Bravery

“People glorify all sorts of bravery except the bravery they might show on behalf of their nearest neighbors.” (Eliot)
Chris McCandless’s journey may not have been out of bravery, but there is no way to deny that it was brave. In Chris’s memoir Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, he ventures off into the wilderness to find himself in solitude; he is a modern day Henry David Thoreau. He believes that only in his solitude he will be ably to truly learn to be content with himself and the world around him. He left behind civilization, companionship, and all of the objects that were, as he considered them to be, useless and unessential. He lasts two years exploring the country only finding discontent in every place he sees. He believes that only in the vast wilderness of Alaska he will find true tranquility. He is determined and believes that he can survive the obstacles that are laid before him, but, unfortunately, he is sadly mistaken.
It is not long before he slowly dies of starvation and poisonous vegetation. As courageous as he thought he was, he was still not able to successful provide for himself off of the fruit of land. In his last hours he learns the most important lesson of his life, “HAPPINESS ONLY REAL WHEN SHARED”(189 Krakauer). He did not need the thrill of adventure, the solitude of the wilderness, the exploration of the unknown, or the comfort of nothingness. What he needed most was everything he left behind. Not necessarily the material aspect of what he left behind, but the intangible things. He needed companionship, security, and love. He longs to see his family member’s face, to reunited with the many people that he met on his journey across the country, and the love of his nearest neighbors.
Only in death did Chris McCandless learn that loneliness is not living, but that loving is living.