Analysis of Hazlitt's Article on Travel
Hazlitt's article on travel advocates the benefits of solo travel within one's own country. His affection for travel is strong. He calls going on a journey "one of the pleasantest things in the world". Hazlitt stresses that solitude while on a journey is a must, saying "nature is company enough for me", and "I am never less alone than when alone".
Hazlitt insists that sharing in the experience of nature with a companion takes away from the sensory experience of it. He asserts bluntly: "I cannot see the wit of walking and talking at the same time". He believes conversation distracts from the scenery, and that nature does not need to be discussed, only experienced. To tale about the scene while experiencing it diminishes it and takes away from its immediate beauty. Scenery is not to be negotiated. Everyone will have their own unique experience of nature, and since each experience is personal it is futile to compare experiences. Hazlitt says: "The continual comparing of notes interferes with the involuntary impression of things upon the mind, and hurts the sentiment". His view opposes that of Alphonse Frankenstein, who urges Victor to take a family tour of the Chamounix, insisting that companionship in the experience compounds its remedial value. But Hazlitt seeks freedom from fellow men when he journeys. He says "the soul of a journey is liberty...to think, feel, do, just as one pleases". When experiencing nature in solitude, Hazlitt is able to appreciate it to its full extent by becoming one with nature. He says "when i am in the country i wish to vegetate like the country". A journey should be a time of freedom and peace, away from all things associated with city life. When travelling alone you are " a creature of the moment...free of all ties". A journey can provide "a little breathing space" to refresh and revitalize a person. When on a journey, Hazlitt says he begins "to feel, think and be myself again". He finds joy in living while in nature: "Give me the clear blue sky over my head, and the green turf beneath my feet...I laugh, I run, I leap, I sing for joy". Hazlitt's language describes the experience as being cathartic, like a return to the innocence of childhood. Hazlitt says the freedom found in nature comes from being away from people, and allowing the mind to rest.
The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon. (Krakauer 57)” McCandless felt the trip was necessary to fill a void in him. He became so infatuated with adventure that he encouraged others to venture out and explore the world. Unfortunately for McCandless he was very stubborn.
Experiences of journeys provide insights into the lives of individuals and the world around them
However, his adventure wasn’t meaningless, he was able to influence many and define the meaning of happiness that he seek for on the journey. One person that McCandless influenced most is an old man named Ron Franz; McCandless encourage the old man to move old and live a wild life, and “Astoundingly, the eighty-one-year-old man took the brash twenty-four-year-old vagabonds advice to heart. Franz ... moved out of his apartment and set up camp on the bajada” (Pg. 58). Ron is an old man living a secure life, but with no excitement whatsoever. In listening to McCandless, he moved out to the wild to appreciate the living of nature and lived a more thrilling life. McCandless’s adventure is also an influence for those who hasn’t fulfil their dream to enter the wild to have more motivation to do so. Furthermore, Chris realized the true meaning of happiness from his journey in Alaska, and defined it as “happiness [is] only real when shared” (Pg. 189). At first, McCandless ideal was to be alone and be himself so he would not have to live to anyone expectation. However, after a stay in Alaska, he found the meaning in have friends, family, and in which lead to happiness.
“ I myself fell prey to wanderlust some years ago, desiring nothing better than to be a vagrant cloud scudding before the wind... But the year ended before I knew it... Bewitched by the god of restlessness, I lost my peace of mind; summoned by the spirits of the road, I felt unable to settle down to anything.”
“It’s difficult to recall the first time I went to Switzerland. The actual experience of flying across the ocean at a young age felt like journeying to a different world. That eleven-hour flight was such a tedious part of the very exciting journey ahead. I remember once looking out the window of the plane as we touched down and feeling such a deep comfort and contentment. I felt as though I was home. What awaited me were days of family and friends, hiking and exploring, and delicious food. It was always such a beautiful experience being i...
What do people think of when they hear the word solitude? For many, it evokes a negative connotation, but in reality, those same people carry false associations with the word. Solitude is the state of being alone. It is not the same as being lonely, which is the dread of being alone. Despite these erroneous myths of solitude perpetuating many minds, the truth is that everyone can benefit from solitude. Humankind’s greatest inventions were conceived and developed in isolation, and even with this fact, many individuals do not realize what is lost without solitude. William Deresiewicz, author of “The End of Solitude”, reflects on how society no longer appreciates solitude and how technology is responsible for it. Additionally, Susan Cain, author
In Alain de Botton’s collection of philosophical essays, The Art of Travel and Tim Winton’s short story ‘Neighbours’, the representation of people and landscapes leads us to a greater awareness of the complexity of human attitudes and behaviours. This is explored through the idea that changes in one’s receptivity to the landscape can determine their perspective of it and thus influence their behaviour and attitude towards those people in the landscape. The desire for a new landscape is due to the non-receptivity to the old landscape, this is explored in de Botton’s first essay, ‘On Anticipation’ with his experience of Barbados. The representation presented to him by the travel brochure was a severe abbreviation of reality, and thus his expectations of Barbados were overtly influenced by the misleading representation given to him.
Hence, he showed more comfort discussing with everyone he met in his trip than the satisfaction with his
Butor’s tone used throughout the text is lax enough for the reader to genuinely connect with his ideas, since the typical traveler usually vacations in order to escape the daily stresses of their normal routine. In doing this, he portrayed his idea of what travel is meant to be with language proper enough for the sophisticated
...iance, readers are capable of seeing how citizens in the world today try to be independent of others and sustain their personal beliefs and philosophy. Individuals have to put an end to conformity and trying to be a duplication of everyone else because they will never achieve success if they never decide for themselves. A person must not rely on the judgment and minds of others and learn to think for him or herself since depending on others only exhibits a person’s inferiority to larger institutions. People must stop using travel as an excuse to evade personal problems because if they do not have a direct confrontation with the dilemma, trying to escape will only lengthen it. People in today’s society must appreciate this work so they will approve of their individuality and be stronger in fighting against everyone else that disagrees with their personal philosophy.
The persona begins to think about how he cannot take both paths and be the same “traveler”
The meaning of anything and everything in this world is up to debate because of the differences between cultures, regions, and types of people cohabitating this planet. None of them have a solid “correct” form to live a healthy life, but with combined knowledge from many walks of life, it is possible to attain the powerful knowledge to enjoy that elusive healthy life. Travel is not typically a consideration within the health spectrum of a human being, but it has much more to deal with human well-being than many doctors will let on. Seeing the world will not drop ten pounds in two weeks, but what it will do, is broaden people’s perspectives on this world. It opens the mind into seeing how other people live, how the world functions, and viewing the raw natural beauty of undisturbed nature. Humans are of this earth and will return to it one day: it is important to understand where we come from and will eventually go, to maintain a healthy mentality. Now this may sound like the healthiest way to live life is to drop all worldly possessions and become a hippie traveling in a 1974 VW van, meeting all types of people; and that may be, it also may not be. Living healthy is like one of those college classes in which the only correct answer is to question; there is no definitive answer to be healthy, it is what best fits you. Traveling broadens horizons to open the possibilities of changing unhealthy lifestyles of under-traveled persons, allowing them to attain one of the thousands of possible healthy lives able to be
It does not emphasize on a hero nor a heroine, but it lists out the reasons why we all should travel while incorporating some of his experiences when traveling abroad. The writer points out different things to consider when travelling. For example, it is mentioned that ‘Travelling consists not only in seeing new places but in seeing with new eyes,’ Instead of just the travel experience itself, the writer used a lot of emotional words and long paragraphs to share his feelings of travelling in general to the readers, and the travel experiences are summed up in short sentences to back up the writer’s thoughts and feelings regarding travelling. In addition to the content, the style of the article resembles a one-sided argumentative essay, ‘arguing’ about the pros and cons of travelling.
There is nothing quite like traveling, going someplace new and finding out more about the world and yourself. Anyone can become a traveler it just takes a little bit of faith and courage. Traveling across the world or even across the country is a learning experience. When you are a traveler you see how people live and how different cultures work. It is the best educational experience you could give yourself. You see how the world works in a way no one can teach you. Seeing different cultures and people help build the person you want to be. If you are a traveler the world influences you, because when traveling, you see the good and the bad, and you learn from the right and the wrong. I am very lucky that I am able to be a traveler and see this
The world is a magnificent place that’s full of life and new places. Places that are waiting to be walked upon and viewed by the eye’s of travelers. To make new memories and go places that is beyond the walls of reality and new pathways of life. To truly experience the wonders that the world has to offer can be expressed by the life of one single person, setting off into the world to gain a higher purpose about the world. Traveling individually enables people to broaden their minds and accumulate new ideas and new experiences both nationally and internationally. By setting off into the world a person has the ability to learn so many new things, but also find so much about themselves while in the process of traveling.