Whether it is giving up everything you have and starting over to figure out who you are or starting from the bottom to prove that you can achieve the American Dream even if you are at your lowest point in your life, everyone has something that they would do to achieve a goal of theirs. Chris McCandless and Adam Shepard both had a goal for their journey, however both were very different. Chris McCandless wanted to start over and abandon his previous life because his whole journey from home to Alaska was one big way to find himself. He felt like he did not fit in with regular society and he needed to escape from it. On the other hand, Adam Shepard performs an experiment to see if the American Dream is still active. He wanted to prove that the
…show more content…
Chris McCandless traveled with a transcendentalist and minimalist lifestyle, while Adam Shepard started with a minimalist lifestyle then he gradually started to have a “successful” life. Chris McCandless read books, especially books by Jack London and Henry David Thoreau, who are both writers that talk a lot about nature, which is something that McCandless takes a great amount of interest in. McCandless comes from a materialistic family. His parents provided him with all they can provide, but McCandless showed little affection for those materialistic things. McCandless rejects what he sees as American materialism, so he leaves his family and the upper middle class lifestyle in which he was raised in and he goes out to the wild to discover who he is. Along his journey he did not accept any kind of luxury or materialistic opportunity, for example, in the movie Jan and Ron offered to help him but McCandless denied both of their offers (Into the Wild). McCandless risked giving up something that could help him survive but he is strong and committed to living a minimalist lifestyle because it helps him become closer to the idea of living a transcendentalist life. This makes McCandless face many dangers while making his way to Alaska. He has to find food, shelter, and a way to adapt to situations to survive. He also tries to avoid any real relationships with other people in order to follow …show more content…
Shepard and McCandless were doing things that made them their own person, where they were not letting the world change who they are or what they believed was the right or wrong thing to do because it is hard to be yourself when everybody else is telling you what you should be doing. They challenged themselves to do things that far too many people would never risk doing in their lifetime. Adam Shepard did not let other people change what he believed in and he did not let anything get in his way of achieving the American Dream. “And he was using me as a means to discharge that bitterness-every day on nearly every piece that we would carry together.” Shit man, don’t carry it like that! What the hell are you doing? You just aren’t cut out for moving.” I tried to let his outbursts slide, but then the customers started to feel uncomfortable about the way he was acting, so I had to step in. I approached him on the side, and told him that he would have to shape up a bit. He couldn’t keep treating me like that” (Shepard, 165). Shepard was explaining that one of his coworkers was having a horrible attitude, especially towards him, and he could not let that affect him. Shepard was determined to stay positive and do the best job that he can because he knows that hard work will help him achieve his goal. Chris McCandless was very independent but was selfish and arrogant with some of the choices that he made, however, he was
Chris McCandless traveled with a transcendentalist and minimalist lifestyle, while Adam Shepard started with a minimalist lifestyle then he gradually started to have a “successful” life. Chris McCandless read books, especially books by Jack London and Henry David Thoreau, who are both writers that talk a lot about nature, which is something that McCandless takes a great amount of interest in. McCandless comes from a materialistic family. His parents provided him with all they can provide, but McCandless showed little affection for those materialistic things. McCandless rejects what he sees as American materialism, so he leaves his family and the upper middle class lifestyle in which he was raised in and he goes out to the wild to discover who he is. Along his journey he did not accept any kind of luxury or materialistic opportunity, for example, in the movie Jan and Ron offered to help him but McCandless denied both of their offers (Into the Wild). McCandless risked giving up something that could help him survive but he is strong and committed to living a minimalist lifestyle because it helps him become closer to the idea of living a transcendentalist life. This makes McCandless face many dangers while making his way to Alaska. He has to find food, shelter, and a way to adapt to situations to survive. He also tries to avoid any real relationships with other people in order to follow …show more content…
Shepard and McCandless were doing things that made them their own person, where they were not letting the world change who they are or what they believed was the right or wrong thing to do because it is hard to be yourself when everybody else is telling you what you should be doing. They challenged themselves to do things that far too many people would never risk doing in their lifetime. Adam Shepard did not let other people change what he believed in and he did not let anything get in his way of achieving the American Dream. “And he was using me as a means to discharge that bitterness-every day on nearly every piece that we would carry together.” Shit man, don’t carry it like that! What the hell are you doing? You just aren’t cut out for moving.” I tried to let his outbursts slide, but then the customers started to feel uncomfortable about the way he was acting, so I had to step in. I approached him on the side, and told him that he would have to shape up a bit. He couldn’t keep treating me like that” (Shepard, 165). Shepard was explaining that one of his coworkers was having a horrible attitude, especially towards him, and he could not let that affect him. Shepard was determined to stay positive and do the best job that he can because he knows that hard work will help him achieve his goal. Chris McCandless was very independent but was selfish and arrogant with some of the choices that he made, however, he was