Final answer:
The texts describe a man's dire situation in the wilderness, as he battles freezing temperatures and struggles to build a fire with numbed hands to avoid frostbite and hypothermia.
Step-by-step explanation:
The passages provided depict the struggles of a man trying to survive in the harsh, cold wilderness. During his battle against the freezing temperatures, the man attempts to build a fire to stave off frostbite and hypothermia. He grapples with the difficulties of manipulating objects with his numbed, near-frozen hands, and the extreme cold that threatens his survival. The text illustrates the man's desperation, the importance of fire in such conditions, and the life-and-death stakes of his actions in the snowy environment. This physical and psychological ordeal is compounded when he fails to light a match and realizes the severity of his situation, acknowledging the wisdom of the old-timer's advice to never travel alone in such cold territory.