This is what Nace had to face in “Top Man” by James Ramsey Ullman. Nace, who climbed Mt. Kalpurtha (K3 for short) five times, is trying to reach the summit again, but within the group that he is traveling with, another conflict evolves. A twenty-three year old college graduate, named Osborn, will do anything to prove that Nace's ways of handling the situation is wrong. However, Nace is determined to lead the group toward success and shows that he is cautious, caring, and experienced during the ascent.
One characteristic that Nace shows during the ascent of Mount Kalpurtha is being cautious. Nace first shows his cautiousness when he decides to traverse under the ridge instead of going at it head on. He knows that it would be a lot safer for the whole group. Even though it might take longer, Nace knows that the route would be easier for everyone and that they would still have a fighting chance to reach the summit. Thus, taking the precaution shows that Nace is cautious about his surroundings. Another reason why Nace is cautious is when the snowstorms hit. Nace knows that, “'It's firm down here…because the sun hits it only two hours a day. Up above it gets the sun twelve hours. It may not have frozen yet.'”(102). Again, Nace shows he is experienced with the mountain by saying that it is not safe to be climbing right after a snowstorm because he probably has had encountered this during his previous expeditions. The most important example on how Nace is cautious is when Nace, Osborn, and Frank are within one day's worth of climbing to reach the summit. A snowstorm hits and Nace tells the two that, “'There's still too much loose snow above. We can't make it.'” (105), and that they would have to go back down to Camp V. Osborn is enraged by this action and heads off to the summit while the others were sleeping even though Nace told him not to. As a result, Nace sacrifices his life to save Osborn. This shows that Nace is cautious because if Osborn actually listened to Nace's precaution, none of the events that happened would have happened. By taking stock of the situation and realizing the dangers of snowstorms proves that Nace is cautious.
Another characteristic that Nace demonstrates is that he is caring. One way that Nace demonstrates this trait is when he decides to zigzag under the glacier instead of taking the ridge. This shows that he cares about the group by letting them take the safer and much easier route and the more difficult one. In a later conversation between Nace and Frank, Nace tells Frank that, “It [the ridge] can be done. Trouble is, when you've made it, you're too done in for the summit.” (101). This quote demonstrates how Nace cares about his fellow group mates and does not want them to make the same mistake that he did with his old friend Furness. This is one way Nace cared for the group. Another example on how Nace is caring is when he makes steps for them and the porters to step on during the ascent. This quote, “… the bright prong of his ax rising, falling, rising, falling with tireless rhythm, until the steps in the glassy incline were so wide and deep that the most clumsy of the porters could not have slipped from them had he tried.” (103), proves that Nace is caring for his group as well as the porters. He made the steps so wide and so deep that no one could have slipped even on purpose. This is another example on how Nace is caring. The last example of when Nace shows that he is caring is when he goes up to find Osborn, even though he disliked Osborn. Nace, Osborn, and Frank are at Camp VI, when a snowstorm hits. After a couple of days, Nace still thinks that climbing to the summit would be too dangerous and decides that they should go down and get more supplies before they try to reach the summit again. Osborn is outraged and tries to reach the summit when Nace and Frank are asleep. When Nace wakes up, he finds Osborn missing and decides to look for Osborn even though Osborn disobeyed him. So, even though there was a lot of tension between Nace and Osborn, Nace shows that he is caring by trying to look for Osborn. In conclusion, taking the safer route, digging out steps for the group, and helping Osborn all prove that Nace is caring.
The last and most important characteristic that Nace shows is the quality of being experienced. Because he unsuccessfully climbed the mountain 5 times, he has more knowledge and understanding of the mountain, hence, making him more experienced than the others. The text states, “Because of his far greater experience and intimate knowledge of K3, Randolph almost invariable followed his advice…” (100). This quote demonstrates that Nace's experience and his decisions help guide the expedition team toward the summit. Thus, using past knowledge of the mountain proves that Nace is more experienced than other group members. Another way Nace demonstrates his property of being experienced is when he is asked about the sleeping bags. Osborn, young and inexperienced, immediately wanted the sleeping bags out, while Nace, with his familiarity to this kind of situation, told Osborn and the rest of the men, “'Longer we wait for the bags, better acclimated we'll get.'” (98). Nace knows that it will be harder to breathe up at a higher elevation if they use the sleep bags then. So, with his knowledge and common sense on mountain climbing, Nace shows that he is experienced. The last example of how Nace is experienced is when they were going from Camp IV to Camp V.
One of the porters accidentally slipped while they are climbing the ridge to get to Camp V. Nace took control of the situation by creating a balance. They balanced each other out and continued to climb the ridge. Once they were out, Nace tried to comfort the men by letting them have a cup of tea. As a result, Nace's experience saved the party from disaster. All these events that led to Nace's death prove that Nace is more experienced than the rest of the flock.
In conclusion, people who read “Top Man” will notice that Nace is cautious, caring, and experienced. To recap, Nace demonstrates his cautiousness when climbing the mountain. He shows that he is caring by helping everyone out one way or another. Lastly, Nace proves that he is experienced when he faces difficult problems between nature and men in the story. In the end, sacrificing one's life for another rather than to reach the summit himself makes Nace the true “Top Man”.
