The first three chapters of Part III begin with Orde-Lees being attacked by a sea leopard. The temperature has risen above freezing level and the ice is melting rapidly. Two dog teams are ordered to be killed in order to cut down on food consumption. There are strong winds that push the floe even more north, but the floes still are not breaking into open sea. The section ends with the crew getting close enough to open sea that water was breaking off little chucks of the floe.
On page 107 Macklin says, "'My dogs will be shot tomorrow.'" I find this quote to be important because it shows how close the crew has become to the dogs. The crew has become emotionally attached to the dogs. The book explains how crushed the owners of the dog teams are when they are ordered to kill the dogs; even the crew members who are not dog owners are appalled. This quote reminds me of the time I read the book Old Yeller in middle school. The boy who owned the dog Old Yeller was extremely sad when he had to shoot his own dog.
On page 113 James* writes in his diary, "'We also suffer from "Amenomania"' [literally-- wind-madness].'" The word "Amenomania" is an example of jargon. This means that the word is a word that the crew made up (similar to "slang"). This particular word is a disease that they made up that means they are anxious about the direction of the wind. Someone with this disease is constantly talking about the wind, and is always listening for the wind.
*The book does not specify which "James" is making this diary entry.
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