As we are exploring the contrasting public opinions about Chris McCandles' life and death, we noted why some people who had encountered Chris in his early travels feared Chris was perhaps suicidal. We examined the text to locate support for this view, including the somewhat fatalistic final letters Chris sent before he wandered into Alaska. Matthew offered his opinion on Chris' state of mind. In that regard, we began to infer from the text the source of Chris' alienation from his father . We also studied in detail the lives of others who were lost in an odyssey into the wild and analyzed structurally and thematically why the author inserted these episodes into the narrative. We compared these intervening narratives with Chris' life and death. HW due Thursday- essay due/quiz./ read next chapter .