The end of an idealist

Rating: 8/10 (17 August 2008)

Glorious or inglorious, that is here the question. Alex Supertramp is a down-shifter par excellence, who still needs at first the non-down-shifters for his gradual self-realization. He is an adventurer and freedom-seeker and he is not satisfied with little. He resigns materialism, the urges and lies of the American society and tries to break out into the wild nature, to experience "real" life. To late it dawns upon him that nature is no garden Eden and that some attainments, not so much of the civilization, rather of the socialization are reasonable. It is a surprising end that Krakauer describes with the help of the diary of the unfortunate. The movie is here not so much stringent. The end of Alex is cruel and shows that it is vain to romanticize nature. Unfortunate could be the wrong word. If Alex would not have renounced such reasonable artifacts like a map, which he intentionally left back, or at least if he had informed about the locality, he could have made it easily to survive. That he wanted it is shown clearly by his desperate struggle against death. Experienced adventurers always calculate with emergency cases when they plan their special tours. Idealism needs carbohydrates! Alex was sheepish, overambitious maybe simply silly. Yes, exaggerated idealism is sometimes nothing else than density. But it would be wrong to judge this young man. He made a decision and he paid for it. Did he find self-determination? No, no man can exist for himself, the freedom some are searching is nothing but an abstract and nature is not nice at all! She is like she is. Without man she is nothing at all. Nature is there for man, but she does not know it. But man has to know it. The sojourn in nature is a good opportunity for self-reflection. Krakauer implies that Alex could have reached the goal to live his idealism until the very bitter end. He is not different to mountaineers who notwithstanding the risks want to have their extreme experience. There is nothing left than the hope, that instead of the romantic transfiguration of a life in the wilderness or the intended union with nature  a thing that cannot exist  in the face of death the simple recognition prevailed that life, that loves and can be loved is the most sensible and praiseworthy. A lot of knowledge for a young man in our times. A recommendable film and book. Krakauer did not draw conclusions. He did not want to interpret too much into it. Perhaps because he is guilty himself of extreme adventures.