The Price of Freedom

The Price of Freedom

Chris McCandless was a very bright young man with great potential in life and could have done very well in society but instead threw it all away to find himself and be free. Chris isolated himself from his friends, family, and his little sister Carine whom Chris is very close with. He was also very unprepared for a trek into the wild; he had no outdoors training or experience and was unwilling to accept help from others. Chris’s self-denial also caused him to have a propensity for thrill-seeking and finding danger, though this was necessary for him to find his true self and his freedom. Chris McCandless’s freedom cost him his life.

During his High School years Chris finally finds out about his father’s infidelity, which kicks his teenage rebellion into full swing. Chris never confronted Walt about his infidelity yet silently condemns him for it. Chris broods over this for five years, growing angrier and angrier at his father. He finally reaches a breaking point where he decides that human society is all about hypocrisy and becomes determined to leave it all behind. Walt was chastened by his son running away, knowing that he lost his son because of his wrongdoings. It was not a random act of teenage rebellion that he had no control over, but his own actions and how he expected so much of Chris when he himself was incapable of living up to the same high expectations. However, as a result of Chris’s defection, Walt became a better and more tolerant man. There’s no telling what the reunion would be like if Chris had survived and returned to his family but it’s safe to say they would all be very changed people.

Since they won't ever take me seriously, for a few months after graduation I'm going

to let them think they are right, I'm going to let them think that I'm 'coming around to

see their side of things' and that our relationship is stabilizing. And then, once the time

is right, with one abrupt, swift action I'm going to completely knock...