Sonstiges
In der Kürze...

Dunkle Nacht

Es war Nacht, dunkel, still. Die Leute schliefen und nichts war zu hören. Ich erwachte. War wirklich nichts zu hören? Ich hörte etwas. Wenn du warst, wo ich war, in jener Nacht: Hast du etwas gehört? Ich habe etwas gehört. Es war Nacht, es war dunkel, die Leute schliefen und ich habe ein Klopfen gehört. Draußen auf der Straße war es zum Leben erwacht, aber es kam aufs Haus zu, kam näher und näher, lauter und lauter, schneller und schneller, es erreichte das Haus, kletterte an der Wand empor, peitschte die Jalousie gegen das Fenster und

erreichte das Dach. Es schlug darauf ein, immer lauter, immer schneller, immer fester. Ich zog meine Decke bis über die Nase. Die Leute hörten nichts. Sie schliefen. Es war Nacht, es war dunkel, aber es war nicht still. Vielleicht hast du nichts gehört in jener Nacht, aber ich habe etwas gehört. Ich habe ein unbarmherziges Klopfen gehört, das gnadenlos auf mein Haus einschlug. Ich habe gehört, wie in jener dunklen Nacht auf meinem Dach der Regen trommelte.

Die große Küche

Überall, wo ich hinkomme, bietet man mir die gleiche Suppe an. Sie wird in einer großen Küche von vielen Leuten zusammen gekocht und jeder, der etwas davon genommen hat, muss selbst etwas in den Topf schütten. So wird er immer voller, obwohl die Leute daraus essen. Dieses Angebot lehne ich dankend ab, denn ich habe die Suppe schon probiert und muss sagen, von einem Löffel zu schlürfen ist einfacher als kauen und zunächst hat sie auch großartig geschmeckt, doch sie brannte beim Schlucken und stieß mir am Ende bitter auf. Deshalb ziehe ich ein Brot vor. Das

muss gekaut werden und ist manchmal etwas trocken, aber wenigstens weiß man, was man im Magen hat. Auch in die große Küche möchte ich mich nicht bitten lassen, denn ich weiß, dass das Süppchen dort schon am oberen Rand seines Topfes brodelt. Zwar sehen sie mich schief an, weil ich alleine draußen sitze, während sie drinnen in der großen Küche ihre Suppe schlürfen, doch am Ende, wenn irgendjemand zu viel in den großen Topf gibt, wird er nicht nur überlaufen, wird ihre Suppe nicht nur überkochen; ihnen wird die ganze Küche mit einem lauten Knall um die Ohren fliegen. Und dann sitze ich alleine draußen und kaue genüsslich

mein Brot.

Essay about Christopher Mccandless, Based on the film "into the wild" by Sean Penn (2007)

On the 6th September 1992 Christopher McCandless was found dead in an abandoned bus near Denali National Park in Alaska. He had lived there for about 113 days trying to leave society behind and to live in harmony with nature. However, due to insufficient preparation he had not been able to feed himself. His attempt to achieve ultimate freedom and the purification of his character is interpreted in two most contrasting ways: Some consider it to be

an act of sheer self-destruction; others admire it because of their own longing for freedom from the boundaries of society. The latter seems sensible enough as far as it concerns the criticism Christopher McCandless symbolises: He criticises Capitalism, so he donates his savings, burns his cash and lives independently from material possession. Thus, he proves that luxury is no necessity but can be a burden, e.g. since too much possession and a safe job, which one needs to maintain a luxurious lifestyle, disable you from travelling around like he does. Even though many people feel attracted to this way of life only few would dare to

give up their secure existences for it. Therefore, Christopher McCandless´ decision can be called brave. By contrast, life becomes harder without money to buy food or pay for public means of transport. In Christopher McCandless´ life as depicted in the film “Into the Wild” this shows, for example, when he is brutally beat by the railway police because he tried to travel by freight train. As long as he is among people, though, Christopher manages to survive and travel on, either by temporary jobs or by the benevolence of others, e.g. Ron Franz. This rather constant support prevents him from realising how hard a

truly lonely life in the wilderness will be. Naively, he believes his tramping experience, a superficial lesson on hunting and a book on local plants prepare him sufficiently for feeding himself when being alone and cut off from easily accessible food supplies. Therefore, Park Ranger Peter Christian is right in calling his behaviour “suicide”. [Christian, Peter: “Chris McCandless from a Park Ranger's Perspective”. George Mason University English Department. Text and Community website. URL: http://nmge.gmu.edu/textandcommunity/2006/Peter_Christian_Response.pdf ; retrieved 14th December 2013]

Actually, Christopher McCandless is lucky not to have died before: His experience in white-water rafting was as insufficient as his hunting experience. Still he paddled down the Colorado River without a licence. In spite of the danger linked to this, it leads to the second kind of criticism Christopher McCandless stands for: He criticises overregulation and the human claim on control over nature. Hence, he ignores rules he does not think sensible such as wait-lists to enjoy natural sights. Not accepting the limitations deriving from bureaucracy again is something many people long for. Consequently, Christopher McCandless

can be admired for being a projection of people´s secret wishes. Yet, he goes too far. By destroying his ID he neglects his identity which is the first step towards psychological self-destruction. Psychologically, Christopher does not only harm himself but also others: First of all, his family has to be mentioned. Despite the different ways his behaviour is interpreted, the true reason for Christopher´s trip is fleeing from his parents. As they cannot track him down their old anger at him first turns into worry, then into grief and finally into a desperation they cannot cope with. His sister is the one who has

to endure their changing emotions. Simultaneously, she does not hear from him either, so her own anxiety about him increases. Concerning her and his parents, Christopher McCandless can be called ignorant and egotistical. Apart from them, he emotionally hurts different people he meets during his journey: There are Jan and Rainey whose failing relationship he revives, Tracy who falls in love with him and Ron Franz who would even adopt him. Temporarily, he becomes a part of their lives. With all of them he is happy. None of them want him to leave. Nevertheless, he cannot let go of his plan and consequently lets them down.

Where before there has been his place there is something missing after he left. Even Christopher himself suffers from leaving them, for men cannot be without society. In the wilderness his mental sanity slowly gives out. He starts talking to himself and throws tantrums. What is ultimate freedom, then? If it means being free from even all human relationships, it is nothing a human being longs for. The thing we long for is being free from the boundaries of Capitalism and being free from the limitations imposed by bureaucracy in order to be with each other, because “happiness [is] only real when shared.” This is the final lesson Christopher

McCandless learns and wants to pass on to posterity. He does not want to be admired for having lived in a bus in the Alaskan wilderness. He wants to be admired for the good he had done to Jan, Rainey, Tracy and Ron before he left them.