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Comparing Into The Wild 'And The Things They Carried By Tim O' Brien

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In Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer and The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien, it is shown how negatively life-altering crossing physical and mental borders can be. In Into the Wild, Chris McCandless decides after he graduates college to abandon his previous life. He completely distances himself from modern society as he fulfills his dream of hitchhiking to Alaska. The Things They Carried tells the stories of American soldiers that are serving in the Vietnam War and shows the heavy toll that war takes on them. Both novels display the impacts of border crossing; including a blurred line of what is acceptable, an abuse of freedom, and isolation.
In order to illustrate the major effect of border crossing, O’Brien exhibits how war blurs the line …show more content…

Even though Chris McCandless intentionally isolated himself from society, he still could have benefitted from support from others. “I am alone, this is no joke. In the name of God, please remain to save me” (Krakauer 12). Chris went into the wild with the mindset that being alone would help him reach his full potential, but in the end it was what killed him. Once he arrived in Alaska, he claimed to be dependent of others and only reached out for help when it was unfortunately too late. This exhibits the danger of isolation because even though Chris wasn’t too far from civilization where he could have received help, he remained in the state of isolation. In The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien feels alone even when many other soldiers surround him. “I felt close to them yes, but I also felt a new sense of separation” (O’Brien 194). All of the soldiers in war are young and can’t process the reality of what their life has turned into. Even though they may build friendships during war, their lives move fast and they have to rely on themselves for the most part. Both books display how being alone can lead to vulnerability, whether it’s relating to simply surviving or keeping sanity in war. Crossing borders into a new place often leads to this sense of

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