Anyone listening to his rhetoric on the documentary would be likely to discover very quickly that he was not only an exhibitionist but also a narcissist...come to think of it I guess the two are more or less related. All of that aside his fantasy world full of 800 lb teddy bears was fascinating to watch as much as it was fodder for the thrill seeker. The incredible tension developed in the close scenes when we find ourselves wondering when the huge carnivore is just going to get up and start chewing on the clueless ding-bat like a milk bone are enough to give anyone an intellectual erection. The tease of the moment is so intense that it spells addiction and perhaps therein we find the key to Treadwell's own careless behavior. An addict simply acting out on an exotic addiction...a designer addiction.
I'd like to think that treadwell contributed some worthy knowledge of the world of the grizzly; unfortunately that is probably not the case. There are far too many highly trained and well educated researchers who spend their time in scientific discipline collecting relevant information that is of real value not just entertainment value. Having said that though we can definitely say the treadwell contributed something unique to the process.
In the final analysis if there was any one piece of information that we gain or re-gain from the tragic end I suppose it would be the advice of one of the park rangers in particular who spoke to Treadwell on many occasions, sometimes angrily while urging him to be more careful . In his estimation the bears tolerated Treadwell simply because they weren't hungry when he was around them. The one Bear that finally got him was an old male who had grown weak and slow....unable to catch the standard prey. To him, at that moment, Treadwell was nothing more than a survival meal and never really was anything more .