Jon Krakauer s Thin The Line Between Investigative...

Jon Krakauer’s books expertly toe the line between investigative journalism and gripping and tense non-fiction. In Missoula, he tackles the rape epidemic on college campuses and its complicated relationship with the criminal justice system. In Into Thin Air, he delves into his own experience as a mountain climber who witnessed the Mt. Everest Disaster first hand. In both publications, Krakauer strives to uncover a dark truth about a familiar institution. Although there is certainly variation in the means of accomplishing this purpose between the books, his characteristic technique is evident in their stylistic commonalities. Both Missoula and Into Thin Air utilize Krakauer’s ability to create atmosphere and mood in order to convey a message and make his commentary more poignant. Both books exhibit a dark tone, being about extremely heavy content. Yet despite this, Krakauer creates a unique atmosphere for each of the two books that embodies the specific purpose. Missoula is written to expose the failures of the criminal justice system in prosecuting rapists. While at times it has a sad or even remorseful tone, bemoaning the fates of victims, overall, the book is meant to strike the reader as more angry than sorrowful. For instance, Krakauer relays to the reader how attorney Kirsten Pabst obviously did not â€Å"take the time to listen to the recording†¦ because a number of Pabst’s assertions†¦ are just plain wrong† (Missoula 100). This sentence reads almost as an accusation and