Examples Of Transcendentalism In Into The Wild

Finding oneself has always been an important discovery that everyone must experience in their lifetime. In the book, Into The Wild by Jon Krakauer, Chris McCandless abandoned all he knew and set out on a journey across the country. Along the way, Chris’ beliefs about the spirituality and sacredness of the natural world, led him to find himself. Following these ideals and morals, Chris McCandless was a transcendental idealist who was able to fulfill his dreams.
When Chris McCandless’ embarks on his journey of a lifetime he does not adhere to the law, because it goes against his transcendentalist ideals. While hitchhiking Chris was asked about his following of the law, “Gallien asked whether he had a hunting license. ‘Hell, no’, Alex scoffed. ‘How I feed myself is none of the government’s business. Fuck their stupid rules”(Krakauer 6.) Alex’s blatant disregard for the government and law is shown by the phrase ‘Fuck their stupid rules’. Alex did not believe that he should be limited by what the government said, he was a free person. This foreshadows and creates the sense that Chris was not going to follow any other laws in the

McCandless had been accused of abandoning his family and loved ones. Chris had always felt like his parents were holding him back, they had a different vision of Chris’ future than Chris had. Even though Chris left his family it was in his best intentions and for the best intentions, if he had never left him he would never have been able to find himself. He did not mean to harm anyone, he was just trying to discover the larger meaning of his life and fulfill his dream. In the end of the novel Chris was able to discover himself when he realized that ‘ Happiness only real when shared’. This was Chris’ realization that life really mattered most when he was with others, it implied that Chris was ready to go back to his parents and