There are many American individuals who defy the normal AMerican way of thinking and take certain actions to avoid, improve, or revise the American way of living and thinking. Such thinkers can be peaceful in their methods of reform, while other can take radical extremes. Chris McCandless is a peaceful avoider of the American social norm while John Brown took a very radical route to change the norm in America with his own beliefs. John Brown was an American abolitionist. An abolitionist is an individual who believed that slavery in America should be abolished. Most abolitionists weren’t shy when it came to how they felt the institution of slavery should be dealt with. Some abolitionists like Frederick Douglas gave speeches calling for a reform …show more content…
However, his raid was not successful. All of his followers, including all of his sons, were killed in the raid and John was taken prisoner. He would later be executed for treason. His death sparked huge cause for the abolitionist movement. He was seen as a martyr for the abolitionist cause and the abolitionist movement grew off of his sacrifice. John Brown’s goal of abolition would be achieved after his death. (Murphy) John Brown can be related to Chris McCandless in the fact that they were both in disagreement of the norms of American society. Although their methods were very different, they both eventually convinced others that their respective paths and ideas were the way that people and society should live. John Brown convinced helped spark a major growth in the abolition movement while Chris McCandless managed to convince some people that he met along his travels and several others that have read about his ideas and travels to let go of the grips of society and discover yourself in the wild, natural world.(Krakauer) Both Brokop 2 of these individuals have effected other’s life choices, and both had some impact on members of the American society. Both of these individuals goals would