Why is the setting vital for the development of this story? What language is used that helps the reader to comprehend the conflict facing the man as he travels in the Yukon?

Certainly the setting is vital because of the external conflict between the man and the natural elements. The man is nameless in the vast yukon tundra. The man does not head the warnings given to him by nature, his dog...This is why the consequences are so severe. The cold hovers at around -70 degrees which makes the environment unforgiving to mistakes or the man's pride. The language used centres around the cold. Words like "freezing", "frostbite" and "cold" are used over and over to establish what the man must contend with.