Book Review: Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage

SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST

Survival of the fittest. This was said by Darwin over a few expansive span of years—being capable of adapting and reproducing will survive and others will perish.

According to this, humans are not really supposed to survive in places like Antarctic or Arctic. We can survive only if we simulate the environment we are used to with proper insulation, food, water, etc.

THE EXPEDITION

“Endurance” is the story of Shackleton’s voyage to the Antarctic. An expedition set out in 1914-1915, Shackleton wished to reach Antarctic then walk across it.

With a team of 27 members, they set out from England to try and do what nobody could ever accomplish. But it is important to remember that this story is not about adding heroism to man’s list of greatest achievements.

But it is about survival. According to Murphy’s law—whatever can happen will happen. (Over a period of time every probability will occur). Unfortunately for Endurance, that period of time was 500 days. They had to survive the worst of Mother Nature whilst maintaining their sanity.

THE STRUGGLE

Unable to pass through the Weddell Sea, they were stuck due to the ice surrounding the boat. Things kept deteriorating and they eventually had to abandon ship. They had to take what they could along the 3 small boats and set up camps on the floes. Instead of drifting towards Paulet Island, they started drifting towards the north. Their goal to conquer Antarctic faded but their fight for survival was raging.

Finding a break in the ice, they launched their boats heading to Elephant Island. They spent over 2 weeks in the boats in abysmal conditions. Upon reaching the island, a small party decided to go to South Georgia to bring some help. This is the story of how they survived and finally reached back home.

REFLECTIONS

I try to find a few quotes from a book that might summarize the book. For Endurance, I thought of finding a quote that showed their struggle, but each chapter and each page had its own set of struggles.

If you read this book, you could even think that this is fiction, mystery, and adventure—a thriller classic. The anecdotes from the book are hard to believe. You couldn’t really assume that humans could survive this.

This is also the story of brotherhood, explaining why man is a social animal. Working as a group, adding the strengths and covering for weaknesses, how a group could survive the worst of Mother Nature.

RECOMMENDATION

One thing to recommend: Familiarize yourself with some jargons of the boating world. It will help you understand the book better.

Update: RMS Endurance has been found after almost 100 years.