living in the tension
written by Sarah Schumacher , December 12, 2007

Hey guys,

I just saw Into the Wild this past weekend and man, has this movie really stuck with me. I knew the story ahead of time, but was unprepared for the anger that welled up in me as I watched this movie, and slowly my own anger turned into a feeling of despair once it was evident Chris' own extreme idealism left him literally trapped. I found Chris at first to be irritatingly arrogant, thinking only of himself and his own desires. At times, though, I desired exactly what Chris was experiencing--adventure, sweet friendship, deep community with individuals and with nature. Although Chris very well found some truth while he travelled from place to place, what I fear he missed was the hope of redemption--both of his parents and his culture. I was relieved to see there was some redemption of Chris by the end of the movie.

In your question about running towards and running away from, I think the struggle is to live in the tension of both. I have thought about this a lot even in my own life. Those things I struggle with, that I resent--are they best dealt with if I run away from them? Maybe. Or are they resolved if I run towards them? Maybe as well. I compare this to people's struggle with the instiutional church--one can develop sweeping idealistic thoughts about church and at the time same develop bitterness and resentment towards a faith tradition they grew up in. In a search for a place that welcomes the sweeping idealism, the other tradition becomes wrong. Yet, I would contest there is value in both. Is one wrong and the other right? Is the culture Chris left behind wrong and his right? Can redemption only be found in what one believes to be right and not in what one has labeled wrong? And therein lies the tension we must put ourselves in.

...
written by Peter Boumgarden , December 06, 2007

I think you are right that Christopher had some idea of what he was looking for... and as noted in your post, this resulted in a swapping of idealism for idealism, or idol for idol. What I think is one of the profound take-aways of the movie, however, is the potential of redemption, even given our misguided motivations.

Regarding Christopher's motivations... I think if he were able, he would tell you he was very clear on what these were from the beginning. This may not be the only relevant issue when it comes to understanding ourselves. The research in psychology is relatively clear that our motivations are multifaceted, and not always available to conscious reflection. I think Christopher's story is a clear example of this. In the beginning of the film, we see Christopher deeply enmeshed in a reactionary posture-- one in which he is motivated by movement away from his past, his family, and the ideas that each of these things stood for. I think we can also agree that, though somewhat glorified in the film, these are not necessarily the best motivations. From a pragmatic standpoint, they led to separation from his family, and resulted in life of bitterness and anger. But, as you note in your comment, by the end of the film, it seem as though one of his final realization is the importance of others, and the necessity of having these people there to share the journey. Given the fact that our motivations may be blind and unavailable to our own understanding, perhaps this is a beautiful picture that there may be something redeemable even in our broken desires. With regards to these multi-facted motivations, I think Christopher had to have had some sort of implicit commitment to the idea of love, care and family. Had he not, the lack of these things would not have been such a big part of what he felt was lacking in his life, and eventually such a big motivator of his journey away.

Even though Christopher may have had confidence in what he was searching for, it is clear that what he eventually found was something fundamentally different than these espoused motivations. What I would argue though is that there is some notion of the good or the pure or the beautiful deep within his psyche, that provided the opportunity for the redemption of these motivations. And I think the same is true with us (at least it is what we ought to hope for). I know that my own motivations can often be selfish, self-centered, destructive, and blind the needs of others. Christopher's motivaitons seemed to be laced with many of the same problems, as in this film they seemed misguided, childish and immature. At the end of his story, however, we see some degree of redemption. I think the film offers a vision that laced within all the anger and bitterness that Christopher housed was some knowledge of the good-- and that is ultimately what he stumbled upon as seen in the last reflection of his journal.

To what extent can we know what we are running towards?
written by Peter Boumgarden , November 26, 2007

Hey Eric
Really like what you guys are doing with the site. Been thinking about the contrast between the idea of running towards and away from from something. I think you are right that we need to be running towards something, but sometimes I question if we always must be certain what that is. Christopher knew what he was running from yet did not fully know what he was running towards. And I think that is the reality of dealing with the unknown. At some point, these journeys away from the comfortable require a Kirkegaardian 'leap of faith' into the unknown... for we can only know through immersion into that reality. Perhaps it is rather that we need to see 'through the glass darkly' what we are attempting to run towards... or that we need to know in what posture we pursue that journey towards this unknown (e.g. a reverent humility... committed to the questions, etc.). I just think the pursuit of something like wonder (for an example relevant to this site) is in many ways a journey into the unknown-- one that must begin with a leap of 'faith' and hope that we reach a place more near to that which captured our imagination in the first place.
pb