Eric Hollen answers “In what ways did the story inspire you?”

Karma Gurung asked this question about Into the Wild:

In what ways did the story inspire you?

Eric Hollen I think, starting out, I shared some of the moral judgments that a lot of critics seemed to have towards Alex - that he was arrogant, selfish, foolish…moreI think, starting out, I shared some of the moral judgments that a lot of critics seemed to have towards Alex - that he was arrogant, selfish, foolish. But I felt like the book did a lot to upend that, and show that some of these shorthand judgments we cast tend to veil a whole universe of intricacy and complication. In the end, the initial view I had of Alex was compounded with a deep sympathy, understanding, forgiveness (for the cruelty suffered upon his loved ones; he is, after all, only human) as well as admiration. Which might be a long way of saying, it made me want to look deeper into who people are and what they tick, and not settle for the easy "writing off" or judgments that, as Krauker pointed out, a lot of people tended to have towards him. (less)

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