After
reading, “Bull on the Mountain” by Oliver Sacks, I sat for a few minutes
attempting to explain to myself what I had just read. I liked the story, and as
an outdoorsmen myself I can relate to a bit of his experience. However, this
story had me questioning Mr. Sacks as an avid outdoorsman. First off, he
ventures out to climb a mountain by himself in a foreign country knowing that
someone did the same exact thing and died doing it. Secondly, his ego seems to
be something he is very proud of. All of his work in the gym and the gifts that
nature has blessed him with has given him the ability to conquer whatever
physical feat lay ahead of him. Unfortunately, he has not conquered fear. At
the sight of the bull, he slowly turns around and then loses his cool and
begins running. I think pretty much everyone knows that running down a mountain
is never a good idea.
His
strength and desire are definitely proved after he manages to climb down after
his injuries but I still question what caused them in the first place. Did Mr.
Sacks really see a bull? Near the introduction, he has the audacity to call
himself a bull referring to his strength and toughness. It’s quite possible
that he, “the bull” fell on his own. While maybe as a person, I am not a fan of
Oliver Sacks; I really did enjoy his writing style. He was not afraid to make a
bit of fun at himself and he certainly did not downplay his self-confidence and
I think that added a lot to the story. Overall I thought it was an interesting
read and it reminded me a lot of the movie 127 Hours with James Franco who
plays a man who is forced to cut his own arm off after getting pinned by a
boulder in a canyon. It’s a great movie based completely off of a real story.
One of my favorite scenes is linked below.
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