He wasn’t afraid of not coming back alive. So when he went into the wild in Alaska, Chris felt like he was for sure going to come back and publish the book that he has written throughout his journey to show others that taking risks like this is totally okay. Unfortunately for Chris it wasn’t okay. I believe that he did not intend to “kill himself” for going into the wild with basically nothing.
Into The Wild “Although he was rash, untutored in the ways of the backcountry, he wasn 't incompetent—he wouldn 't have lasted 113 days if he were”. This comment from Jon Krakauer’s book Into the Wild conveys his belief that young Christopher McCandless who is the focus of his novel may have been young and inexperienced in regards to the Alaskan wilderness but he was capable of basic survival as he had demonstrated during his many day’s surviving the brutal environment of the Alaskan frontier. After Christopher McCandless met his untimely death alone in a school bus down the Stampede Trail in Alaska, Jon Krakauer received considerable criticism for his viewpoint that Christopher wasn’t “stupid, tragic and inconsiderate”. He firmly believed
“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 an outcast. McCandless was something else-although precisely what is hard to say. A pilgrim, perhaps. "(Kraukaur 85).
The book and story of Chris McCandless reflects on the transcendentalist ideas and the effects of human nature, whether positive or negative. Chris, a young ambitious kid travels the country for two years and then makes his way to Alaska to live into the wild, which will be his last stop. When in the wild, the transcendentalist ideals shine through as having a positive effect, however, when living in society and reflecting back on society, they reflect a negative response on human nature. When on his own, Chris sees the beauty in the world around him, but with noise and money and working people, he sees the cluttered nonsense of this world. Into The Wild by Jon Krakauer reflects transcendental ideas through individualism and the awe of nature,
In the film Into The Wild (2007) gives us lots of reasons and examples of Christopher McCandless living the young wild and free life. Many people might disagree, but it’s how he wanted to live and nobody or nothing could've stopped him. Many people express themselves in different ways. I believe that depending on how someone feels they are going to do what they feel like doing. Nobody makes your decisions, but yourself.
Explorer Motivations In the book Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, Christopher McCandless came from a nice suburb of Washington D.C. He excelled in school and had been an outstanding athlete. He graduated with honors from Emory University in the summer of 1990, and soon after he dropped out of sight. He changed his name from Chris to Alex, gave his twenty-four- thousand dollar savings account to charity, abandoned his car and most of his possessions, and burned all the cash in his wallet.
His story was attracting to Krakauer because of the many similarities with Christopher McCandless’s story. Krakauer utilizes Everett Ruess's exploration story to compare Chris McCandless's relations, his attachment with books and commitment for change. Chris and Everett both had talented parents. Chris’s father worked for NASA and his mother for Hughes Aircraft while Everett had “a Harvard-educated father and an artistic, well-read mother” (James 367). Apart from having brilliant parents, Chris did not have good relations with them.
The Alaskan Bush is one of the hardest places to survive without any assistance, supplies, skills, and little food. Jon Krakauer explains in his biography, Into The Wild, how Christopher McCandless ventured into the Alaskan Bush and ultimately perished due to lack of preparation and hubris. McCandless was an intelligent young man who made a few mistakes but overall Krakauer believed that McCandless was not an ignorant adrenalin junkie who had no respect for the land. Krakauer chose to write this biography because he too had the strong desire to discover and explore as he also ventured into the Alaskan Bush when he was a young man, but he survived unlike McCandless. Krakauer’s argument was convincing because he gives credible evidence that McCandless was not foolish like many critics say he was.
Miles ‘Pudge’ Halter in Looking for Alaska by John Green is looking for his Great Perhaps. While the book doesn’t state it, and Miles himself might not know, but he found it in Alaska Young. She is his Great Perhaps, the biggest thing to have ever happened to him, the reason Miles was meant to leave his public school and go to Culver Creek. Alaska Young began Miles’ life. On page 5, Miles says, “I was after a Great Perhaps, and they knew as well as I did that
Into the wild, a book by Jon Krakauer and a film by Sean Penn, features the journey of Christopher McCandless, the son of wealthy parents who graduates from Emory University as a top student and athlete. However, instead of embarking on a prestigious and profitable career, he chooses to give his savings to charity, rid himself of his possessions, and set out on a journey to the Alaskan wilderness. Shaun Callarman’s argument had a good point. " One should always be prepared to go into the wild ". McCandless made a choice to go into the wild and leave everything behind to go his own way to find himself.
It was a life lesson to pay attention to the signs around you. To be safe rather than sorry, McCunn to me was stupid, he threw away shotgun shells just because he thought he could, he didn’t pay attention to his surrounding, he didn’t even know how to signal help. He never helped himself so no one could help him, this was similar to McCandles. Alex had limited supplies, he stopped all contact with the people who knew of him. He completely monopolized himself, I can understand wanting separation.
Chris McCandless was a very determined individual, he set out to invent a new life for himself and there was no stopping him. Chris finished his four years of college and he could’ve continued to further his education and go to law school but instead he set his mind on going to Alaska and live off the land. Getting to Alaska involves great determination because along the way to getting there Chris could’ve changed his mind and returned home but he was determined to get there one way or another. People often confuse stubbornness with being determined , for example, as cited in Into the Wild, “Once Alex made up his mind about something, there was no changing it” (Krakauer 67).
Even though they do not have luxury things they still seem to be happier with their lives than most of the people. A lot of them that live in the wild do not have the stress of always following people’s rules and act like society tells them to. They experience new and exciting things everyday by living out in the wild. Living out in the wild can be like living a whole new life, it really is like leaving your old life behind and just starting over. At first it may seem hard and impossible to do but in the end it might help you become a happier person and appreciate life more.
Throughout the course of Jon Krakauer’s Into The Wild the reader can see that time and time again Chris McCandless is unprepared for what lies ahead of him, which is why he is not a noble man, nor should his journey be considered noble. While it is true that McCandless had gone on adventures before, nothing had prepared him for the bitter cold climate and the lack of food he had in Alaska. McCandless was not prepared physically or mentally and he did not bring anywhere near enough supplies for someone planning to spend the summer in the harsh environment of Alaska. While it wasn’t foolish for Chris to go out and try to find happiness for himself, it was foolish of him to have been unprepared to begin a difficult adventure in Alaska. Chris McCandless
I agree with what Shaun Callarman stated because I thought he was crazy too. Although Chris McCandles did have a creative and open mind, he basically walked into his own death when he went into the wild. And yes because of his arrogance he made plenty of mistakes. What I did admire about McCandles is how he donated his savings to the Oxfam charity. Although in my opinion I think McCandles is crazy, I still admire him for his courageousness.