"The Temptations of Two" Post- Schoenauer

The essay "The Temptations of Two," by Susan Rogers aims to reveal the importance of companionship. At the beginning of the essay Susan is convinced that being alone allows for greater freedom and adventure during her outdoor trips. She believes that there are many issues in traveling in twos: presence of impatience, lack of silence, and too much effort in order to travel together. She then continues by saying the positives of solitude, "I live a solitary life and there's no one to tell. Some days this creates a melancholy some would call loneliness, yet most days I think of it as a freedom" (162). When traveling alone she loves her adrenaline, her independence, her peace, and how natural it feels. While she still loves going alone she eventually realizes the positives to traveling in twos with her friend Emily. On her second time taking the route she is able to try many new things she would not have tried had she been alone: creating an adventure bigger than that of solitude. While Susan is with Emily she realizes that she "never would have left at seven-thirty alone, never would have paddled backward, or raced in the dark or ridden in the dark". Her positive experience and the trill of the adventure with Emily lead her to realize that there is a greater and more desirable adventure in twos.
When Susan is doubting her choice of going alone she uses italicized sentences and questions such as, "Is there something I do not know?" (161) to reveal her fear and the issues of traveling alone. Susan also says, "Once I settle into my paddle I am happy to be there. A peace descends" (163) which shows her pleasure and the calm that traveling alone brings her.