Nature Essay

Alia Boynton
Into the Wild
Is someone’s decision to brave the wilderness alone an act of bravery or an act of stupidity? Does surviving a near death experience unarmed make you a better person or does it simply prove that you have good luck? These are questions that often cross the mind of the reader while reading Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer. Although I think that McCandless’ decision to walk alone into the wilderness with no proper protection or resources was a foolish and selfish one rather than an admirable and noble one, I disagree with the statement that there was “nothing positive at all” about McCandless’ decision to brave the wilderness alone, because there is no way that you can undergo an experience like that without learning something valuable, McCandless accomplished many positive things from his time in the wild, and it requires much more than just good luck to survive a near death experience.
It is impossible to really learn a lesson about something that you have never experienced for yourself. By going “into the wild”, McCandless made a decision that was frowned apon by mostly everybody. People say that nothing good can come from an idea like this, nothing can be learned by being foolish and irrational. But the reality is, most lessons are learned by doing foolish things. If you never get on a skateboard, you will never learn how to skate, even if standing on a narrow board with wheels and hurling yourself off of a jump may not seem like the most reasonable decision at the time. There is no possible way that you can undergo a near death experience and not learn anything from it. Just because the experience is not positive does not mean that you can’t learn a valuable lesson, one that you would not have learned otherwise. McCandless was very determined to embark on his journey, even though he knew his extremely slim chances of surviving and was advised by everybody he talked to that it was a bad idea. Before he left, he gave $25,000 to charity and burned all the cash in his wallet. Nobody burns all the cash in their wallet unless they are really determined to accomplish something. And although he did not survive his journey, I think that Christopher McCandless accomplished his goal.

Yes McCandless was foolish in his choice to face such a dangerous situation almost completely unarmed. Yes he was unprepared and did not consider the many people that he hurt by choosing to go out on his own. But it would not be a true statement to say that nothing positive came out of his experience. Many people go through their whole lives never really knowing the key to really being happy, never realizing the importance of the small things that they take for granted and never really experiencing the beauty of the world. McCandless achieved all of these things. Although he was not successful in surviving through his “final and greatest adventure”, I don’t think that was his intention. He lived the life that he wanted to and learned the things that some people will never know. On the day that McCandless decided that he is ready to leave, he writes in his journal that he had been reborn, and that “I have lived through much, and now I think that I have found what is needed for happiness”(p.169). This is something that a majority of people go through their whole life wondering, and never find an answer to. This is inevitably something positive that has come from McCandless’ experience in the wilderness.
“Surviving a near death experience doesn’t make you a better human it makes you damn lucky.” These are the words of one letter writer who did not agree with McCandless’ choice to go into the wild. I don’t agree that the knowledge that you have good luck is the only thing that you gain from surviving a near death experience. If you know as little about survival as McCandless did when he left for his adventure and are put into a situation in which your life could be ended and somehow make it through, you are inevitably going to learn something valuable about survival.
So although McCandless was not wise in his choice to take on such an unreasonable endeavor, nor was he noble or admirable in his intentions. But just because his reasoning is selfish doesn’t mean that he did not gain anything from the experience. Although he did hurt the people close to him by going into the wilderness on his own, McCandless gained the knowledge of how to find happiness and lived the final adventure that he had always dreamed of and faced situations that required more than just good luck.