In this chapter, Krakauer discusses the history of Everest including some of the more notable summit attempts. I like this inclusion in the book as I believe it provides a certain degree of perspective before the reader hears about Krakauer's attempts. Hearing about the history of the peak helped me to understand some of its legend and lore. Ever since people realized it was the tallest point in the world, people wanted to climb it. I believe Krakauer included this history for just this purpose. He wanted his readers to understand why people have such a burning desire to climb the mountain and how such a goal can absolutely consume you. At the end of the chapter, Krakauer starts to talk about how his own expedition took shape. While I don't think it was inappropriate to include this I do believe it probably should have been omitted. It doesn't seem to fit with the rest of the chapter which simply chronicles the myth of the mountain. Despite this, I do believe the chapter was well constructed and I don't think that anything was omitted.
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