Another way these stories share a resonating theme of following one’s dreams is by addressing the impact of friends and family. In the story, Into the Wild, McCandless’ friends and family have a tremendous impact on his life. Although his friends and family all have an effect on his life, not all of them have the same influence. To start off, his family was not supportive of his dreams of backpacking the world and living in the wild. Part of the reason this occurred was because they did not understand the type of lifestyle McCandless wanted to live. This can be interpreted in the story when it states, “It was the last anyone in Chris’s family would ever hear from him” (17). Chris had just sent home a letter to his family along with his final
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During his journey, he convened with a few influential people: Jan Burres, a 41 year old rubber tramp who sold knick-knacks (22) and Ronald Franz, a devout Christian man who spent a majority of his lifetime in the army (36). Jan Burres was one of the people who McCandless met on his backpacking journey. In the story, Burres and McCandless had an immediate connection during their first encounter. As stated in the story, she said to her boyfriend, Bob, “Man, we got to take this kid with us. You need to school him about some things” (23). Burres truly cared about McCandless and his wellbeing since she had an estranged son of her own. It is evident that she wanted the best for McCandless considering she took him into her own home without knowing who he was or what problems he might have had. Another individual to have an effect on McCandless was Ronald Franz. Ronald Franz was an accomplished leatherworker (37). He taught McCandless the art of leatherwork and the “secrets of his craft.” Their first project together was to make a leather belt with inscriptions on the belt. This belt that McCandless made with Franz stuck with him until his death. It was one of the valuables McCandless had around himself at the time of his death. This shows that Franz meant a lot to McCandless—to the extent that McCandless kept the belt as a token of remembrance even until the …show more content…
In the story, Santiago has always had the support of the people around him. One example is his father. His father was always supportive of him, even in the beginning. In the beginning of the story, his father’s support for him can be seen when he agrees to let him pursue his dream of traveling. “The next day, he gave his son a punch that held three ancient Spanish gold coins… ‘I wanted them to be a part of your inheritance. But use them to buy your flock’” (9). When Santiago told his father that he wanted to become a shepherd instead of becoming a priest, his father did not scold him or attempt to convince him otherwise. His dad’s unconditional support for his son was one of the first steps Santiago had in fulfilling his dreams and following his personal legend. In addition to his father, there were others who also supported Santiago fulfill his personal legend. Another important figure from Santiago’s journey is the crystal merchant. The crystal merchant not only served as a mentor for Santiago but also served as a friend. The merchant showed Santiago another perspective in life. In the story, it states, “But you know that I’m not going to go to Mecca. Just as you know that you’re not going to buy your sheep” (61). This statement shows that the merchant and Santiago both affected each other greatly. The merchant inspired Santiago to
During his journey, he convened with a few influential people: Jan Burres, a 41 year old rubber tramp who sold knick-knacks (22) and Ronald Franz, a devout Christian man who spent a majority of his lifetime in the army (36). Jan Burres was one of the people who McCandless met on his backpacking journey. In the story, Burres and McCandless had an immediate connection during their first encounter. As stated in the story, she said to her boyfriend, Bob, “Man, we got to take this kid with us. You need to school him about some things” (23). Burres truly cared about McCandless and his wellbeing since she had an estranged son of her own. It is evident that she wanted the best for McCandless considering she took him into her own home without knowing who he was or what problems he might have had. Another individual to have an effect on McCandless was Ronald Franz. Ronald Franz was an accomplished leatherworker (37). He taught McCandless the art of leatherwork and the “secrets of his craft.” Their first project together was to make a leather belt with inscriptions on the belt. This belt that McCandless made with Franz stuck with him until his death. It was one of the valuables McCandless had around himself at the time of his death. This shows that Franz meant a lot to McCandless—to the extent that McCandless kept the belt as a token of remembrance even until the …show more content…
In the story, Santiago has always had the support of the people around him. One example is his father. His father was always supportive of him, even in the beginning. In the beginning of the story, his father’s support for him can be seen when he agrees to let him pursue his dream of traveling. “The next day, he gave his son a punch that held three ancient Spanish gold coins… ‘I wanted them to be a part of your inheritance. But use them to buy your flock’” (9). When Santiago told his father that he wanted to become a shepherd instead of becoming a priest, his father did not scold him or attempt to convince him otherwise. His dad’s unconditional support for his son was one of the first steps Santiago had in fulfilling his dreams and following his personal legend. In addition to his father, there were others who also supported Santiago fulfill his personal legend. Another important figure from Santiago’s journey is the crystal merchant. The crystal merchant not only served as a mentor for Santiago but also served as a friend. The merchant showed Santiago another perspective in life. In the story, it states, “But you know that I’m not going to go to Mecca. Just as you know that you’re not going to buy your sheep” (61). This statement shows that the merchant and Santiago both affected each other greatly. The merchant inspired Santiago to