An Analysis Of Mccandless In Into The Wild, By Jon Krakauer

In Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer tries to address the controversy surrounding the McCandless case. This controversy comes from the argument between those who believe McCandless was a tragic hero, looking for life away from the materialistic and corrupt states of current civilizations, and those who believe he was a total idiot. In the novel itself, it is evident that McCandless did not plan to die, and that he was simply seeking self fulfillment. With this, the argument that John Krakauer actually makes is that McCandless was a total idiot, but Krakauer, wanting to stay at least somewhat objective in his journalism, does not come out and say so directly. Krakauer instead makes this argument by showing readers the harsh reality of the wild with

However, it is evident that he did not want to die. Chris documented his trip, and mentions in his final letters before his trip that he will “return south”, but it will “be a very long time” before he does so. (69). Also, in the wilderness, Chris had “long term” plans to survive which included creating hygiene facilities, clothes, bridges, and trails (165-166). Rather than having a death wish, Chris simply took on a challenge that was much more than he could handle. Chris underestimated the power of Nature. As Krakauer describes in his climb of the Devils Thumb, Nature is very harsh. During his climb, Krakauer comes close to death several times. He finds nature’s power extremely frightening. With this personal narrative, readers understand the true ruthlessness of the wild. Krakauer’s narrative allows readers to sympathize with McCandless’s situation, and they can truly understand how hard it is to live off the

He has his sights firmly set on his Alaskan journey and nothing will influence his plan. McCandless’s independence makes him a free spirit, but this does not mean that he was a hero by any means. Rather, Krakauer makes the argument that McCandless was ignorant and naive. Krakauer says about McCandless that he was “rash, untutored in the ways of the backcountry and incautious to the point of foolhardiness” (85). McCandless’s ignorance led him to refuse offers of better gear to live in the outdoors, saying “No thanks”, “I’ll be fine with what I’ve got” (6). McCandless went into the wild with “no ax, no bug dope, no snowshoes, no compass”. He only carried with him what he probably thought was enough to survive but in reality his equipment was inadequate for the Alaskan wilderness. Another contributor to McCandless’s death is his own ignorance of the geography around him. He died because he did not know his surroundings. Since McCandless did not take a map into the wild, he did not know that crossing the river that trapped him in the wild was possible to cross at certain spots. As well, McCandless was truly not in the wild. A “topographic map” of the area shows that near McCandless’s area, there was a “station built by the U.S. Geological Survey”(173). Also in the area would be three hunting cabins. Later in the novel, Krakauer seems to touch on evidence suggesting McCandless’s