Post by kiranp02 on May 1, 2008 17:58:19 GMT -5
Emerson's ideas about escaping into Nature to get in touch with one's self reminded me of the story of Chris McCandless, told in Jon Krakauer's book "Into the Wild" and Sean Penn's film of the same name. Chris was an intelligent individual, a graduate of Emory University, who decided one day to get rid of all his material possessions, give away his life savings to charity, and head out into the Alaskan wilderness. His goal, as can be deduced from the journal he kept, was to escape from the pressures of society and just get in touch with nature, and in turn, himself.
I think Chris, who was well read, must have been at least somewhat influenced by Emerson's writing because of how closely his story parallels Emerson's "Nature." I know for a fact that some other English classes are reading "Into The Wild" for their Transcendentalism unit, and I think it would be worth reading for anyone who may be interested. Also, I think it is worth noting that the film's soundtrack was written by Eddie Vedder, a member of the band Pearl Jam, a band whose work was tied to Transcendentalism earlier in the year by Mr. Cheddar.
I think Chris, who was well read, must have been at least somewhat influenced by Emerson's writing because of how closely his story parallels Emerson's "Nature." I know for a fact that some other English classes are reading "Into The Wild" for their Transcendentalism unit, and I think it would be worth reading for anyone who may be interested. Also, I think it is worth noting that the film's soundtrack was written by Eddie Vedder, a member of the band Pearl Jam, a band whose work was tied to Transcendentalism earlier in the year by Mr. Cheddar.