# LXXXIX explained — Seven Pillars of Wisdom

> Chapter companion for Seven Pillars of Wisdom by T. E. Lawrence.

## What happens

Lawrence recounts a grueling solo journey through snow and mud in Edom, burdened with gold, as he pushes his camel Wodheiha to its limits, falls into drifts, and finally reaches Shobek and Tafileh to deliver letters and money to Zeid.

## Themes in this chapter

### Suffering and Endurance

Lawrence endures extreme cold, injury, and exhaustion, pushing himself and his camel through snow and mud to deliver gold.

### Futility and Meaning

The absurdity of the journey—sliding down hills, falling into drifts, and risking death for gold—reflects the larger futility and meaning of the war effort.

## Character check-ins

### T.E. Lawrence

Narrator and protagonist, enduring extreme winter conditions and physical hardship while transporting gold.

### Sherif Zeid

Lawrence delivers letters and money to Zeid at Tafileh; Zeid's men are encountered at Rasheidiya.

### Emir Feisal

Zeid's men are on their way to Feisal; Feisal is the overarching leader of the Arab forces.

### Wodheiha

Lawrence's she-camel, who struggles bravely through snow and mud, falls into drifts, and ultimately carries him to safety.

## Key lines

> I plunged to my neck in front of her, and tried to tow her out, vainly. Then I spent a long time hitting her behind. I mounted, and she sat down. I jumped off, heaved her up, and wondered if, perhaps, it was that the drift was too thick.

Lawrence attempts to pull his camel out of a snowdrift, then beats her, mounts, and dismounts repeatedly, finally realizing the drift may be too deep.

_Illustrates Lawrence's desperation and the physical struggle with his camel in the snow._

> The crust was sharp, and cut my wrists and ankles till they bled freely, and the roadside became lined with pink crystals, looking like pale, very pale, watermelon flesh.

The frozen snow crust cuts Lawrence's wrists and ankles, leaving bloody pink crystals along the path.

_Vivid imagery of injury and the surreal beauty of blood in snow._

> I took their four thousand pounds from Serj and Rameid, and cursed them into the valley for cowards: which really they were not.

Lawrence takes the gold from his exhausted companions and berates them as cowards, though he admits they are not.

_Highlights Lawrence's harsh judgment and the extreme conditions that break even hardy men._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/seven_pillars_of_wisdom_se/chapters/lxxxix
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/seven_pillars_of_wisdom_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/seven_pillars_of_wisdom_se/chapters