Imperial Ascent: Mountaineering, Masculinity and Empire » (1st Edition)

Bayers (English, Fairfield U.) provides a reading of seven mountain climbing accounts that targets themes of colonialism, nationalism, imperialism, masculinity, and identity. The climbers' presentation of their feats, their attitudes towards sherpas and other local peoples, and the effects of climbing expeditions on the natural environment are considered. The climbing accounts are those the Americans Frederick Cook, Belmore Browne, and Hudson Stuck (on Mount McKinley and Denali in Alaska), the British climbers Younghusband and Hunt (on Everest), the Nepalese Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, and the Jon Krakauer's recent book Into thin air. Annotation ©2003 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR