“Actions speak louder than words” is a centuries-old idea that, in recent times, has been famously said by both Abraham Lincoln and Mark Twain, and I think this idea should be the core of any look into the life and actions of Chris McCandless. However, I believe that this idea was hardly considered in Jon Krakauer’s interpretation of Chris McCandless in his book Into The Wild. Into The Wild is taken by many as the complete truth of Chris McCandless’ story, but many people seem to forget that Krakauer tells us in his author’s note at the beginning of the book that “[he] won’t claim to be an impartial biographer.” This means that any judgment of Chris that only uses this book is inherently flawed by Krakauer’s own views.
Into the Wild Essay Most people go into the wilderness to go camping for a week or less than a week, then leave. Some stay for more than a week. Chris McCandless was in the wild for at least one hundred days. “ I’ve decided to live this life for some time to come. The freedom and the beauty of it is too good to pass up.”(pg.92)
Firstly, Into The Wild written by Jon Krakauer is one of the best book I have read this year. Throughout the novel, I can see Chris McCandless is brave enough to do things that most people will not even think about doing as he is “looking for more adventure and freedom than today’s society gives people” (). From the beginning, even though his parents, Billie and Walt McCandless set him up for an impressive, promising life, Chris gives up this promising, successful future and spins into a journey filled with idealist literature and danger that skews his world view. This is due to the modern society offers that does not appeal to Chris, who just wants a different life that many have themselves. He sees the influences society puts on our lives
In the biography, Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer writes about a man named Chris McCandless. McCandless seemed like a normal person. He had good grades, a good home life, and had just graduated from college. Then, the 24-year-old went off on a journey, eventually ending up in Alaska, where he met an untimely death in an abandoned bus that he had taken shelter in. While McCandless never came out as a transcendentalist, his actions were indicative of some of the tenets of transcendentalism.
Going out into the wild all by yourself can be nerve wracking and lonely. Jon Krakauer makes Chris McCandless seemed like a noble person who took the initiative to try to go out and live into the wild. The book Into the Wild written by Jon Krakauer, is about a teenager named Chris McCandless leaving society and traveling to Alaska by himself with nothing else but a bag of rice and a small .22 caliber gun. Chris is heroic because he went to Alaska by himself without any knowledge of Alaska and didn’t know any of the dangers of Alaska. One way Krakauer make Chris seem noble is when Chris is about to enter Alaska he tells Gallien “ I’m goin’ to get on up there live off the land,go claim me a piece of the good life” (Krakauer 4).
A rebellious person is someone who “defies or resists some authority, government, or tradition” (Dictionary.com). Chris McCandless’s persona can truly be encompassed by this one word, “rebellious”. Often people find rebellion to have a negative impact on the individual or society who go against accustomed traditions and beliefs. Chris’s rebellious nature is on the opposite side of this spectrum because his only goal was to improve his life through his rebellious adventures. Chris once stated, “So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation” (Krakauer 57).
Transcendentalist Paper Charlie Jones once stated “Things don’t go wrong and break your heart so you can become bitter and give up. They happen to break you down and build you up so you can be all that you were intended to be.” Chris McCandless was a very unique person. McCandless never really let anything get him down. He did what he wanted to do and never let anyone push him around.
Chris McCandless was a young man who hitchhiked to Alaska and walked alone into the wilderness. He had donated all of his money, abandoned most of his possessions, and invented a new life for himself. Chris wanted to live off the grid and gain a true understanding of his life. However, his body was discovered 4 months after walking into the Alaskan Wilderness. Going on a 2-year hitchhiking journey made Chris discover himself and what he wanted.
Chris McCandless’s Rational Exploration: To claim that a young 22 year old boy going into the Alaskan wilderness alone is ignorant, witless, and crazy is inaccurate. This is Chris McCandless. McCandless embarked on a two year long, solo journey to break away from societal exceptions, and discover himself, along with the unknowns of the wild that was recorded in the writings of “Into The Wild” by Jon Krakauer. Shaun Callarman, a former police officer and now writer, expressed his disapproval of McCandless’ journey by attesting, “I think that Chris McCandless was bright and ignorant at the same time. He had no common sense, and he had no business going into Alaska with his romantic silliness.
Have you ever met someone that everyone seems to love? This is exactly how Chris McCandless seemed in Into the Wild. Chris seemed to have a very loveable personality even though he did nothing to deserve it. But McCandles was too focused on himself, so he never grew attached to others that were willing to help. I believe that MCandles was selfish, independent, and arrogant.
Two Stubborn People Chris McCandless, the main character in Into The Wild, a biography written by John Krakauer, was depicted as a disconnected, selfish, and mentally unwell person. Even though I am not fond of Chris, I see my mom in him. These traits do not encapsulate my mother whatsoever, but they do share some similarities. Both go on ventures often and very suddenly. Both love being immersed in nature.
In the story Into the Wild, there is a character named Alex McCandless who was a very independent man. He insisted on not listening to anyone. Alex was confident that he could live while traveling into the wild. Within the story, Alex gives his $25,000 in savings to a charity and abandons his car along with the possessions contained in it. Alex voyages into the wild with nothing but a bag of rice and a small back pack.
Into the Wild Christopher McCandless is a son of wealthy parents which were graduates from Emory University as a top student and athlete. Chris McCandless was seeking into the wilderness to show people he can really do it. Krakauer’s statement was proven to show his actions and support his courageous from living in the wilderness. McCandless wanted to walk to Alaska to start his journey on the hike. His adventure lasted 113 days in the wilderness which turned into something that shouldn’t have happened.
What really drove Chris McCandless into the wild? I believe the top three of the countless reasons that drove McCandless into the wild was the emotional damage from his parents, rebellion of the youth & risk taking tendencies, and his hubris and detestation against authority and/or someone telling him what to do. Some may believe that Chris McCandless went into the wild because of his literary heroes Leo Tolstoy, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau , and Jack London but the real reason he left everything was because of those reasons. In this essay I will elaborate on why I believe those are the reasons that drove McCandless into the wild.
“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.
