Into the Wild

I'm listening these days to Eddie Vedder's (Pearl Jam) soundtrack to the movie version of Into the Wild, the book by Jon Krakauer about the true story of Christopher McCandless. Christopher graduated from Sean's and my alma mater, Emory University, in 1992, sold all of his possessions and went on an adventure that ended in Alaska, where he died, probably poisoned by a molded berry that he ate. Sean and I both loved the book and really enjoyed the movie, although of course the book is better because it is more comprehensive. He explores that while Christopher's quest was probably rooted in some elements of mental illness or family trauma, many men and/or boys take off on big adventures which turn out to be of importance only to themselves. It is then that they tend to get on with life. This view of male coming of age is shared in a similar way by the author of another book that I read this year, Wonder of Boys by Michael Gurian.