Explorers or boys messing about? Either way, taxpayer gets rescue bill.

Author: Steven Morris

The anthology is about two people who were plucked from a life raft after crashing their helicopter into the Antarctic Ocean. It is an article from The Guardian newspaper.

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Summary:

• The anthology has a biased tone. It is clear that the author doesn’t care about the well-being of the duo that crashed into the Antarctic Ocean. The author doesn’t seem to understand that it was an accident caused by a silly mistake.

• In the anthology, one can see that the journalist cares more about money. Although, both Mr Brooks and Mr Smith had a tremendous amount of experience, one wrong decision caused them to fall into this mess.

• The author strongly believes that the two “explorers” are unprofessional and throughout the text, undermine their credibility; and mental state. He also believes that they lack the necessary skills to perform these expeditions.

• As seen throughout the text, he proves his point using biased opinions, and hyperbole and emphasised the waste of resources (planes, money etc).

• The purpose of this text is to inform the reader of how Tax Money has been wasted. Its purpose is to also entertain the audience using the author’s connotations and views.

• The tone is generally negative and it reflects the author’s opinions. It is very monotonous and the journalist explains the situation as though he has experience in that field.

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Structure:

• The anthology is not structured well as the same topic is discussed in different places (paragraphs 4,5,6,7, 22 and 24). This has a negative effect on the reader as it confines them

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Imagery:

• “Icy water”- it is a descriptive metaphor.

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Language:

•  Plucked from liferaft”- exaggeration/hyperbole.

• “Ended in farce”- he ridicules their expedition (farce means an absurd event)

•  “A new adventure”- sarcastic tone.

• “Plunges into the sea”- hyperbole

•  “Plucked” is seen again in paragraph 3- repetition to mock the explorers.

•  “Tens of thousands of pounds.”- hyperbole

• “Trusty helicopter”- sarcasm/irony

•  “Boys messing about with the helicopter”- negative connotation. It describes the men as though they are children in trouble. ● “Also known as Q”- a reference to James Bond- sarcasm

•  “About 36 miles north of Smith Island,”- factual language

• “Breitling emergency watch, a wedding present.”- shows that he always gets into trouble

• “The signals from the aircraft…”- exhibits that it inconvenienced many professionals.

• “Uncharted waters”- therefore wasting the professional’s time

•  “Though the pair wore survival suits…”- indicates that they were unprofessional and lacked skill as well as good judgement.  

• “Both men are experienced adventurers”- irony

• “Despite their experience”- the author’s tone is mocking.

•  “Highly unlikely it would recover any of the money”- makes the reader angry.

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Effect on the reader:

• The anthology has a negative effect on the reader because it has a biased tone throughout. It also uses language that mocks the two men and uses sarcasm to criticise them.

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