The issues with Scott are extremely complicated. Its true that he was wrongly much maligned for some of the events that occurred during this expedition but its also true that he made some dreadful, and costly, misjudgements which are blindingly obvious to even those who only have a cursory knowledge of these events: The use of motorised sledges and the (in)decision to take five men to the Pole being just two such instances. There are some episodes that are not so well known that also play into the hands of those who wish to aggressively criticise Scott. The conditions and events that transpired had such an effect on expedition member Apsley Cherry-Garrard that it prompted him to call his later memoir The Worst Journey in the World and this tome does tend to show Scott in a poor light, even when you consider the somewhat airy and ever-so-polite language used in those times. There were other factors in Scotts life which show him to be a complicated and hesitant individual despite his great capacity for organisation, discipline and motivation. English folks of my age were bought up to consider him a hero and any dissent or doubt cast was considered almost tantamount to treason by many. Its only in the last couple of decades where more detailed and new information and research about this expedition has entered the public domain that Scotts reputation has been questioned by some. There is no doubt, however, that he remains something of a hero to many, perhaps at least in some small part because he showed that wonderful British attribute of being the brave runner-up, the plucky but unfortunate victim of circumstances, rather than the instigator of his own demise.