‘It felt as if there were something deliberate about it, something preordained by a bored and evil force.’ This is a quote from the perspective of Simon not long after he believed Joe to be dead. In this context, Simon uses the phrase evil force as a metaphor to describe the traitorous atmosphere that is the mountain. Simon is enraged that ‘evil force’ was toying with them because after all the trekking, climbing and surviving the storm the mountain takes Joe  in a way that can only be perceived as simply unlucky. Simon believed that this whole mission was not going to go completely well and that he new something bad was going to happen which took the form of him losing his partner to the ‘evil force’ that is this very mountain. another reference to the forces was made by Joe on page 141 where he believed ‘dark forces’ were conspiring against as if they were trying to get him killed.

‘A voice in my head told me that this was true’. After the event of Joe falling into the crevice He started to make his way down, However, he was alone and he believed was is one mis-step away from death. The paranoia started to get to him and he started going crazy, so far as he began to hear voices in his head. He described two voices i his head; one that was telling him to accept the reality and situation he was in and the other was bringing him images and memories like a day dream similar to the idea that before death you see your entire life flash before your eyes. This is a similar situation to having an angel and demon version of yourself floating around your head, in Joe’s case, one was telling him to face reality and continue and try to survive while the other is telling him to face the reality that he won’t make and he should let go. The voice is the mental argument Joe is having with himself when he is trying to decide how to continue.