A tragic hero is an individual who possesses a fatal flaw in their character that will bring about their own destruction or suffering. Aristotle believed that “A man doesn't become a hero until he can see the root of his own downfall. (Aristotle #1)” This Ancient Greek philosopher also believed that each tragic hero has four characteristics. The first of these characteristics is that a tragic hero is born with either wisdom or high integrity, and in some cases both. Aristotle’s second characteristic is that they contain a fatal flaw in their character that may cause them to behave irrationally. The penultimate characteristic is that each hero will suffer a turnabout of fortune brought about by their own flaw in character. Finally, the last …show more content…
These flaws ultimately lead McCandless to his doom. Once McCandless has his mind set to something he puts all of his energy into that one thing. He became obsessed with both his father’s previous marriage and his dream of traveling into the wild. His dream of the wild is what ultimately leads him to his death but since he becomes obsessed with the trip and the new experiences he would gain, he did not care for the outcome. “The very basic core of a man's living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon. (Krakauer 57)” McCandless felt the trip was necessary to fill a void in him. He became so infatuated with adventure that he encouraged others to venture out and explore the world. Unfortunately for McCandless he was very stubborn. Many people he met on his journey tried to talk him out of going, but he kept insisting that this trip was necessary. The last two flaws of his character are that he is too independent and overconfident. McCandless went on the trip alone and believed that if he put his mind to it, he could accomplish anything. In McCandless’s case, this obviously did not work well since he did not obtain all the tools needed and he did not bring anyone to aid him on his …show more content…
After he made it to Alaska and he found “The Magic Bus”, Alex began to run low on supplies. He was approaching starvation and he started to eating berries in a desperate way to survive. He accidently eats poisonous berries which increases his starvation and slowly destroys his digestive system. These berries ended up ultimately being what killed him. In his last days of life he was suffering and he had realized that he brought this upon himself and chose his own fate. His family was not involved in his choice and when he looked back at his life, it is quite obvious that he never actually loved them. As he was approaching his final days he had cried out to his mom “Mom! Mom! Help me. (Krakauer 147)” At this point he noticed that death was on his footsteps. In his final moment of realization, the image of his parents came into his mind and he imagined himself with them and said “What if I were smiling and running into your arms? Would you see then what I see now? (Krakauer 176)” When McCandless said this he realized that you don’t realize what you truly have until it’s too late. By this point he was on the verge of death and out of options. In His last moments of life he realized that his actions brought him to his doom and that “HAPPINESS ONLY REAL WHEN SHARED. (Krakauer 189)” McCandless set out into the wild for the adventure of a lifetime, only to find that the feelings and
Christopher McCandless is seen by many individuals as an inspiration, an inspiration to not be afraid. “Chris was fearless even when he was little.”(Walt McCandless) Chris’s father made a comment about how he believed Chris was fearless, Chris was a fearless individual even was he was just a young boy, he showed how he was fearless and brave, his strong character was acknowledged as a young age by his father and his family. How many people have packed up a few of their belongings and just took a journey into the wild? Chris did and he took nothing along just what he could carry on his back, he proved to many individuals that all you really need is yourself to get you through the tough situations that you will encounter along they way. Chris’s actions and his way of thinking is what people are mostly inspired by, he showed individuals not to be held back by fear. Fear is a powerful feeling that can overpower someone very quickly, but fear did not seem to hold Chris back on his outrageous journey. “Happiness is only real when shared.”(Chris McCandless) Chris believed real happiness has to be shared, he shared that happiness with people he came across his journey. He shared his happened with the people he met along his way, by telling those stories about his adventures. He inspired many people; Christopher McCandless is a well-known individual. Chris’s journey made an impact; there are books, articles, and a movie published just to tell the story of the boy who went into the wild. The New York Times published the article Death of an Innocent that was written by John Krakauer in 1996, the article was a summary about Christopher McCandless. John Krakauer was intrigued by Christopher McCandless character that he wanted to go more in de...
What is a tragic hero? A tragic hero is typically defined as a character in a literary work who has a lot of pride and makes a judgment error that leads to their ultimate demise. The downfall usually has to do with their pride.
When it comes to being a tragic hero the character has to have the qualities of being a tragic hero. A tragic hero is where the main character of a tragedy whose fatal flaw leads to his or her destruction. Either the character was born into society as a great man or a slave, they may have carry
Likewise, Chris McCandless, from Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild, exhibits all the characteristics of a hero, as described by Ernest Hemingway’s code. First and foremost, McCandless has a profound moral code and a desire for adventure. Even before he decided to venture into the wilderness on his own, Chris was not fond of the way society worked. This is typical of code heroes because they have strong moral codes that make them see the world in a way different from everyone else. A passage from the book reads, “More than most teens, he tended to see things in black and white. He measured himself and those around him by an impossibly rigorous moral code” (Krakauer 122). Chris’ moral code mostly came from reading books from authors such as Jack London,
Although, Chris McCandless may be seen as stupid and his ideals uncanny, he gave up everything to follow his heart he escaped the world that would have changed him, he wrote his own tale to feel free, and he left a conformist world to indulge in true happiness. How many people would just give up their lives, family, material goods, to escape into a world of perfect solitude and peace; not many and Chris was one of those that could and he became and inspiration. “The idea of free personality and the idea of life as sacrifice” (187).
...fe for oneself. McCandless primary tragic flaw being his unwillingness to form long-term relations brought him both to the happiest moment of his life, but also to his demise. McCandless never had a problem with people, but rather with the status quo of society, the idea that a man or a woman has to live inside of a coordinate plane. McCandless left home and went on his adventure simply for his own well being, he achieved both what he wanted to accomplish while learning a valuable lesson along the way. He learned that happiness must be shared, and while everyone has his or her flaws, it is important to let these go. Christopher McCandless should teach people the importance of following your dreams, and the importance of enjoying the natural serenity of life.
After reading the story Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, the main character Chris McCandless did, in fact, have a lot of brave and courageous ideas. In the story, Krakauer retells a story of a young man that hitchhiked his way to the wild in Alaska in order to achieve his goal of living separate and apart from the civilization. He left his home and family to find a new life himself. Due to his actions and decisions that have told in the story by Krakauer, McCandless should have been a courageous and noble person.
An essential part of Krakauer's argument rests upon convincing the reader that he has the authority to accurately interpret the facts of McCandless’s life. His attempt begins in chapter fourteen, where his main focus is explaining why he thinks McCandless did not go to Alaska seeking death. Krakauer establishes his credibility by drawing upon his own experiences and comparing them to McCandless’s. “If something captured my undisciplined imagination, I pursued it with a zeal bordering on obsession...” (134). This passion, he believes, is the same feeling McCandless felt while traveling across the country. At age 23, only a year younger than McCandless at the time he went to Alaska, Krakauer's preferred thrill was mountain climbing (135). During ...
By definition, a tragic hero is a protagonist that due to some tragic flaw loses everything he has. Throughout history, literature has always been filled with main characters possessing some tragic flaw. In Macbeth, Macbeth’s tragic flaw is his enormous ambition to become king. In Hamlet, Hamlet’s tragic flaw is his need for revenge for the death of his father at the hands of his uncle. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh’s tragic flaw is his need to be remembered. In the Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf, Beowulf also has a tragic flaw, excessive pride and the search for fame, which ultimately leads to his demise.
McCandless was not the 'sit down and take it in stride' kind of person. If he saw something wrong, something he did not agree with, he would try to fix it, or help in any way that he could. He was inherently compassionate, a man of his principles; owned by the rules that he governed himself with. It is apparent that he had always been an idealistic dreamer, and had always believed himself capable of much, because as his friend shared: “He'd say 'Come on,...
...elligence to help him last an extended period of time in the Alaskan wilderness. In truth, McCandless was someone who wanted to find himself. He wanted to get away from a life in which he could not find fulfilment, which is something many others would be able to relate to. Although most people would not go to such extremes to find fulfilment, everyone has a different way of finding happiness and going after what their heart truly desires. For McCandless, his desire was to live out in the wild. Unfortunately, this man of great character did not succeed in getting out alive. However, that does not change the fact that he tried. McCandless knew what he wanted for himself and he persisted, regardless of the obstacles he faced. He put an incredible amount of effort into accomplishing his goals and never gave up, and that is why Christopher McCandless is someone to admire.
The Tragic Hero is a person that comes from a royal family with a high estate. A person that has flaws and error within their judgement. Aristotle called this a hamartia, an error in judgement or a tragic flaw (Kennedy and Gioia, 2016, p. 905). Oedipus’ hamartia was crossing path with his father and killing him on a road. He solves the riddle of the Sphinx; therefore, marries the King’s wife and becoming the King of Thebes. Oedipus Rex is far from perfect; however, he is a good man. However, “according to this interpretation, every tragic hero has some fatal weakness” (Kennedy and Gioia, 2016, p. 858). Oedipus Rex has a high since of pride and overconfidence. Although Oedipus Rex is important to his society, his struggles and falls he encounter
The selfish nature of McCandless’s actions is most evident in the results of his actions on Ronald Franz. The story recounts such results in this quote: “When Alex left for Alaska," Franz remembers, "I prayed. I asked God to keep his finger on the shoulder of that one; I told him that boy was special. But he let Alex die. So on December 26, when I learned what happened, I renounced the Lord. I withdrew my church membership and became an atheist. I decided I couldn 't believe in a God who would let something that terrible happen to a boy like Alex. After I dropped off the hitchhikers," Franz continues," I turned my van around, drove back to the store, and bought a bottle of whiskey. And then I went out into the desert and drank it. I wasn 't used to drinking, so it made me real sick. Hoped it 'd kill me, but it didn 't. Just made me real, real sick.”(Krakauer, pg 56.) McCandless was very aware that Franz loved him, and again he was not willing to reciprocate this love. However, the way that McCandless was able to disregard Franz’s love and care and knowingly leave him in despair shows that McCandless did not care about the impact his leaving would have on others. He cared about fulfilling his life and living by his beliefs at the costs of others. A similar situation occurred with McCandless’s family. Although angry at his father, McCandless had less resentment for his mother and much less if any for his sister. He knows that they also loved him and cared for him, but he was able to leave with a clean conscience and allow them to live in worry and eventually agony and despair. His so called courages was actually an unrealistic point of view and a result of his not valuing his life. If only because of the selfishness of his actions, McCandless should not be admired
Chris McCandless is regarded as being something as a spiritual figure almost as a cult hero, some call him a disillusioned fool, some call him a great adventurer, and the debate still continues. As Matthew Power calls in his article, an article where he tells the story of McCandless,“The debate falls into two camps: Krakauer's visionary seeker, the tragic hero who dared to live the unmediated life he had dreamed of and died trying; or, as many Alaskans see it, the unprepared fool, a greenhorn who had fundamentally misjudged the wilderness he'd wanted so desperately to commune with.” Like so many stories covering Christopher McCandless’ death, both ends of the argument are discussed in an unfavored manner in the hopes to help develop an opinion on the McCandless story. This open ended question can only be answered open-endedly based on what the readers base for themselves as covered stories intend. Like Power has done, ...
A tragic hero can be defined by several different factors; the hero usually has a major flaw that prevents him from seeing the truth that lies in front of him, which contributes to the character’s peripeteia due to mistaken judgement. This mistake then leads to achieving anagnorisis, usually at the end of the play, but is too late to change anything, and results in death.