Analysis Of Chris Mccandless Into The Wild

Chris McCandless left his mark on the world and should be respected for being brave enough to challenge himself like this. McCandless went to Alaska searching for adventure and to live off the land. He wanted something more in life. When he went into the Alaskan wilderness , McCandless overcame so many obstacles than the average person wouldn't be able to handle. He was prepared and had all the skills he needed to survive in the wild. McCandless kept fighting against all odds and never gave up on fulfilling his dreams. He deserves more respect and admiration than he got.

Like McCandless , others went to Alaska searching for the same adventure he was but couldn't handle it. People such as, John Waterman, went to Alaska with high hopes but

end up going crazy. On John Waterman’s “astonishing expedition” to Alaska, he “spent 145 days alone on [a] mountain” (Krakauer 77). When he got back he was depressed and broke so he ended up doing some bizarre things. It got so bad to the point that he committed himself into the Anchorage Psychiatric Institute. John couldn't handle the challenges he faced in Alaska and ultimately lost his mind because of it. McCandless on the other hand faced many challenges like starvation but he pushed through and “his fortunes took a sharp turn for the better” (Krakauer 164). He didn't let his fears or failures get to him. There were a lot of things in Alaska that didn't turn out like he planned but he accepted that and made the best of them. Unlike Waterman , McCandless didn't let his challenges in Alaska get the better of him or take his dreams away.
There are a lot of people that saw McCandless as stupid or unprepared but for someone that’s not an Alaskan, he was very prepared and skillful. In his journal it says he shot a moose and a lot of people thought he was crazy. Some professional hunters would say that “it was definitely a caribou” and that the “incompetent” boy would have to be “pretty stupid not to be able to tell them apart” (Krakauer 177). When Jon Krakauer questioned this he looked at the site of his death and saw the bones of the animal that McCandless killed. They were the bones of a moose. The discovery that the animal was actually what he said it was showed everyone that he did in fact know what he was doing. It proved the sceptics wrong and showed that McCandless had enough skill to kill an animal that was hard enough for a regular hunter to kill, let alone a newcomer. He was not an experienced or professional hunter but when he was in Alaska, “the proud hunter” would get “ porcupine, ptarmigan, 4 squirrel, [and a] grey bird” in one day (Krakauer 166). For someone that doesn't normally hunt and kill that's very good. If somebody goes on a hunting trip , they might get all of those in a week and it would be an accomplishment. This shows everyone that McCandless was very capable of taking care of himself in the wild and doing a good job at it. He was prepared to be a successful survivor in the Alaskan wilderness.
Against all odds McCandless lived off of the land with the little materials he had and had faith in himself.

When he went into the wild he only had a bag of rice and a couple other tools to get food. Even after Jim Gallien asked to help McCandless convinced him that he was “fine with what [he’s] got” (Krakauer 6). His main goal was to live off the land and that's exactly what he did. He had some tools like a gun but for someone that was planning on being in Alaska for a while that's not a lot. It shows how skilled he really was, to be there for that long and only have that little. Also the gun he had wasn't that powerful and he killed a moose with it , showing he knows how to use what he has to fend for himself. McCandless had so much faith in himself that he didn't “ want to know what time it [was]” or where he was because “none of that [mattered]” (Krakauer 7). This shows that McCandless was fully dedicated to living off the land. Not knowing where you are or what time it is , is some people's worst nightmare. McCandless had enough faith in himself to know that even though he doesn't have that information he was still going to survive in the wild. He believed in himself and his dreams as he walked into the Alaskan wilderness with his head held high.

Chris McCandless deserves so much respect for having the bravery to follow his dreams and walk into the Alaskan wilderness alone. He never gave up and always kept pushing through. McCandless prepared himself with all the skills

he would need to survive. With not a lot of equipment he lived off of the land as long as he could. No average person would be able to do what he did. Respect is needed for the brave Chris McCandless as he walked alone, into the wild.