Endurance: Part 3, Chapters 1-3

            In these chapters of Alfred Lansing’s Endurance, the men have unsuccessfully attempted to travel on foot, so they set up camp again on another ice floe. Unfortunately, the crew also had a shortage of food, and did not know when they would be able to obtain more.

Second-in-Command Frank Wild With Dogs

It was at this point that Shackleton decided to shoot the majority of the dogs, for they were eating too much of the valuable stores. This decision caused a great deal of distress and anger among the crew. Out in the desolate Antarctic, the men had needed to love something, to care for something, and the dogs had always given back their affection. The men who were in charge of dog teams had especially grown fond of their dogs, and they did not want to lose them. I would have struggled with this decision too. I have two dogs, and the thought of losing either of them breaks my heart. They have the power to make a person feel loved and cared about, and I can imagine that that is all the crew of the Endurance really desired at that point.

One of the literary terms used in these chapters is an epithet. Shackleton, as leader of the crew, was referred to as Boss, but this name brought light to many of Shackleton’s notable characteristics.

            “A heavy mist rolled in on January 25, and to McNeish it was a ‘proper sea fog,’ indicating the presence of the ice-free ocean nearby. Shackleton, too, thought it must be a sea fog. But the opening still did not come, and the Boss felt his patience growing thin,” (110).

            “Boss” is a name commonly used for the person in charge of a group or organization, but the crew referred to Shackleton by that name for other reasons, too. Shackleton had a sense of confidence about him that let everyone know he was in charge. He was not obnoxious or controlling, but the crew knew that they should do what he asked, when he asked, or there would be consequences. People referred to as “Boss” are oftentimes confident, clever, and determined, and Shackleton was awarded this name because he shared all of these characteristics.