Between a Rock and a Hard Place by Aron Ralston

'eleven or twelve feet high'

Mathematical language/measurements; gives the reader a vision of the environment, and that the author of the extract is perfectly aware and conscious of his surroundings.

'The chockstone...consumes the sky'

Climbing jargon: rock followed by a metaphor capturing the scale of the rock. The removal of light could also hint at the potentially fatal consequences.

'a chockstone the size of a large bus tire'

Metaphor used for a comparison of a large size to help emphasise scale to the reader, but also to possibly start implying they can move, as that's what a wheel does.

'with a scraping quake'

Assonance and onomatopoeia to reveal the horrible noise that was made and signified his difficulty.

'Instantly, I know this is trouble'

Adverb used to signify a moment of suspense and make the moment of his realisation he was in difficulty more dramatic.

'Fear shoots my hand over my head'

Use of this verb shows the great peril he is in.

The use of personification makes us feel the power of the emotions taking over Ralston.

'My only hope...'

Depicts the limited choice he has and thus accentuates the desperate situation Ralston is in.

'The next three seconds play out at a tenth of their normal speed'

Manipulation of time to show the horror he must have been experiencing.

'i come to another drop-off'

Opens in the middle of the action to show he has been climbing for prior to this and has likely already encountered other difficulties.

It starts with action and gives a sense of immediacy.

'This one is maybe eleven or twelve feet high, a foot higher and of a different geometry then the overhang I descended ten minutes ago'

An immediate reassurance of Ralston's expertise which also reveals that he is experienced as he is climbing very quickly.

It also creates tension and makes the reader realise how expansive the area is.

'The claustrophobic feel of a short tunnel'

Metaphoric language used to create the impression of what he was experiencing more vividly and also hint at trouble to come owing to the sense of entrapment.

'This technique is known as stemming or chimneying'

Technical language implying he is an experienced climber and knows what the methods are called.

'You can imagine using it to climb up the inside of the chimney'

Shows he is aware his reader may not be as experienced at climbing so needs clarification using easier explanations.
"You can imagine" is a powerful rhetorical device that encourages the reader to place themselves in his position.

'If I can step onto it'

Use of this conditional word 'if' suggests it may be difficult just to get on to the rock and starts suggesting he is not fully in control of what he is doing.

'I'll dangle off the chockstone'

Use of this verb 'dangle' suggests he is not in complete control as it means to hang loose.

'Stemming across the canyon at the lip of the drop off with 1 foot and one hand on each of the walls I traverse out to the chockstone'

The use of the present tense continuous captures the immediacy and urgency.

'I lower myself from the chimneying position and step onto the chockstone. It supports me but teeters slightly'

Use of the onomatopoeic word 'teeters' suggest trouble ahead as it means unsteady or swaying.

It shows he is in a precarious situation and the unsteadiness suggests trouble.

'I can't move backwards or I'll fall over a small ledge'

Inner thoughts of the writer as he explains the peril of his situation and why he is so helpless.

'ensnares'

Use of this word personifies the rock and makes it seem like the predator and him its prey.

'The rock smashes my left hand' 'Crushes'

Use of verbs, personification and onomatopoeia reveals the violence he is hit with. The verbs both have connotations of destruction and violence.

'Time dilates, as if I'm dreaming, and my reactions decelerate'

Use of the commas and subordinate clause helps to slow down the passage and mirror what is describing well also revealing the nightmarish feeling he has.

One of his difficulty is feeling lonely as "time dilates" he feels isolated and trapped.

'Then silence'

Minor sentence indicating the turning point from all the action to nothing.

use of verbs 'traverse', 'kick', 'pushes', and 'teeters'

Increases the pace and adds a chaotic tone and builds tension as we see the effort he is making to release his arm

'my eyes register the collision'

Makes his eyes seem detached from his body so as to indicate how unreal the situation is.

'Tearing skin'

He uses emotive language to convey how he was feeling when facing the difficulties and the use of the present continuous also enacts the process of the tear to create the horror of the pain.

'flaring agony' 'searing hot pain'

He uses phrases such as "flaring agony", "searing hot pain" which are sensory images associated with heat creating a sense of intensity making the reader feel more empathetic to him and to realise how difficult it was for him.

'My disbelief paralyses me temporarily as I stare at the sight of my arm vanishing into an implausibly small gap'.

Personification / hyperbole for the overpowering loss of strength and hope.

'grimace and growl'

Alliteration and onomatopoeia bring to life the 'grrrr' as he fights for his trapped hand

'three times...'

Time reference emphasizes the continued attempts to make us see his desperation and extreme effort to escape.

'heaving...pushing...lifting'

This triplet of present continuous verbs emphasise how hard Ralston works and makes us more directly live the moment with him

'rock ricochets', 'full flood'

Alliteration creates emphasis on tension and reaction

'"Come on...move!" Nothing.'

There is an uncertain conclusion to the passage, leaving the reader wondering what will happen next

'With my right foot, I kick at the boulder to test how stuck it is. It's jammed tightly enough to hold my weight.'

Suggests he did not take enough care to see if the rock was strong enough and this was a crucial mistake.

Genre

Autobiography

Context: Author

Aron Ralston describes his tragic experience while hiking through Colorado.

Themes

Danger / survival / pain / fear / determination

Narrative Structure

Factual first four paragraphs juxtaposed by emotion filled paragraphs

Title

Metaphor / idiom - literal meaning as he was trapped physically by a rock and also had a hard decision to make to amputate his hand.

Feelings

Fearlessness, bravery, confidence then he is panicked, fearful and horrified.

Use of ellipsis

creates tensions and allows reader to feel the uncertainty and unknown Ralston felt

Narrative structure: start

In media res - takes the reader straight into the action with him.