Chris Mccandless Risk In Into The Wild

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In “Into the Wild” by John Krakauer, the narrative surrounding Chris McCandless reveals numerous facets of his personality, including his tendency to avoid personal relationships and his affinity for risk behaviors. These behaviors may also indicate other staples of McCandless’s personality, which can further be explored by referring to in-depth studies surrounding risk-taking. Through these, it is possible to identify the traits commonly associated with risk takers and the cognitive and behavioral maturity of those who are prone to risk behaviors. On top of this, it may also be possible to better understand why exactly McCandless did what he did. Parallels can be drawn between risk behaviors and suicidal behaviors, as well as adverse childhood …show more content…

Therefore, he was not special or revolutionary in any way- he was just another rule-breaker who took things to the extreme. Additionally, many factors, including prior encounters with risks and McCandless’s age, may have also impacted his association with risk behavior and his lack of foresight into the consequences of his actions. As their brains develop, adolescents form an association with risk based on their previous experiences with it. On top of this, they also tend to engage in more risky behaviors than any other age group (Greenwald et al.). As a child, McCandless was often described as fearless by those around him- he was often encouraged to take on challenges and risks and was never truly pulled away from potentially dangerous situations. In chapter eleven, Walt McCandless, Chris’s father, contributed to this story. Krakauer writes, “When Chris was a little bit older, Walt took Billie and his children from both marriages to climb Long Peaks in Colorado. there, at a prominent notch called the Keyhold, Walt decided to turn around. ‘I’d had it, OK,’ Walt explains, ‘but Chris wanted to keep going to the top. I told him no

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