The Long Walk

This is a rather sad story, but also a little funny, provoking contradictory feelings—so to speak, “laughter through tears.” You feel this because the plot is illogical: on the one hand, it’s a tragic situation in which the main and only hero of the story, Richard Pine, finds himself after a plane crash on an uninhabited island; on the other hand, his own ironic attitude toward his fate and the story of his life characterize him as quite a cruel person who doesn’t even differ in altruism—nor in elementary tolerance, at least toward his father; in general, a nasty type. So it feels like the hero quite deserved his fate.

But his defiance of destiny, his thirst for life, and his desire to wait for help and get off the island make us show some respect—especially for how merciless he is toward himself in his attempt to survive.

Additional information: People with strong emotional sensitivity should not listen! For the experienced, I promise goosebumps. Sooner or later, during training, every medical student asks a question: How much traumatic shock can a patient withstand? Different teachers answer differently, but usually the answer turns into a new question: How strongly does the patient want to survive?