Touching the Void – Saffi Haider The quote "Within the hearts of men, loyalty and consideration are esteemed greater than success." by Edwin Louis Cole does not stray far from the truth. Had Simon not cut the rope and remained loyal to Joe, the mountaineering community wouldn't have even known of their adventures. Regardless, Simon had a right to cut that rope, as both likely would've died if he had not cut it, Joe was already badly injured (making his survival rate little to nothing), and saving one's self over another is physiologically wired into the human brain; it's expected from a human.
To begin, had Simon not sliced that rope on Joe, both of those men would be frozen corpses lost on the Siula Grande's peak at this very moment. However, because he did cut the rope, both men live to this very day. Furthermore, Joe himself said he would've done the very same if he had been in Simon's shoes. No amount of trust those two climbers had for each other could change their minds. When it comes down to it, losing one man is much, much better of an option over
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Taking the risk of cutting that rope was a rational one, as the chances of Joe surviving were little to none. With that in mind, cutting the rope sounds much more sensible. If I were in Simon's shoes, I would've also assumed the worst for Joe–a human can only handle so much pain and trauma–and a man who had his kneecap driven straight through his tibia plateau has had quite the toll taken on him. A rational deduction from the previous events that had occurred would give me, and any other human being, the conclusion that Joe was nearing death. To continue, humans are born with a sense of moral respect for those who are in pain; they will naturally want someone suffering to be rid of their anguish. Because of this, Simon could have possibly thought that he could end Joe's suffering since he would otherwise die a slow, painful, agonizing