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Chris Herren famous basketball player lost most of his fans due to his drug addiction I will tell you how the basketball player fell rock bottom. Chris Herren was in his best part of his life and went a different way around. In this essay I will tell you my reactions, Chris's early life, and the information I learned about him. Chris lived in Fall rivers as a kid he started playing basketball when he was young. He had a hard time as a kid which made him do bad choices growing up. I learned a lot about drugs and addiction from the movie Unguarded, and about Chris Herren life.
Chris Herren is a man that came from a line of athlete. This was pressure for him since if he did bad he thinks his family is going to feel disappointed in him. Chris lived in Fall Rivers Massachusetts as a kid for most of his life. He
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was born into an athletic family his dad was an athlete and so was his brother and his mom was a cheerleader. In the movie unguarded at the 28th second he said,"Chris has been in the public eye since 8th grade". This prove he had been under pressure since he was small because he was in a basketball team and his whole school wanted him to do good and so did his family. Chris Herren taught me about the dangers of drugs and addiction.
Chris started doing cocaine at a young age which made me realize that this could happen to anybody even me. Chris life became so hard because he started to do more drugs than cocaine he had to transfer teams. Then the Celtics dropped him this was an important part since he had everything and all he wanted and he didn't stop doing drugs. In the movie unguarded at the 40th second it states," He was just worried about he's going to get his drugs". This is when his addiction got so bad he cared more for the drug than playing basketball.
The reactions that went in my head was surprised,shocked,proud. I was surprised since he went to rehab and didn't listen to a word they said.in the movie unguarded at 21:18 Chris says,"At 21 years old sitting in these seats listening to these 35 year old my attitude was like look at this pathetic loser". I was shocked since he started cocaine at the age of 18 and that's when everything started going bad. He was only in 12th grade when he snorted his first line of cocaine.I was proud since he stopped his addiction and went to rehab and listen to what they had to
say.
Before going to Alaska, Chris McCandless had failed to communicate with his family while on his journey; I believe this was Chris’s biggest mistake. Chris spent time with people in different parts of the nation while hitchhiking, most of them whom figured out that McCandless kept a part of him “hidden”. In chapter three, it was stated that Chris stayed with a man named Wayne Westerberg in South Dakota. Although Westerberg was not seen too often throughout the story, nevertheless he was an important character. Introducing himself as Alex, McCandless was in Westerberg’s company for quite some time: sometimes for a few days, other times for several weeks. Westerberg first realized the truth about Chris when he discovered his tax papers, which stated that “McCandless’s real name was Chris, not Alex.” Wayne further on claims that it was obvious that “something wasn’t right between him and his family” (Krakauer 18). Further in the book, Westerberg concluded with the fact that Chris had not spoken to his family “for all that time, treating them like dirt” (Krakauer 64). Westerberg concluded with the fact that during the time he spent with Chris, McCandless neither mentioned his
Basketball is a chart-topping sport that is loved by many fans. It’s been a hit since 1891 when it began, starting in Springfield, Massachusetts. It grew rapidly in popularity and spread around the world. Many people found it comforting to play, such as Pat Conroy. Pat Conroy was an outstanding basketball player, who was committed in going far with his teammates. Although he seemed superb, he had a troubled life growing up at his family home. His parents were abusive and uncaring towards him, therefore he used basketball as an alternative. In My Losing Season, Pat was able to obliterate the thought of his abusive parents. His comfort was playing basketball with a team he will never fail to remember. The outcomes Pat acquired were admirable,
Christopher Albert Herren (born September 27, 1975) from Fall River, Massachusetts, was the Durfee High School basketball superstar. His family’s basketball legacy at Durfee included his father, grandfather, two uncles and his older brother who Chris would drink with as a freshman in high school. His brother said that it was normal to drink, drug, fight, and play hard. Recruited by Boston College after turning down offers at the University of Kentucky and Duke University, Chris was featured in magazine articles including a Sports Illustrated cover story, hyping his success. In 1994, Chris broke his wrist playing his first game at Boston College. He took a year off from playing basketball to “not study and do drugs”. Within three months of his injury, Chris failed two drug tests and was subsequently kicked off the team and expelled from college. Drugs took everything away by the time he was eighteen years old.
He left and “walked into the wild”, as he said, to escape his problems (Krakauer, 69). He never confronted his dad about his feelings. Carine McCandless talks about this personality trait in Chris saying, “Chris was the sort of person who brooded on things. If something bothered him; he wouldn’t come right out and say it” (Krakauer, 122). He changed his name, He wasn’t trying to take pride in his “adventure”. It was an extra and unnecessary precaution to ensure that his problems would not affect his escape. Chris McCandless changed his name and then continued his life ignoring all of the problems he had ever
Chris refused to confront his mother and father and instead repressed his emotions. Krakauer shows his influence with this comment, “Children can be harsh judges when it comes to their parents, disinclined to grant clemency, and this was especially true in Chris’s case” (Krakauer 122). He makes it very clear that Chris is really just a kid, and therefore, liable to make decisions that are rash or immature. Krakauer makes it clear that he thinks Chris’ opinions on his parents might have changed over time, had he lived. Chris was simply a kid who had been wronged by those who were supposed to protect him. All of Chris’ repressed emotions eventually came to the surface, “Chris kept careful score. And over time he worked himself into a choler of self-righteous indignation that was impossible to keep bottles up” (Krakauer 122). Chris eventually lashed out in the way that lots of children do, he ran away. His options were limited, he could either talk to his parents or a therapist about it or flee. His choice of fleeing shows that he really was working through something. By running away Chris broadcasts his youth and also makes the reader curious as to if he might have come back and worked out his issues eventually. The contradictions in Chris’ severe opinions of those around him show his youth, and inspire’s readers to be more
Although Chris McCandless' life at home growing up was hounded by his so called "ignorant" father or his "bigot" parents, made the best out of his life whenever he could. He was on the cross country team when he was younger, and they all ran out into the wild almost, purposely getting lost. Being on that team and experiencing that made him happier and started his interest and passion for embracing nature. Chris even found solace and was content with providing food, such as hamburgers, stated by his cross country teammate Eric Hathway, providing company to people less fortunate than him. Taking hikes with his grandfather and doing things as mentioned previously (cross country), eventually influenced him to make his greatest adventure and unbeknownst
Both of Cheryl and Chris grew up in a similar conditions. Cheryl have had some issues when she was young specifically from her father’s side. Her father was a heavy drinker; and he had been in many arguments with her mother. In some occasions, her mother was being hit and they had to leave the house for sometime before coming
“Don’t judge a book by it’s cover, it’s what’s inside counts” This quote reminds people about how they should not judge other people from the outside but look deep into their true personalities. Looking from the appearance and how Chris lives, everyone would assume that Chris is a crazy, foolish person and does everything without thinking. If people try to know more about Chris, they would have different perspective. Chris is intelligent, determined, independent and follows what he believes. He went into the wilderness to escape from the society that tries to suppress him and look for the meaning of life.
Chris McCandless was a man who paved his own path in society. He didn't wait for
Remember that boy in high school that was the star of the basketball team? He still holds most of the records for the team. He scored more points than anyone else in the school’s history. He never studied much because he was an athlete. His basketball skills were going to take him places. But high school ended and there are no more games to be played. Where is that former all-star now? In his poem “Ex-Basketball Player,” John Updike examines the life of a former high school basketball star. Flick Webb was a local hero, and he loved basketball. He never studied much in school or learned a trade because he was a talented athlete. Now years later, the only job Flick can find is working at the local gas station. He used to be a star, but now he just “sells gas, checks oil, and changes flats” (19-20). The purpose of Updike’s poem is to convince the reader that athletes should also focus on getting a good education.
He wasn't antisocial—he always had friends, and everybody liked him—but he could go off and entertain himself for hours” (Krakauer 107). Carine described her brother in a way that made him seem like he was good company to others, but he also had a side to him where he had no problem being alone and doing his own thing. This aspect of his personality was always apparent as a child, as Carine described. “Chris was [also] a high achiever in almost everything that caught his fancy” (Krakauer 109). Walt, his father, also knew that Chris did whatever he pleased, no matter the consequences.
Chris McCandless had a reputation for being overly ambitious since grade school. His teachers noticed at young age he was abnormally strong-willed which he coupled with intense idealism and strong physical endurance. In high school, Chris served as the captain of his cross country team asking them to treat each race as a spiritual experience. After graduating high school Chris continued on to college where he would graduate with a bachelor’s degree, doub...
In sports, there is no shortage of black success stories. Meanwhile, two black men of prominence in Odessa (who are not athletes) fell from grace. Willie Hammond Jr. (the first black city councilor and county commissioner) and Laurence Hurd (a minister and desegregation supporter) were glimmers of hope for the black community that were both snuffed out. Hammond was arrested on charges of arson conspiracy and perjury and Hurd is in prison for burglary and robbery, leaving a hole in the morale of the black community that was not repaired. These losses, combined the with negative news of black people circulated via media, made the possibility of succeeding in a white man’s world inconceivable. Yet, there is no shortage of black success stories in sports, like Michael Jordan and Bo Jackson; in every area that is not a “rich man’s sport”, black athletes dominate. To the poor children on the Southside, there is something very alluring about the “Cinderella stories” of men from poor black neighborhoods rising to prominence through sports. Based on these examples, there seem to only be two paths for a black teen to take: criminal or athlete. Many of these teens aspire to be sports stars and depend on nothing else because there is nothing else. Some may become the superstars they hope to be or they fall into ruin as Boobie Miles, Derric Evans, and Gary Edwards
Was he a reckless idiot? That is the big question. This is what people always seem to talk about when they talk about Chris McCandless. There are many people who think that Chris McCandless was a reckless idiot who was mentally ill, or something else was wrong with Chris. It seems that almost everybody that met Chris thought maybe Chris was crazy or had problems. Here are just a few things that people said about Chris and his state of mind. Pg 40 Zarza admits saying, "he was always going on about trees and nature and weird stuff like that. We all thought he was missing a few screws. Pg 42 Charlie said, "seemed like a kid who was looking for something." Pg 45 Burres said "I thought Alex had lost his mind when he told us about his 'great Alaskan odyssey, ' as he called it."