Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton was born in 1874, the son of Quaker Abraham Shackleton. A child of privilege, Shackleton had a dream that he would one day travel to a ôregion of ice and snowö until he came to ôone of the poles of the earth,ö (Sir, 2004, p. 1). This dream kept Shackleton from pursuing a career in medicine. Instead, he hope to go to sea, a desire his father gladly approved of despite his son being only fourteen years of age. As Shackleton related regarding his fatherÆs approval, ôMy father thought to cure me of my predilection for the sea by letting me go in the most primitive manner possible as a æboyÆ on board a sailing ship at a shilling a month,ö (Endurance, 2004, 1). Far from curing Shackleton, the experience fueled his desire to explore the furthermost regions of the world. Nevertheless, Shackleton had no idea that a much fiercer and more primitive experience lie in wait for him.
Henry Shackleton volunteered for ScottÆs National Antarctic Expedition to the South Pole in 1901, but he took ill on the journey and had to return home. Shackleton was determined to mount his own successful expedition and realized this dream as commander of the Nimrod Expedition of 1907-1909, (Sir, 2004, p. 1). On the journey, Shackleton and his crew climbed Mount Erebus and contributed to scientific discovery. They came within 100 mile of the South Pole. Dwindling supplies forced Shackleton to abandon the mission, one of the most difficult decisions of his own life by his own admission. He told his wife upon returning home, ôI thought youÆd rather have a live donkey than a dead lion,ö (Endurance, 2004, p. 1). Shackleton was knighted in 1909 and commanded a voyage on a ship called the Endurance from 1914-1916, (Sir, 2004, p. 1). Shackleton planned to cross the entire continent from Wedell to the Ross Sea on foot. Charming, confident, and skilled at crew selection, Shackleton had no problem raising a crew for the ex...