In the 2013 online article, “The Chris McCandless Obsession Problem”, author Diana Saverin describes the Alaskan wilderness travel phenomenon along with attempting to uncover the ‘McCandless Pilgrims’ “root of motivation. Sparked by the release of both Jon Krakauer’s and Sean Penn’s “Into the Wild”, numerous individuals pack their backpacks and eagerly step into their (sometimes newly-bought) hiking shoes and tramp into the Alaskan Wild to pay homage to their hero Chris McCandless. Filled with personal anecdotes and interviews, Severin’s Outside article takes a new approach Into the Wild commentary by directing attention to the lives McCandless’s story affected indirectly rather than critiquing on McCandless himself. In response to what appears to be a huge amount of troubled McCandless-inspired tramping stories, Saverin provides an unbiased rationale as a attempt to explain why so many are “willing to risk injury, and even death, to..visit the last home of Alaska’s most famous adventure casualty”. Saverin begins her article with anecdote- telling the unfortunate experience of young lovers and adept adventure seekers, Ackerman and Gros.
Chris McCandless, a young individual with transcendentalist views who believed that life is best alone to live in nature. He spends about two years hitchhiking and traveling throughout western United States before entering the Alaskan Mountains for his last trip alive. This trip lasted 113 days before Chris died of starvation and was later found 19 days after he had died. Jon Krakauer’s book, Into the Wild, tells stories about Chris’s life leading up to his death and other wild excursions like Chris’ throughout the book. In Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer characterizes Christopher McCandless as unmaterialistic and he emphasizes the present.
In particular Chris Mccandless should be supported for he had things happen to him that led up to the point where he wanted to go into the wild to get away from his old life and created a new one for himself to have more opportunities. Others may think he shouldn’t be supported just because he some bad flaws he had and also that he just left his sister who he actually got along with, but here are some reasons that are logical and reasonable to why Chris Mccandless should be supported. One of the reasons why readers should support Chris McCandless is because he is generous, he gave people inspiration, or felt inspired by others, and like in the book Krakauer tells us “Chris’s Father suggested the boy had probably been inspired. ”(94),his way of living inspired everyone that you can live anyway you want.
Chris McCandles who is the main character of Krakauer’s book Into the Wild meets many different people during his reckless and adventurous trip to Alaska. These people not only help him with shelter, food and water but also give him some ideas for contemplation and knowledge which can become useful in the wild. Chris’s philosophy of life has a great impact on the minds of these people who include Jim Gallien, Wayne Westerberg, Ronald Franz and others. They feel admiration and fear towards Chris and his actions but all of them are influenced by Chris in some way. First of all, Jim Gallien who picks Christopher up on the road and spends several hours driving and talking to a young man who decided to go to Alaska with a lack of necessary equipment
To leave everything behind and challenge everything he’s lived for is beyond rebellious, it is heroic. Chris descends from the comforts of modern society and steps into the unpredictable world of survival to find out who he truly is, which not many people are inclined to experience. Chris’ major flaw in his adventure was his lack of preparedness for Alaska and the absence of common sense in the wild. Krakauer mentions this fault, but rebuttals it, “Although he was rash, untutored in the ways of the back country... he wasn't incompetent—he wouldn't have lasted 113 days if he were” (Krakauer 85).
Chris went off after he graduated college and “lived off the land”. Chris would travel to the coast of Mexico, the plains of Kansas, and the dunes of Nevada. Chris went on a final expedition to Alaska that cost him everything. In the following paragraphs I will fully detail how Chris was reckless, selfish, and naive. I will also explore how Chris tied his life to the beliefs of transcendentalism.
Perspective of Christopher McCandless’s Life Callarman’s argument to Christopher McCandless’s is relatable and understanding, but he does not see the full picture. Christopher McCandless had everything in his life: money, material, family, prestige etc. but the only thing he wanted to fully experience is the outside world, to get out of his comfort zone and see how nature really feels like. I would agree with Callarman’s argument because he was arrogant and unenlightenment, but I also would disagree because he died doing what he loved and a place he wanted to be.
Chris’s purpose of his adventure to Alaska is to separate himself from the problems and find himself as a person. McCandless was known as a very intellectual person through the most of life. He showed in his life that he was academically giveth and a smart person. Krakauer explains McCandless smartness, “In an affluent suburb of Washington, D.C., where he’d excelled academically and had been an elite athlete” (3). This shows that Chris was very intelligent person from Washington D.C. where he grew up.
“So many people live in unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation” (57). Chris McCandless was determined to not be one of those men, he strived for a life in solitude, away from the demands of society. For that reason he went on an epic transcendental experience that took him from Mexico to Alaska. Along the way, he met and made an impact on peoples’ lives, people like Wayne Westenberg and Ronald Franz. Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild discusses Chris’s journey, and makes the reader question Chris’s reasons for going out into the wild.
Chris McCandless abandoned the modern world and chose the wild because he believed that he could improve himself through living in the wild, and found the true happiness of the life. McCandless abandoned his wealthy family because of his complicated relationship with his father, and he was ashamed with his father’s adultery. Therefore, McCandless believed that human relationship was not the only thing that forms happiness, instead a man’s connection with the nature brings joy as well. He also believed the habitual lifestyle was not what people were meant to do, and people shouldn't have more possessions than what they need. For this reason, McCandless traveled with little effects.
t all comes down to what you are willing to risk in order to be happy. Chris McCandless grew up in a wealthy family, but when he found out about his dad 's secret, he basically became disillusioned with life and rejected his privileged upbringing. He wanted to find a deeper meaning to life, which is why he went into the wild to live off of the land and be alone with his thoughts and nature just like his hero, Henry David Thoreau had. Even though this was extremely dangerous, to Chris it was worth it because he was willing to risk his life in order to live the way he wanted. I think many people can relate to this because they have dreams they are too afraid to pursue.
“Into The Wild” by Jon Krakauer is the story of Chris McCandless’s life and journey. In 1992, this young man, Chris, from an average family in the East Coast decided to cut off contact with his family and give up all his possessions so that he could hitchhike into the Alaskan bush. A main reason many believe Chris went into the wilderness was because he was in search of his identity. From reading this book I have come up with my own opinion of what type of person he was. The conclusion I have reached about Chris is that he was a distant and ill-prepared person who had a very strong will.
“If you are always trying to be normal, you will never know how amazing you can be.” ―Maya Angelou. Jon Krakauer’s true story titled Into the Wild is about a man who decides to throw away his old life and escape the rules of conventional society. Twenty-two-year-old Chris McCandless came from a well-to-do family in Virginia and, without warning, abandons everything. He changes his name, loses contact with his family, gives away his car and all his money, and begins a two-year long journey hitchhiking to Alaska where he eventually dies of starvation.
Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild investigates the life and adventures of Chris McCandless. The author provides information about Chris’ life to illuminate his journey. Krakauer also uses rhetorical appeals to defend Chris’ rationale for his journey. Through Krakauer’s use of pathos, ethos, and logos, he persuades the audience that Chris is not foolish; however, Krakauer’s intimacy with Chris and his adventures inhibits his objectivity.
There are several relationships that reveal about Chris's personality. “He always wore shoes without socks- just plain couldn’t stand to wear socks. But McDonald’s has a rule that employees have to wear appropriate footwear at all times. That means shoes and socks Chris would comply with the rule, but as soon as his shift was over, bang!-the first he’d do is peel those socks off. ”(40)
