"Wild" Blog Entries Chapters 13&14

Chapter 13:
On page 207, Cheryl gives major insight into her purpose. She writes: "It was the thing that has compelled them to fight for the trail against all odds, and it was the thing that drove me and every other long-distance hiker onward on the most miserable days. It had nothing to do with gear or footwear or or the backpacking fads or philosophies of any particular era or even with getting from point A to point B. It had only to do with how it felt to be wild" (Strayed, 207). Cheryl's use of anaphora in this quote (using "it was the thing" and "it had nothing to do with/it had only to do with" repeatedly) emphasizes her purpose. The purpose of this quote and perhaps even the whole book is to show how Cheryl has discovered the purpose of the PCT and her quest upon the trail. Cheryl realizes that the PCT was made to let people experience the true wilderness, not just at a reservation or state park, but really in the depths of the wild.

Chapter 14:
  One quote I found particularly impactful was when she is thinking about her father: "...I didn't know my own father's life. He was there, but invisible, a shadow beast in the woods; a fire so far away it's nothing but smoke" (Strayed, 233). This quote was particularly impactful because it is hard for anyone to imagine not knowing their father, even when he is still there in their life. I can feel the pain that it brings Cheryl to reflect upon her relationship with her father when she writes this quote.
   Another quote that resonated with me was: "I was passing through the beautiful territory I'd come to take for granted, my body finally up to the task of hiking the big miles, but because of my foot troubles, I sank into the grimmest despair" (Cheryl, 223). Cheryl is finally able to do what she initially set out to do, but she is having so many foot problems that it is hard for her to find joy in any of it. This quote also discusses how she has now taken the landscape around her for granted, because she has been surrounded by it for so long. Hopefully as the book progresses, she learns not to take her surroundings for granted and learns to truly appreciate what is around her.