of the other’s proximity to the island.  Luck was on their side – their searches for safe landing brought them back together, an astonishingly fortunate turn of events. 

The two groups made for the best available spot to bring the boats in and then they made for land.  Blackboro, whose feet had been declared “dead” at this point was brought onto land.  Actually, Blackboro was the first man on the island.  This was a move planned by Shackleton to try to raise his spirits, which makes sense given Shackleton’s fear of the men losing their optimism and drive to forge forward.  They had finally hit land and were ready to make camp without the worry that the ground beneath them might split into two allowing the waters to engulf them.  This was a good day, although the men were sick, tired, and hungry, they were as happy as they could be in their situation. 

In this section, motivation cannot be described.  It was an necessity.  To have been unmotivated when those oars struck the waters could have meant a cold and wet ending for these men who had already fought mother nature herself to survive.  This part of the journey was one of pure survival – no rest; no certainty; and, no guarantees.

Post 3

Just like section 2, in section 3, more obstacles are arising making their destination to Paulet Island look even more challenging.  Their progress continues to be somewhat slow, as the ice never really opens up completely for them.  The men are pushed to the brink of starvation, as their lives begin to revolve around the thought of food, and the urgency of needing more of it to survive.  Their was times they had alot of food, like when Macklin killed the 1000 pound sea leapard, but this was only one of the few times they actually had a decent meal.  In this section the men had to eat the dogs in order to survive.  Many people may disagree with the eating of the dogs, however, its easy to have this opinion when your not starving to death. 

Post 2

Section 2 in my opinion was a bit more entertaining than the first section of this book.  The men are being faced with more and more obstacles, yet for the most part, coninue to have an optimistic outlook on their situation.  The Endurance has finally sunk in this section, and this in itself was one of the more demoralizing events of the section, being that, the ship sort of represented one of their last ties with civilization.  Though mostly everyone has stayed somewhat cooperative and positive up to this point,  towards the end of the section, McNeish showed one of the first real signs of fatigue and refused to continue onwards.  However, the problem was solved and McNeish continued on with his next assigned duty.  Shackleton felt uneasy from McNeish's little episode because he worries others may feel the same way.       

Endurance Section 3

Although Shackleton is preparing the men for the winter when all the animals will go away, he is refusing "too much food" for the seamen to eat. He feels that by eating little portions, it will prepare them for the Winter. I feel like this is torture, yet workable. If the seamen eat a decent amount of food, it might hold them from hunger longer; however, the seamen will be in for a surprise when Winter comes and they are even hungrier because their body became accustomed to how much food they were eating. It's a win-lose situation. Also, when Shackleton orders the killing of dogs for food, it almost disgusts me. Dogs are animals, but for some people dogs are friends or a part of the family; they're tamed, loyal, helpful in the sense of smell and are keen. They're animals that society has accepted greatly and domestically in which shouldn't be killed for food. Why wouldn't Shackleton kill seals over dogs? The seamen were losing their friend to put food in their stomachs which seems harsh and disgusting. I don't think I would be able to do this and it sounds like the seamen are doubting their boss.