How Background and Upbringing Effect a Child, Especially in Wild by Strayed and The Other West Moore by Moore

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In the first few pages of Wild, it describes the present being of strayed but is quickly followed by flashbacks to her past. These flashbacks are a reminder of how the story has reached the point where it opened, on the Pacific Coast Trail (PCT). This book is more than a memoir recounting just her hike up the western coast; it is a story of her life’s journey. It explains how who she presently is directly determined by who she used to be. Each step on the trail is another step forward in her growth. Her challenges in her youth created background to give her strength and independence on the PCT. Her beat the odds mentality instilled in her during her upbringing gave her the will to successfully finish the hike and more importantly find the true self she wanted. The message in Wild is not to go and take a hike on the PCT; it is to check one’s own self to see how their own upbringing and background has impacted whom they are. How a person reacts to their upbringing, and what their past background do have a by in large determine who he or she is, and who he or she will become. The actions of others during a child’s upbringing will not directly determine whom a child becomes, but will impact their attitude towards their situation, and how they react to the actions of others will determine who they become. When considering to what degree a child’s upbringing impacts their future self it is important to understand it’s not that some children face different challenges, some children have an advantage over society, or some children have it harder than others, but that some children choose to be complacent and defeated by their upbringing; while others choose to strive for more and overcome the difficulties of their upbringing. A real exa... ... middle of paper ... ... front of her. I feel this is an important story to tell because had backgrounds that had gotten them to the same point, but Nancy had learned how to risk success, while Tonya had learned to risk failure. Tonya’s upbringing was different and because she learned to react differently her background was different and when it came time to be closely scrutinized on a world stage she folded because she wasn’t a strong enough person. Nancy was success full because she had learned how to react to others actions, and had a background of taking risks to achieve true success. When it ultimately comes down to it upbringing and background are the two most important things for determining whom a person will become because if someone lapses during their upbringing their background will be impacted and who they will become will be set forever. It truly is the butterfly effect.

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