What Is The Sacrifice In Into The Wild

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Everyone reaches the point where they are forced to make sacrifices. Sacrifices highlight the essence of character values. McBride and Krakauer use characterization along with diction, in their works, to drive the novels. Although they are completely different novels, these two timely classics parallel in their deeper meaning through the sacrifices made by two dynamic characters and the craftsmanship of each author. Characters such as Ruth from The Color of Water by James McBride and Chris from Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer make sacrifices regarding their family and financial security, which push them to their shared aspiration of freedom. These sacrifices reveal the values within each character and continue to shape the novel as a whole. …show more content…

Krakauer shapes Chris’s story from the views of others. Each trivial character had an opinion on Chris or his choices. The structure of the text and the sacrifices Chris made aided in the development of the overall theme. This being that despite how others may affect you stay true to who you are and what you seek the most. Before Chris went into the Alaskan terrain he stayed focused on what he was after despite what many people were saying. In the novel it says ““There was just no talking the guy out of it,” (Krakauer 38) Chris was determined and headstrong, nothing was going to interrupt his quest for the freedom of happiness. Krakauer used the characterization of Chris to demonstrate the theme and create a personal connection between Chris and the reader to ensure a lasting take away. Likewise, McBride used Ruth to demonstrate his theme of Self Determination. Through her sacrifices and persistence Ruth ensured that her kids saw a better future than hers. In the novel it says, “I was the eight straight child she sent to college” (McBride 189). Ruth was relentless on the topic of education and ensured that each of her kids would go to college and create something out of themselves. Without her sacrifices in her own personal life, her kids would not have the life they have today. McBride shows the determination through Ruth’s characterization in the description of her kid’s upbringing and her own childhood obstacles. Both characters play major roles in the utter basis of the stories. Without these characters the puzzle would not be

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