Self Preservation

[iceman]

I rented this movie because I watch enjoy good movies. I looked into this story because I am interested in how individuals handle self preservation.

My opinion...

Mr. McCandless (as I will refer to him, as I have no personal connection) was irresponsible with his life and did not thoroughly think through his decisions or perception. I find it very difficult to have any respect or sympathy to those who throw thought out the window.

Human beings are what they are, all very different. Some are what you might percieve or consider materialistic, self serving, uncaring, greedy, jealous, vengeful, etc... Depending on who you are these are "bad" words, or rather aspects and characteristics of a person one finds difficulty in respecting or even being around. The subject, Mr. McCandless, as I have seen looked around a the cultured civilization around him and was not interested in living within it.

From some of the facts I have gathered, articles, wiki, etc... I have determined that Mr. McCandless was indeed not a thinker. Spiritual maybe, philosophical perhaps, but a thinker, no idication that I can see. I base this strongly on the opinion of a park ranger, my own knowledge of the outdoors, the facts as they have been gathered. Please refer to the following quote from wiki:

" Alaskan Park Ranger Peter Christian wrote: "I am exposed continually to what I will call the 'McCandless Phenomenon.' People, nearly always young men, come to Alaska to challenge themselves against an unforgiving wilderness landscape where convenience of access and possibility of rescue are practically nonexistent [...] When you consider McCandless from my perspective, you quickly see that what he did wasn’t even particularly daring, just stupid, tragic, and inconsiderate. First off, he spent very little time learning how to actually live in the wild. He arrived at the Stampede Trail without even a map of the area. If he [had] had a good map he could have walked out of his predicament [...] Essentially, Chris McCandless committed suicide."

That about sums it up. This blatant disregard for self preservation proves that he was not a thinker. Apply your own adjectives.

As I was growing up I always heard mother's or teachers say about different kids "He is smart he just doesn't apply himself." Well at a certain point, being a thinker is part of applying yourself.

As far as his philosophical journey and perceptions of life, each person has their own. Each person has a right to live and die the way they want or try to anyway. I do have sympathy for the people around Mr. McCandless that have lost a friend or loved one. Once you have a lost a person close to you, if you do not have any type of consideration you might want to check to see if you are a robot.

The story itself is intriguing because many people discuss how they are not materialisic, and their opinions to not translate into actions. This 24 year old young man took it upon himself to to figuratively say to hell with the social world and went to live beyond it. Unfortunately the comfort he had in his travels in more hospitable climates leant itself poorly to his preparation to a harsh Alaskan wilderness.

As I understand it, his willingness and what pushed him to take action to abandon "civilization" may have been spurred by his relationships in child development and his eventual poor relationship with his family. He was only 24, and his youthful vigor and overconfidence in himself were his downfall.

Life is not perfect. You must adapt to your surroundings or take action to change them. You do not exist with life, you create life. You create it and influence it around you. The effort of self preservation must co exist with your want to live the way you desire, lest you will risk harmful and even fatal consequence.

At any rate there are my comments and I welcome any and all criticisms.