Death makes him relevant.

Here you can comment on the book 'Into The Wild' or any other book related to the story.
'Murica
Posts: 2
Joined: Thu Dec 19, 2013 3:08 pm

Death makes him relevant.

Postby 'Murica » Thu Jan 02, 2014 3:26 pm

I bet if Chris lived and came back to society he would never of attracted as much attention or interest since his death. Society tends to not notice the man who tells his own stories, but the one who speaks of a dead mans.

WBHSKMeono
Posts: 8
Joined: Tue Apr 01, 2014 3:26 pm

Re: Death makes him relevant.

Postby WBHSKMeono » Tue Apr 01, 2014 4:34 pm

I agree and disagree with this comment. the reason i agree is because many people might not believe all of what the author has to say of what they did. They would probably think, they're saying this to make them look good. Maybe thats why people wouldn't pay it much attention, but its different if someone else tells their story. The reason why i disagree, is because what Chris did for other people and what he faced just to get to Alaska, is kind of inspiring. I mean I'm kind of inspired by that.

Wbhscruce
Posts: 10
Joined: Tue Apr 01, 2014 3:17 pm

Re: Death makes him relevant.

Postby Wbhscruce » Tue Apr 01, 2014 4:37 pm

'Murica wrote:I bet if Chris lived and came back to society he would never of attracted as much attention or interest since his death. Society tends to not notice the man who tells his own stories, but the one who speaks of a dead mans.

I agree with this statement. You never know, many people probably have traveled to Alaska to stay there and live off the land, they just have more resources in order to stay alive. We do not know about these occurrences though because those people are still alive and nobody really cares if he made it out alive. I do believe that this story is only so big because he did happen to die while in the bus in Alaska.

WBHS_Carrere
Posts: 5
Joined: Tue Apr 01, 2014 3:17 pm

Re: Death makes him relevant.

Postby WBHS_Carrere » Thu Apr 03, 2014 4:33 pm

Yes

bones
Posts: 21
Joined: Thu Dec 27, 2012 6:25 pm

Re: Death makes him relevant.

Postby bones » Tue Apr 15, 2014 4:07 am

It's true that he would probably be less "famous" if he didnt die. Some people think its a tragedy but also a blessing (I dont know if thats the right word :? ) that he died because his story affected so many people in a good way. I doubt any of them are glad that he died, but they can see the good that came out of his death. He would have achieved something if he lived though. I think I read that he wanted to write a book. It wouldve been interesting to see his ideas about life.

Jackie
Posts: 2
Joined: Thu Apr 17, 2014 9:07 pm

Re: Death makes him relevant.

Postby Jackie » Thu Apr 17, 2014 9:48 pm

I agree with your original statement to some extent. If Chris had lived to write his own book, it may or may not have attracted wide attention. You would think it would be better than Cheryl Strayed's "Wild", however, which has achieved moderate success.

I don't think this takes away from the unique nature of the man. I have traveled extensively around the U.S. over the past few decades and encountered most types of alternative culture that you can imagine, but have met very few people who live out their philosophy and put their money where their mouth is in the way that Chris did. I can think of one young man for comparison who is similar, but stayed alive. His name was Paul G______, and he was from Massachusetts. I met him in Missoula, Montana in the early nineties, and he had traveled there by bicycle from the East Coast. He just had one small bag and bedroll on his bike. He mainly lived off peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and had many stories of his adventures from multiple times crossing the country. He also was a devotee of Thoreau.

Paul's story is unknown, even though I find it just as compelling as Chris's story. He was educated and raised in a similar way, etc. I have seen comments that there are many kids like this, and Chris is only famous because he died, etc. I do not believe that is accurate. There are many hobos who are destitute for different reasons. There are very few people who see the flaws in society and consciously abandon everything to live a more authentic life and who actually live by their ideals.

In other words, we know his story because of his death, but his story is far from common. :)


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