On April 27, 1992, Christopher Johnson McCandless wrote, “I now walk into the wild”. His intention was to leave behind the sins of society for the wilderness in order to find true happiness in himself. Notably, he wanted to leave the pain of abuse and materialism in his family behind. Chris chose to pursue the theory that happiness can only be achieved through self-reliance and appreciation of the purity in nature; thus, he embarks on his Alaskan odyssey. On one hand, I believe that Chris has the right to remove himself from a toxic situation, but on the other hand I would not have left the people who love me sans communication or intent to ever return. By not reassuring his family and the people that care about him, Chris makes a crucial mistake: he leaves a wake of emotional destruction on the people that love him, particularly his sister who …show more content…
he often protected from his parents. While autonomy is necessary to be content, Chris fails to appreciate the value of relationships.
Understandably, it is difficult to recognize the beauty of time spent with others as life is often clouded by discord and it is important to spend time alone to appreciate the world for what it is and learn about oneself. However, this is where I would not have done the same as Chris; I would’ve continued my odyssey after letting the people that care about know that I was safe and doing what I wanted to do as well as having an emergency plan for return. Since the beginning of time, humans have been social animals. From hunting and gathering in packs to settling down we have always found comfort in each other. I would not have left civilization like Chris because I believe that the act of living for others is important in becoming better as a society. Chris was disgusted by the selfishness of the world and believed that the only solution was to completely remove himself; while this may be an effective temporary remedy, even Chris eventually reflects that, “HAPPINESS IS ONLY READ WHEN SHARED” in his journal on his last day
alive. It was imperative that Chris left society to see the world as God made it (they’re a Jesuit college so I feel like it’s ok… should I write “as it was created” instead?) and I would’ve done the same. Chris was jaded by the divinity of nature and lost sight of what is truly essential for happiness: other people. The act of selflessness gives a person purpose and satisfaction. I would’ve returned and devoted myself to making the lives of other people even a little better instead of hiding away from the negative qualities of society in the untouched wilderness.
Chris’s family members probably feel guilty; they believe as if they could have saved him from
“I have had a happy life and thank the Lord. Goodbye and may God bless all!”(199), these were the last words of Chris McCandless in a picture with him smiling and waving good-bye. Into The Wild by Jon Krakauer is an extension of an article first published in Outside magazine. In the book, Krakauer further explains the journey of Chris McCandless, while providing his own insight to provide the reader a better understanding of the McCandless reasoning. McCandless lived a nomadic life after he graduated from college, traveling from South Dakota to Mexico. However, his two year journey proved fatal when he took a trip to Alaska, his greatest undertaking. Among his remains several books were discovered, including a copy of Walden by Henry D. Thoreau
Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild, describes the adventure of Christopher McCandless, a young man that ventured into the wilderness of Alaska hoping to find himself and the meaning of life. He undergoes his dangerous journey because he was persuade by of writers like Henry D. Thoreau, who believe it is was best to get farther away from the mainstreams of life. McCandless’ wild adventure was supposed to lead him towards personal growth but instead resulted in his death caused by his unpreparedness towards the atrocity nature.
The epigraphs presented by Krakauer before each chapter of the memoir Into the Wild dive deep into the life of Chris McCandless before and after his journey into the Alaskan wilderness. They compare him to famous “coming of age characters” and specific ideas written by some of his favorite philosophers. These give the reader a stronger sense of who Chris was and why he made the decision to ultimately walk alone into the wild.
According to others, Chris McCandless was inherently selfish. Please, let’s beg to differ, for goodness sake, he was a grown man! It was his life and he was living it the way he wanted to. Chris gave his sister fair warning. He bid to her, “Since they won’t ever take me seriously, for a few months after graduation I’m going to let them think they are right, I’m going to let them think that I’m “coming around to see their sides of things” and that our relationship is stabilizing. And then, once the time is right, with one abrupt, swift action I’m going to completely knock them out of my life...” (Krakauer 64) He knew what he had to do. He had to show his parents how they had made him feel his whole life. As a graduation present they offered him a new car, his old Datsun apparently was to their standards. Chris became infuriated. That was his pride and joy, how dare them try and take that away! They ignored what he was saying, as he did many times before, he o...
... every aspect of his life whether it be his education, physical endurance, or making it through the Alaskan wilderness with nothing more than a rifle, a backpack, and a road map. Chris was aware of his differences and that he did not fit into society. He fully embraced that and and chose to lead his own path. Chris led a happy life according to one of his last journal entries he wrote, “I have had a happy life and thank the lord. Goodbye and may God bless all!” (Krakauer 199). Chris was willing to risk everything to gain that happiness. His ambition to enter the wilderness, in the end, took his life but that did not stop him. He would have rather died a happy man than lived a miserable one. Chris ventured out into the wilderness and found himself; a tragic story for a tragic hero.
On the way from his home to Alaska, Christopher met numerous people. He loved their company and never allowed them to feel that he was un-friendly. He expressed their importance in his life by keeping in touch with them till the very end. Particularly, he often wrote to Westerberg and Jan. He never wished to ignore them. He once replied to Jan and Bob, who were wishing to meet him on Christmas. McCandless replied saying that “Thanks so much for the Christmas card. It’s nice to be thought of this time of year…You’re welcome any time. It’s really great to think that after almost a year and a half we shall be meeting again” (42). McCandless preferred to be in company rather than being alone. Being remembered at the time of Christmas is great for any person. McCandless also shared these feelings of happiness. He should, thus be admired, for his never-lasting quality of valuing and possessing human emotions. He never wanted his friends to get detached from him. To overcome this, he always kept in touch with them by writing letters, and informing them about what he was up to. He once wrote to Westerberg that “It is rare to find a man as generous and good natured as you. Sometimes I wish I hadn’t met you though. As for me, I have decided that I am going to live this life for some time to come. But one day I will get back to you and repay some of
Into the Wild, written by John Krakauer tells of a young man named Chris McCandless who 1deserted his college degree and all his worldly possessions in favor of a primitive transient life in the wilderness. Krakauer first told the story of Chris in an article in Outside Magazine, but went on to write a thorough book, which encompasses his life in the hopes to explain what caused him to venture off alone into the wild. McCandless’ story soon became a national phenomenon, and had many people questioning why a “young man from a well-to-do East Coast family [would] hitchhike to Alaska” (Krakauer i). Chris comes from an affluent household and has parents that strived to create a desirable life for him and his sister. As Chris grows up, he becomes more and more disturbed by society’s ideals and the control they have on everyday life. He made a point of spiting his parents and the lifestyle they lived. This sense of unhappiness continues to build until after Chris has graduated college and decided to leave everything behind for the Alaskan wilderness. Knowing very little about how to survive in the wild, Chris ventures off on his adventure in a state of naïveté. It is obvious that he possessed monumental potential that was wasted on romanticized ideals and a lack of wisdom. Christopher McCandless is a unique and talented young man, but his selfish and ultimately complacent attitude towards life and his successes led to his demise.
Into the Wild, written by Jon Krakauer, is the story of a young man named Christopher Johnson McCandless who ventured off to Alaska and tried to survive in the wild. McCandless grew up in Annandale, Virginia where he attended school and made very good grades, rarely bringing home anything below an A. His father, Walt worked for NASA for a little while, before starting his own business with Chris’s mother, Billie, out of their own home. They worked hard and for long hours to get the business up and running and it finally paid off. The McCandless family was wealthy, but had many emotional problems. After graduating from Emory University in 1990, Chris McCandless donated twenty-four thousand dollars from his savings account to charity, changed his name to Alexander Supertramp, and then disappeared. This book tells the story of his life and travels. Some critics say that Chris McCandless was a very admirable person. He was a brave man that followed his dreams. However, given all of his flaws, attitudes, and actions, he is un-admirable. McCandless walked into the wild very unprepared and stubborn. He also treated his family poorly as well as anyone who got emotionally close to him. Chris was additionally too impressionable in a way that he admired authors along with the books they wrote, and tried to imitate them. He was very rebellious in his actions as well, and did not try to change the world or help others.
“I now walk into the wild” (3). It was April 1992 a young man from a rather wealthy family hitchhiked to Alaska and walked alone into the wilderness. His name was Christopher McCandless. He gave all of his savings to a charity, abandoned his car in the desert, left all his possessions, burned his money and wallet, and invented an alter ego all to shun society. Four months after his adventure, his decomposing body was found in bus 142 by a moose hunter. Into the Wild is a riveting novel about one man’s journey to find himself and live as an individual. Although, Chris McCandless may come as an ill-prepared idiot, his reasons for leaving society are rational. He wanted to leave the conformist society and blossom into his own person, he wanted to create his own story not have his story written for him, and he wanted to be happy not the world’s form of happiness.
The novel “Into the Wild” by Jon Krakauer goes into great detail to describe the main character, Chris McCandless, who died traveling alone into the Alaskan wilderness. McCandless, whom in the novel renamed himself Alex, left his home and family to travel to Alaska in 1992. In Alaska McCandless planned to live an isolated life in the desolate wilderness, but unfortunately he did not survive. This non-fiction novel portrays his life leading up to his departure and it captures the true essence of what it means to be “in the wild”.
All in all, it is interesting how the trials of life can lead a person into an awakening that inspires millions. Many people believe that walking “into the wild” to live off the land and find himself alone in nature was arrogant, foolish and irresponsible. Chris lacks of knowledge about the wild was a major factor in his death. Chris did not plan how he will survive in the wilderness without proper equipments. He misunderstood that he would have no problem in setting in the wild. Chris immature manner and decisions lead him to starvation and ultimately death. If he planned it out in the beginning he would have saved his life.
He begins to become grateful for human experiences when he meets Rainey, Jan and Wayne. This is apparent when he returns to Jan and Rainey before he sets off to Alaska and how he always keeps in contact with Wayne by writing him letters keeping him updated on his travels. While with these people he is always smiling and laughing and he learns that not all relationships are toxic. He builds upon this idea after successfully climbing the mountain with Ron to justify his motives he exclaims, “you don’t need human relationships to be happy, God has placed it all around us”. Chris is displaying that while relationships can make people happy they are not the only source of happiness in the world. Even though you may have healthy connections to family and friends if you’re lacking in personal experiences you won’t be happy. He does not realise though that his happiness is with people that he loves and cares about because he still sets off to Alaska even after being offered to be adopted by Ron who he develops a strong connection
It is from solitude that we find the value of human relationship. "He was motivated by the idea that happiness is only real when shared, and decides to return home because he has no one to share it with in the wild" (Suhar, 2011). Zak finds that when Chris finds his demises in the Alaskan Wild he want to return home to his family when he knows he no longer can, at the very end it is taken away and he finds the meaning of relationships, which would have never been found with the help of solitude. Zak continues to say "Formerly discontent with society and its surroundings, Chris later believes that, “the joy of life is all around us, people just need to change the way they look at things.” (Suhar, 2011). He elaborates and takes the words from Chris saying that he found that happiness comes from the people we surround ourselves with and it’s all about how you look at life and not how life looks at you. It is because Chris chose to be solitary from the rest of the world he was able to have the most free mindset that he has ever had in his life and discovered many things about himself and how he looks at life in
In the film Into the Wild, we learned that while Chris was on a trip to his parents’ hometown, he discovered that when he was two years old his father was previously married with kids and Chris’s mother had been his father’s mistress. Though Chris never shares his discovery with his parents, the hurt and betrayal he feels from it still sits in the back of his mind. We can conclude from this that he has trust issues because of the situation with his parents. When Chris is picked up by a hippie couple, Jan and Rainey, he shares a quote from Thoreau while they eat dinner. It states “rather than love, than money, than faith, than fame, than fairness…give me truth.” (Into the Wild) He was scared by his parent’s indiscretions caused him to become emotionally distant from others. He is able to grow a bond with the couple because of the similarities they share in living a nomadic lifestyle. However, when the sun goes down he departs in the middle of the night while they are sleeping and leaves them a drawn message in the sand thanking them. Here Chris is showing a strong distance from relationships. He makes the trip to Alaska his main