Mccandless a bright educated man full of compassion gave up luxuries and comfort to pursue the love he had for adventure. Many words can describe Chris’s Identity of who he was and how he became the ways the book describes him. I would say that self reliance and survival. Early in the book Chris was showing symptoms of self reliance. Such as depending
Henry David Thoreau once said, “Never look back unless you are planning to go that way.” It almost seems as Thoreau said this just to inspire Chris McCandless himself. Chris and Henry both lived off the land and loved to read books. Chris and Henry also lived in different places in the woods. Henry was a transcendentalist, whereas Chris was not.
Throughout the novel, Krakauer uses strategies to demonstrate comparisons between himself and Christopher McCandless. These comparisons effectively show that Chris was sane enough to make his own decisions regarding Alaska. One of the reasons why Krakauer wrote this book was because he experienced a natural liking for McCandless. Ever since his initial encounter with McCandless’s story while working at the Outside magazine company, his affinity towards the young adventurer grew by leaps and bounds. This affinity came from the very similar experiences the two were involved in.
McCandless set off into the Alaskan depths to test himself, to find himself, and to free himself from society’s values. Because of Chris’s radical ideas and his purpose in life to push him into the unexplored, he believed that life is not about the materialistic
c) I can empathise with Walt McCandless, Chris McCandless’s father. “....I spent a lot of time with Chris, perhaps more than with any of my other kids. I really liked his company even though he frustrated us so often.” (Krakauer, 104) Chris and his father did not truly get along very well as Chris got older, since their personalities were so stubborn, they would fight a lot. Walt loved Chris but rarely showed it, which made Chris have a certain hate towards his father.
In August 1992, a decomposed body, presumably died of starvation, was found inside an abandoned bus beside the Sushana River in Alaska. Shortly thereafter, the dead person was identified as twenty-four-year-old Chris McCandless, who was from an affluent family in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. A tragic story, with a mix of a young man, his well-off background, and happening in the most precarious but highly noble place, always had an emotional pull on people’s minds and stirred up people’s curiosity and perplexity. The question, often asked by the people with desire to grasp the truths, was why Chris with a privileged life would have gone to Alaska’s wilderness to face the ultimate challenge of his life. Was he in search of something
Many argue that his family problems were the justification he desired to leave behind his old life to start a new one The two motives why he left his ordinary life behind to enter into his new journey into the wild was because of his passion he possessed for pushing himself as well as the literary influences he read. Throughout reading the novel, Into the Wild the audience discovers Chris had own the characteristics of persistent, intelligent, friendly but definitely not an open book. Chris gained different perspectives from the books he read. Chris McCandless was a very intelligent ,naturally gifted, inspirational person, always pushing him. Although, he did carried many flaws, one being stubbornness.
Some would say “Life on the road is suited for everyone”, others such as for myself, would disagree. Life on the road is not suited for everyone, because not everyone can throw away their normal life and go on the road or the wilderness and survive like Chris McCandless. Some would think, Chris McCandless, was on a suicide mission but he was only following his dreams and he actually did, unlike many people. Chris McCandless inspired so many people to move out, leave their old lives, and have a fresh start at their life. Chris McCandless was a independent person and he was trying to get away from civilization because he felt like he never fit into it.
As Ralph Emerson said, “Nothing can bring you peace but yourself. Nothing can bring you peace but the triumph of principles” (last sentence of book). Remaining true to himself, McCandless was able to achieve what he considered to be meaningful in life. From the start of his journey, it is seen that being true to oneself is challenging, as others are living in a world that demands them to alter their identity. However, one must stay true and authentic and understand the desires and needs, in order to attain an adequate living, just like Chris McCandless.
In the short story, “Death of an Innocent” by Jon Krakauer, Chris McCandless travels into the Alaskan wilderness with the intention of relying completely on himself. In the true spirit of transcendentalism, McCandless travels to escape the bounds of society and to remove himself from a materialistic world. Many argue, however, that Chris McCandless was not a transcendentalist because he travels to exotic lands as a means of avoidance, but actually, Chris McCandless is the epitome of a transcendentalist. Transcendentalists, however, rely on themselves and nature to survive and do not depend on material items. Transcendentalists romanticize individualism and believe that intuition is the best guide through life.
At the end of Chapter 3, Krakauer says, “Driving out west of Atlanta, [Chris McCandless] intended to invent an utterly new life for himself... He was now Alexander Supertramp, master of his own destiny” (Krakauer 23). These assertions are believable as McCandless cut off his past by creating a new identity for himself and ceasing communication with his family. McCandless introduced himself as Alex to all of the people he met on his odyssey and he rarely spoke about his past before hitchhiking. McCandless introduced himself as “Just Alex” (Krakauer 4) to Gallien and as Alex when he worked for Wayne Westerberg in Carthage, South Dakota.
What really drove Chris McCandless into the wild? I believe the top three of the countless reasons that drove McCandless into the wild was the emotional damage from his parents, rebellion of the youth & risk taking tendencies, and his hubris and detestation against authority and/or someone telling him what to do. Some may believe that Chris McCandless went into the wild because of his literary heroes Leo Tolstoy, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau , and Jack London but the real reason he left everything was because of those reasons. In this essay I will elaborate on why I believe those are the reasons that drove McCandless into the wild.
Jon Krakauer writes, “McCandless Didn’t conform particularly well to the bush-casualty stereotype. Although he was rash, untutored in the ways of the backcountry, and incautious to the point of foolhardiness, he wasn’t incompetent - he wouldn’t have lasted 113 days if he were. And he wasn’t a nutcase, he wasn’t a sociopath, he wasn’t and outcast. McCandless was something else - although precisely what is hard to say. A pilgrim perhaps.”
Chris McCandless abandoned the modern world and chose the wild because he believed that he could improve himself through living in the wild, and found the true happiness of the life. McCandless abandoned his wealthy family because of his complicated relationship with his father, and he was ashamed with his father’s adultery. Therefore, McCandless believed that human relationship was not the only thing that forms happiness, instead a man’s connection with the nature brings joy as well. He also believed the habitual lifestyle was not what people were meant to do, and people shouldn't have more possessions than what they need. For this reason, McCandless traveled with little effects.
Death. While the outcome is the same for everyone, no two people live the same lives. Ivan Ilych was a character in Leo Tolstoy 's novel The Death of Ivan Ilych. Ivan was a selfish lawer who was unhappy with his life until right before he died. Portrayed in the movie Into the Wild, Christopher McCandless was a free spirit he did what he want when he wanted.
