Emily Sosa-Vides

UWRT 1102-007
12/9/2015
The goal of childhood is to become an individual; the goal of adulthood is to give that
individuality away. The task of childhood is to separate; the task of adulthood is to connect.
(Jones, 1). In our youth we try to understand who we are by keeping our true emotions bottled
up. These emotions can take a toll on our wellbeing as we progress to adulthood. But as we get
older we learn more of who we are by the connections we make in our life. The emotions we
have inside can be used to share amongst others to have a healthy well being. These connections
also help us grow and be better equipped with new knowledge others present in our path of
adulthood. In the story Into the Wild about Christopher McCandless, he goes through a journey
of meeting so many individuals to just him being alone in Alaska. His ultimate goal was to get to
Alaska nothing else. As the story goes along there's a shift in his goal and he starts to realize too
late. I saw how it changed Chris, as if the strangers he met along the way are the ones that really
impacted his life compared to dying alone on a bus.
On Christopher's trip to Alaska he met many people who helped him along the way to
reach his goal. In the beginning you could tell he was enjoying the new places and meeting
interesting people more than the ultimate goal. There were many influential strangers he met that
you could tell made a difference in his life. One of the stranger's name was Wayne Westerberg,
who he met in Carthage, South Dakota. Wayne helps Chris by giving him a job at a grain
elevator and a place to stay. While Chris was here he falls in love with the small town and the
friends he made there. Later on in the book Chris even thought of settling down in Carthage if he
ever got out of Alaska alive. Even though Chris had only stayed there for a small amount of time;
he did learn how new knowledge for example how to preserve meat and to earn some money
before he went off to new place. Social encounters provide the opportunity to gain information

about and to affirm congruent understandings of shared occupation of distant social and cultural
landscapes (White, 1)
When he left he still kept in touch with Wayne, who very much cared for Chris. In one of
Chriss letter you could tell he was very grateful in what little Wayne had to offer him.
But apart from sending greetings the main purpose of this card is to thank you once
again for all your hospitality. Its rare to find a man as generous and good natured as you
are. Sometimes I wish I hadnt met you though. Tramping is too easy with all this money.
I couldnt make it now without money, however, as there is very little fruiting agriculture
down here at this time. Please thank Kevin again for all the clothes he gave me, I would
have froze to death without them. I hope he got that book to you. Wayne, you really
should read War and Peace. I meant it when I said you had one of the highest characters
of any man Id met. (Krakauer, 25).
Chris also meets Bob and Jan Burres who gave him a welcome stay into their life. During this
part of his life before Alaska you could tell he was actually enjoying his life
Burres makes it clear that he was no recluse: He had a good time when he was around
people, a real good time. At the swap meet hed talk and talk and talk to everybody who
came by.He must have met six or seven dozen people in Niland, and he was friendly with
every one of them. He needed his solitude at times, but he wasnt a hermit. He did a lot of
socializing. Sometimes I think it was like he was storing up company for the times when
he knew nobody would be around. (Krakauer, 32)
Traveling is meant to be shared with others for the experience to be at its best. Having people
around gives you a better chance at surviving, they might also know things that you didn't know
In ontogeny and phylogeny, humans need others to survive and prosper(Cacioppo, Social
Isolation).
When Chris finally got to Alaska he did seem happy at first alone, but as time went on
you could tell his thoughts were changing. I fully understood why he did it; he wanted to get
away from the worlds norm and be closer to nature, but being alone can take a hit on our mental
health (Coplan, 2). In the beginning of Alaska Chris felt free from life's stress and everyday
culture. For once he was one with the land and understanding everything around him.

All of us have access to natures wisdom, and yet in our human-centered, high-tech lives,
we have lost the ability, sensitivity, and skill to listen, feel, and sense the natural world.
The value of silence, stillness, and solitude has been exchanged for busyness and
stimulation in a postmodern, restless and culture. (Coleman, xvii).
But too much of anything is unhealthy. Robert Coplan and Julie Bowker in their book describes
all the benefit of solitude and also its negative effect. Solitude is only normal when it's for short
period of time not for long extended time Relatedly, social neuroscientists now suggest that
loneliness and social isolation can be bad not only for our psychological functioning and wellbeing but also for our physical health(Coplan, 5). Jessica Olien also explains her experience
with loneliness in her article on what loneliness did to her. She even compared loneliness being
twice as dangerous as obesity and to smoking (Olien, Loneliness Can Kill You).
In Chriss journal where he writes down everything he does in Alaska; the journal goes
from amazing to detrimental in the way he feels. This journal is basically proof that traveling is
beneficial when you're with another person. In his journal he writes,
McCandless starred and bracketed the paragraph and circled refuge in nature in black
ink. Next to And so it turned out that only a life similar to the life of those around us,
merging with it without a ripple, is genuine life, and that an unshared happiness is not
happiness.... And this was most vexing of all, he noted, HAPPINESS ONLY REAL
WHEN SHARED. It is tempting to regard this latter notation as further evidence that
McCandlesss long, lonely sabbatical had changed him in some significant way. It can be
interpreted to mean that he was ready, perhaps, to shed a little of the armor he wore
around his heart, that upon returning to civilization, he intended to abandon the life of a
solitary vagabond, stop running so hard from intimacy, and become a member of the
human community. (Krakauer, 129)
It seemed Chris realized that the whole adventure wasnt at Alaska, but how he got there. He was
also able to survive based on who he met on the road. In Alaska there was no one nearby that
could him if he was in danger by being alone it cost him his life. If he had someone with him the
probability of him surviving would have been much higher. He writes in his journal of his

physical stay on day 100 in Alaska BUT IN WEAKEST CONDITION OF LIFE. DEATH
LOOMS AS SERIOUS THREAT. TOO WEAK TO WALK OUT, HAVE LITERALLY
BECOME TRAPPED IN THE WILD.NO GAME. (Krakauer, 133). While he was weak he
wasnt able to tend to himself, by having somebody there they could have called or help Chris
get better.
The ultimate pleasure in traveling is who you meet and the people who go through the
experience with you. Its being able to share your emotions and having someone there to help
you whenever you need. Traveling should never be done alone. Even in Chriss life he seemed
happier when he had his adventure shared.

Works Cited
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Coleman, Mark. "Awake in the Wild." Google Books. Inner Ocean Publishing, n.d. Web. 24
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Jones, James William. In the Middle of This Road We Call Our Life:
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