Sean Jones
Dr. Porter
EH.101.10
18 April 2012
Opposites Attract Chris McCandless and Aron Ralston were dragged into an experiment that Mother Nature meticulously concocted. Both set out on adventures into the wild with separate motives, separate landscapes, and separate preparation, but found themselves in the same life or death struggle. How can two people from different walks of life be so different, yet so alike? Although Chris and Aron's motives for trekking into nature were polar opposites of each other, the outcome was Ironically the same. Chris McCandless had decided early on that he was going to strip himself of everything but the bare necessities and deliver himself to Alaska's harsh wilderness in an attempt to break free from the grasp of society and live off the land. Unlike Chris, however, Aron Ralston had plans to go to a party with two lovely ladies he had just met, and the party was the next night. Aaron was simply on an adrenaline fix through Blue John canyon. Aron had no intention of staying the 127 hours that he did, yet both young men became caught in a tug of war between life or death. Another point was the different landscapes, or terrain, each young man entered. Although the terrain was vastly different, they were surprisingly similar. Chris McCandless traveled into a frozen, deserted wasteland where vegetation was scarce and could not grow. Accompanying the lack of vegetation was a lack of wildlife to hunt. In contrast, Aron was in a scorching, sun baked desert, and was also out of reach of any source of food. However, due to abundant snowfall and the ability to start a fire, Chris McCandless was never in a shortage of water like Aron was. Aron was forced to conserve a small portion of water, and at one point of time even attempted to drink his own urine for sustenance. A final point is the careful, intricate, and detailed preparations both young men shared, which is none. Chris made it a point to not be fully prepared, but he did his best to have the knowledge of wild vegetation. Chris had zero knowledge that his campsite was within walking distance of several cabins and even a ranger station that could have saved his life. However,