Aristotle once said, “Whosoever is delighted in solitude is either a wild beast or a god.” Chris McCandless or “Alexander Supertramp”, as he referred to himself, was described as both. His controversial story left many people in awe and some in horror. Chris left the confines of his home to escape into the wilderness of Alaska. Chris McCandless died from starvation in a bus due to his lack of common knowledge and rash decision making. When he burned his money, abandoned his car, and changed his name, he made a terrible decision to end his life with his own arrogance and lack of responsibility.
According to Craig Medred, Chris was killed by “his own inability to find food or find a way out” (Medred). Before he went on his big adventure to “find …show more content…
The romantics of the world would love to praise Chris as a hero for following his heart. They would love to feel so saddened by the tragedy that befell him as he starved to death in the middle of nowhere by himself. But that just didn’t happen. Chris McCandless died 20 miles away from George Parks Highway, where he could have sought rescue by lighting a large fire (Medred). He also could have retraced his pathway to the road in which he traveled only four months earlier. The common consensus about why Chris stayed while he was dying was because the Teklanika River was too high from the thawing of the mountain snow. However, yet again, Chris’ irresponsibility killed him when he neglected to search to bank of the river for a better way across. If he had traveled half a mile downstream, he would have found a pulley system to get him across the narrowed part of the river …show more content…
But one most not do this thoughtlessly. One of Chris’ journal entries shows that after months of solitude, he didn’t want to be alone anymore. He realized that he needed people, but it was too late. He was lost in the wild. As Paul Tillich said, “Language has created the word loneliness to express the pain of being alone. And it has created the word ‘solitude’ to express the glory of being alone” (Tillich). Chris discovered that while he sought solitude to escape his life, he found loneliness on his death bed. One of the last things he wrote was “Happiness is only real when shared.” What he set out to look for killed him, and this needs to be understood by
According to Craig Medred, Chris was killed by “his own inability to find food or find a way out” (Medred). Before he went on his big adventure to “find …show more content…
The romantics of the world would love to praise Chris as a hero for following his heart. They would love to feel so saddened by the tragedy that befell him as he starved to death in the middle of nowhere by himself. But that just didn’t happen. Chris McCandless died 20 miles away from George Parks Highway, where he could have sought rescue by lighting a large fire (Medred). He also could have retraced his pathway to the road in which he traveled only four months earlier. The common consensus about why Chris stayed while he was dying was because the Teklanika River was too high from the thawing of the mountain snow. However, yet again, Chris’ irresponsibility killed him when he neglected to search to bank of the river for a better way across. If he had traveled half a mile downstream, he would have found a pulley system to get him across the narrowed part of the river …show more content…
But one most not do this thoughtlessly. One of Chris’ journal entries shows that after months of solitude, he didn’t want to be alone anymore. He realized that he needed people, but it was too late. He was lost in the wild. As Paul Tillich said, “Language has created the word loneliness to express the pain of being alone. And it has created the word ‘solitude’ to express the glory of being alone” (Tillich). Chris discovered that while he sought solitude to escape his life, he found loneliness on his death bed. One of the last things he wrote was “Happiness is only real when shared.” What he set out to look for killed him, and this needs to be understood by