Last week in AIS, when we were given the Vonnegut reading on the patterns most ‘interesting’ stories follow, I found myself immediately putting Vonnegut’s theory to the test. Most of the stories I could think of fit one of his little graphs perfectly: Harry Potter, Twilight, even The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants! I was about to give up proving Vonnegut wrong when I thought of a story that was actually right in front of my face. Into the Wild!!! I tried to fit the story of Chris McCandless in to one of these graphs, but I was stumped. Chris wasn’t really a “man in hole”, because he didn’t begin very happy. Unless of course Vonnegut was referring to just his wealth, in which case the beginning position of ‘good fortune’ would make sense but the end would not. Chris’s story didn’t fit “boy meets girl” either, because indifferent was not how he began his story at all. If I had to choose one, I suppose Chris could’ve fit the part of Cinderella. He began his story very unsatisfied, and as he succeeded to free himself from society he slowly started to climb towards ‘good fortune’. Perhaps the great upward slope was his arrival in Alaska? And maybe the great dip towards ‘ill fortune’ was his consumption of the poisonous berries that ultimately killed him? However, it was the end that really got me thinking. Was the skyrocketing slope to infinite good fortune perhaps Chris’s death? Because it was only then that he was
finally freed from society and its selfish, poisonous wrongs. However, I know some would view the story of Chris’s life as the ‘Kafka’ graph. This would mean he started as a nutcase and his idiocy brought him to his death, which was the infinite plunge into ‘ill fortune’ on the graph. Personally, I believe Chris was more of a courageous man rather than a nutcase, which leads me to believe his life follows the path of Cinderella. Others, however, might view this differently...
Kasia, you bring up a very interesting idea! personally I think McCandless's graph would have looked exactly like Cinderella's had he wanted to die. But because he wasn't suicidal, ( the note he left asking for help proves this), I don't think he could possibly fit the Cinderella graph considering his death was no happy ending. I like your idea that his "dip" was when he ate the berries however looking at the graph itself, I think that the "bad" would have to span over a longer period of time.
ReplyDelete(side note: I loved reading this entry! It was one of the best blogs I've read so far!)
Thanks Mang!!!
ReplyDeleteI suppose you're right that Chris didn't want to die. But it was a constant struggle for him to find the happiness and freedom he was seeking. I may be getting in to some really deep stuff here, but I completely believe in a happier life after death. I mentioned that I thought the skyrocketing to infinite happiness in the end could be his spirit being freed from his body and dwelling in a happier place after his death. A free, happy spirit was all he desired which is why I believed this could be a happy ending.