I had to read the
Wikipedia page to find out about McCandless' story.
From that page, a quote from Alaskan Park Ranger Peter Christian:
People, nearly always young men, come to Alaska to challenge themselves against an unforgiving wilderness landscape where convenience of access and possibility of rescue are practically nonexistent
My first impression is that those who are attracted to that mode are probably like McCandless, in that they grew up in a home environment that was always more than comfortable -- more than enough of life's necessities. And I then recall my childhood, where apparently my family was living below the poverty level, barely able to buy necessary clothing and never allowed to have extras like candy or soda pop. (At the time I didn't realize it was that bad; I was a little kid.)
But living that way, and slowly gaining ground getting out of the economic pit, it left me with a strong desire to NEVER return to that mode. So throwing away all those hard-earned worldly goods and "living off nature" are a completely foreign concept to me.
