TESTS

Novel: Into the Wild

Ideas to write about:

• relationships with people
• alex forms many relations with people he mets along the way to his alaska adventure, but he is so focused on getting to alaska, no one can stop him. he seeks solitude in nature.  only when he is alone and dying does he realize “happiness only real when shared”
• how is nature used to discover identity or reaching beyond oneself
• how does nature define growth and identity
• how does nature influence people on a spiritual level
• how does nature influence growth and spirituality
• to me it seems like he is so focused on being alone and nothing but with nature, but in that moment he realizes the happiness he might have been looking for was in the people he shared relationships with. so what impact does nature have on our spirits as humans

research question: “How does nature influence the human spirit?”

What is it about Nature that is so gratifying to the human spirit? Years ago, humans thrived off the land and praised it. Now as civilized city folk, some trace back to the woods, mountains, beach or even plains to find something for their spirit or their soul. Nature is beautiful and treacherous as the same time. In “Into the Wild” Alex is mesmerized by the idea of being in Alaska alone. While he may have made connections with people, nothing can stray him from his goal. However when he is dying and alone he writes, “HAPPINESS ONLY REAL WHEN SHARED.”3 Various people from all over the world have been influenced by Nature in different ways. Plenty of native american tribes have used the vision quest as a rite of passage for boys to become men.1 They place themselves away from everyone, in solitude with nature to have a clear mind and vision. Even across the world is nature held as a place for meditation. Buddhism’s own Siddartha was known to meditate in a nature like setting. Ovrinzuko notes that “Finally he sat in meditation under a large fig tree for 49 days, and finally understood the reason for all suffering in the world”.2 He achieved the higher self through meditation in nature. Countless pieces of evidence exist from all parts of the world. Nature is where humans have come from. There is a mysterious aspect about it, a place where the mind can be cleared of daily annoyances and can be placed back into its roots. Going back to nature is like going back to orgins. For the time being, everything can be ignored as humans reach out to mother nature for a more spiritual self. 

1. Robert Heinrich et al., “Counseling Native Americans,” Journal of Counseling & Development 69, no. 2 (1990).

2. Ovrinzuko, “The  First Meditation,” BodhiTales.

3. Jon Krakauer, Into the Wild (New York: Anchor Books, 1996), 189.

Heinrich, Robert K., Joseph L. Corbine, and Kenneth R. Thomas. “Counseling Native Americans.” Journal of Counseling & Development 69, no. 2 (November 1990): 128. Teacher Reference Center, EBSCOhost (accessed February 25, 2010).

Krakauer, Jon. Into The Wild. New York: Anchor Books, 1996.

Ovrinzuke. “Siddhartha’s Revelation.” Hub Pages. http://hubpages.com/hub/Buddhas-Revelation
 (accessed February 24, 2010).