Well, I went and saw the Into The Wild movie, a long time ago. But I just finished the book, which I have to say was far better than the movie so I thought I’d wait and write this post until I was done with the book, which was awesome because it brought up different perspectives. So what exactly is ‘Into the Wild’ about?
What would possess a gifted young man recently graduated from college to literally walk away from his life and having $24,000 saved up to start his adventurous life? Noted outdoor writer and mountaineer Jon Krakauer tackles that question in his reporting on Chris McCandless, whose emaciated body was found in an abandoned bus in the Alaskan wilderness in 1992. Described by friends and relatives as smart, literate, compassionate, and funny, did McCandless simply read too much Thoreau and Jack London and lose sight of the dangers of heading into the wilderness alone? Krakauer, whose own adventures have taken him to the perilous heights of Everest, provides some answers by exploring the pull the outdoors, seductive yet often dangerous, has had on his own life.
I thought both this book and movie were spectacular. I don’t think the message was portrayed very well in the movie as it did in the book. I did however; understand why he did what he did (unlike a lot people). Why did he do what he did? Well it all comes down to our very own corrupt society in which we live everyday. And why did he die (this is another thing that wasn’t shown very well in the movie, but you did get to catch a glimpse of it)? Well he died because of the poisonous berries that he ate. Why did he eat poisonous berries? Well, he carried a berry book around with him while he was collecting berries to see which berries were eatable and which were not. He happens to come across these berries that were identical to each other, and he took a chance and ate the poisonous ones by accident, he then later died.
