Summer Homework, Alfred Lansing, Endurance, Part III, Chapters Four-Five, Adage

Food shortages and constant stress of the unpredictable ice rose tensions among the crew members. The bond of the crew members was strained in late March, the food situation had gotten so bad that they were cutting rations and digging into the waste meats to find anything that is edible. The desperate situation did not weaken bond that held the crew together. The bond was in fact strengthened. Crew mates gave their rations to those who were the weakest and the most ill. This kind of brotherhood can only be experienced by those united by disaster.

Although the crew was now in a state of synergy, the ice was a constant place of chaos. The ice was constantly under stress and new cracks formed nonstop. It was nearly impossible to launch the boats to go anywhere due to the fear that the ice floes would crush the ships. Soon, the ice floe that the camp was set up on cracked, making the conditions all the more perilous. Shackleton's plans for sailing to the island to the west go to the wayside due to the conditions of the ice. 

"Though everyone was fully aware that their situation was becoming more critical by the hour, it was much easier to face danger on a full stomach(Page 133)."

This quote reminds me of the Adage- (a familiar proverb or wise saying) that "an army marches on its stomach". This part of the book shows the desperation of the food situation that the crew was facing, and now the ice is falling apart. They need a plan to move to a safer place. It is hard to think on an empty stomach and it is hard to do anything without focus that  having a full stomach brings people. Just as an army cannot fight to win while starving, the crew of the Endurance cannot fight to survive while starving.