A Mortal Occupation Summary and Analysis

Hunting for orchids is a dangerous, death-defying activity. Orchid lovers enjoy the plant, but they have also been known to love the difficulty and fatality of obtaining them just as much as the flower itself. Obsessions with orchids began during the Victorian era and although some collectors went to the tropics for them, most paid professional hunters to find them their gems.

A Victorian-era grower named Frederick Sander once employed a famous collector named Benedict Roezl. He travels throughout South America in search of orchids. The ails and dangers of being an orchid collector were tremendous. In addition, the hunters were often alone and enjoyed little fraternity with other people. They traveled to remote parts of the world where they did not speak the language nor know the culture. In addition, they would walk in extremely dangerous...