Description: Mountaineering has served as a metaphor for civilization triumphant. A fascinating study of the first ascents of the major Alpine peaks and Mt. Everest, The Summits of Modern Man reveals the significance of our encounters with the world's most forbidding heights and how difficult it is to imagine nature in terms other than conquest and domination.
Brief description: Peter H. Hansen is Professor of Humanities and Arts at Worcester Polytechnic Institute.
Review Quotes: Peter H. Hansen has long been known to specialists in the field of climbing history as a tireless researcher, subtle theorist, and compelling storyteller. The publication of The Summits of Modern Man brings him to the summit of mountaineering scholarship.--Maurice Isserman, Hamilton College