Chris Mccandless 'Transcendentalism In Into The Wild'

In the 1830s, the idea of transcendentalism came alive. Transcendentalism was the opposite of rational thinking. It was about being independent, living based on nature, and connecting to god by yourself. Going into the wild is a privilege because being rich or coming from a wealthy background, being male, and white makes an advantage if you are in middle-class or lower-class, a female, or people of color. At that time of transcendentalism, females were looked down upon in society. Males were dominant over females. Females struggled with self-reliance which is one of the tenets of transcendentalism. If they relied on themselves, they were hated or looked at differently. The book Into the Wild is about a young man’s journey to Alaska to live

McCandless was born into a fairly rich family. His parents were well off. With McCandless’ background, he was considered more privileged because he got a good education and experience before his journey to Alaska. His parents had taken him on many trips, for example on page 109 of the book it states, “When Chris was a little older, Walt took Billie and his children from both marriages to climb Longs Peak in Colorado–at 14,256 feet, the highest summit in Rocky Mountain National Park.” At a young age, he was already exploring nature and rock climbing. His parents weren’t against him traveling on his own either. Not only does he have experience but education. Education can help you learn about nature, the body, how things work, etc. The further you go to school after high school, the more you learn. Even though transcendentalism was about living off experience but having background knowledge about your body or how life works is a bonus for going off into the wild by yourself. Chris McCandless was sent to college by his parents, some families simply can’t afford college for their children. So the children must work hard for them to be able to go to college and with that time they are working many jobs, they will not have the free time to go out into nature to explore and experience. Unlike Chris, on page 116 of Into the Wild, it says, “As soon as high school was over, Chris declared, he was going to

People of color would be at a disadvantage compared to white. McCandless was white, he didn’t get weird looks on his journey due to because it was more “normal” to see white people traveling. A video, The real story of the Green Book explains African Americans traveling in the United States with fewer places that accept them when staying overnight. The Green Book allows African Americans to find places to welcome people of color. It was difficult to travel and be welcomed but to McCandless, everyone he met on his journey welcomed him and enjoyed his company. For example, Westerberg was someone McCandless met on his journey. On page 17 of the book Into the Wild, “Westerberg told him, “I hate to leave you out here in the goddamn rain. You got a sleeping bag–why don’t you come on up to Sunburst, and spend the night in the trailer?” Westerberg gave a place and job to McCandless. Westerberg welcomed this random boy he met on the road not knowing if this boy had bad or good intentions. Only if people of color were treated this way during this period they would be able to travel freely. Without all the support and help he got from the people he met along the way, he could not have made it as far as he