Snows of Kilimanjaro

Wilkinson, Brook, "The Melting Snows of Kilimanjaro." Conde Nast Traveler, Volume 39, p. 105, May 2004. 

Whether the character succeeds in the conflict, as in "The Tortoise and the Hare," or fails, as in "The Snows of Kilimanjaro," it is the struggle to overcome the barriers that is the fabric of the story. In each case, the motivation of the protagonist to triumph over conflict seems primal, and that desire fuels our identification and understanding. Good stories tend to have a powerful conflict associated with a character we understand and whose desire fuels the story. 

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