The meaning of life

Evans wants to explore the wilderness because “I wished to acquire the simplicity, native feelings, and virtues of savage life; to divest myself of the factitious habits, prejudices and imperfections of civilization; … and to find amidst the solitude and grandeur of the western wilds, more correct views of the true interests of man. The season of snows was preferred, that I might experience the pleasure of suffering and the novelty of danger”(344). Evans wishes to go to the western wilderness, so he could experience the world the way man is supposed to. Evan’s use of “acquire”, “simplicity”, “native feeling”, and “savage life” tells us that, if we venture out into the wilderness we will find the life style of our ancestors, which is simply. A life with that had no rules, except for survival, a “savage life”. Leaving behind all the technology and “imperfections” of the modern human society, and just live the way that man was meant to live. Both Evans and Nash believe that escaping to the wilderness will let man experience life the way it was meant to be. Man will be free to do what he wanted without any rules or laws to judge him. The only thing he would have to worry about is surviving and to understand the true purpose in life. Nash believes that the “Wilderness appealed to those bored or disgusted with man and his works. It not only offered an escape from society but also was an ideal stage for the Romantic individual to exercise the cult that he frequently made his own soul. The solitude and total freedom of the wilderness created a perfect setting for either melancholy or exultation”(344). Nash believes that the wilderness is place for people to go if they are sick of man and his evil ways; to heal their own soul and just feel the way you want to feel. The wilderness will heal your soul from all the wrong doings of man. It allows you to escape the world of man and enter into the natural world or the world of our ancestors giving us total freedom. This freedom would be from what ever we wanted to be free from, humans, technology, evil, etc. ,but this freedom will also let us ponder what is truly meaningful in this world. The natural world it a perfect spot for a “Romantic individual” to ponder life’s true meaning and write a story or a poem that is truly meaningful.