In 9th grade history, students have learned about some fantastic geography stories:
In 1912, Robert Falcon Scott (British) and Roald Admundsen (Norwegian) both set out to conquer the South Pole.
The Norwegians were well-prepared. They also zoomed as fast as they could to the pole, and did not take detailed scientific readings along the way. They got to the South Pole first and planted the Norwegian Flag.
Thirty five days later, Scott and his party showed up--too late!
The return journey was a nightmare. One man died along the way, while the other had a serious foot injury. He eventually went out into the blizzard, rather than slow his companions down--this is depicted in the above painting. Soon, they ran out of food and heating fuel.
The remaining men froze to death in a tent. A year later, their bodies were found along with Scott's diary where he outlined all that happened, and how the men met their doom like stoic Englishmen.
In fact, Scott became more famous that Admundsen. He was seen as a hero, who along with his men, bravely met their deaths in a British way.
The diary is now available on line--and you can read it like a book. Isn't the British library fantastic to put this up for all to read? Here it is: http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/virtualbooks/index
Hint: What is it called when you know the outcome of something--and the characters do not? Dramatic Irony. This diary is full of dramatic irony, for we know that Scott and his men will die.
