ipl-logo

How Is Chris Mccandless Selfish

655 Words3 Pages

Fitting into society is no easy task. People find it difficult to not conform to the high expectations put on by the world. Chris McCandless was someone who didn’t like conforming to society. He lived off of thrill and instinct, which led him into the wilderness. Sadly, Chris’s story ended in the wilderness. By going and attempting to survive in the Alaskan wilderness unprepared, Chris McCandless was quite foolish, yet inspiring. His different behavior influenced other people and brought self reflection to many citizens across the united states.

Cheryl Strayed is a young woman who also attempted to survive in the wilderness alone. Cheryl had experienced trauma and abuse as a young child from her father (Schwartz). This made Strayed view her …show more content…

This caused Chris to resent the opportunities he was presented with. It also made Chris hate conformity. In the book Into the WIld (Krakauer), Chris refuses to accept help from others in multiple instances. Chris’s parents offer to give him a car after graduating but, Chris still declines because he hates being privileged. After a life of having everything served to him on a silver platter, McCandless resented taking …show more content…

Chris knew very well of the risks that came with exploring the wilderness and more specifically, Alaska. McCandless refused a map on his way into the wilderness, which could’ve saved his life. Chris also refused food and ingested poisonous berries because of his miseducation and ignorance. By refusing and not taking advantage of help, McCandless drove himself to his own death.

Chris’s story ended idiotically but led to the way other people’s self betterment and self reflection. Cheryl Strayed went into the wilderness alone just like McCandless, but she left and survived with value for her life and others involved in her life. Chris himself learned much in the wild and being there alone and isolated brought him joy and happiness. Chris’s story supported non conformity and several ideologies, helping the development of modern day society and anthropology. Chris’s story was influential to other people.

Escaping reality by abandoning society and going alone into the Alaskan wilderness, Chris McCandless was quite stupid, but inspiring to others. Chris influenced multiple people by being non conformativ. Cheryl Strayed is an example of this. Her almost dying in the wilderness helped her change for the better. This shows that isolation leaves room for self reflection and improvement in hopeless people oppressed by society’s

Show More
Related
439 Words | 2 Pages

Ryzz Mrs. Moffat English 5-6 11 January 2023 Was Chris Justified? In John Krakauers book Into the Wild, a man named Chris McCandless left everyone he knew in his hometown of Annandale, Virginia as he hitchhiked to Alaska. He burned all of his money and left behind most of his personal belongings, in order to live life to the fullest in the wild. Chris McCandless was justified in leaving his family to travel in the wild simply because he was old enough to decide to cut ties with his abusive family and be happier in life.

Read More
871 Words | 4 Pages

Into The Wild was a tremendous story which Shaun Callarman did not have many positive things to say about Chris McCandless, the main character. He went on this adventure to find out what life is all about in his own eyes. He wanted to see how different living in the wild really was compared to society because he was not satisfied with his living arrangements and household. Shaun’s quote says that he thinks “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.

Read More
903 Words | 4 Pages

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).

Read More
682 Words | 3 Pages

In Cheryl Strayed’s memoir Wild there is a clear connection with the author and nature that has guided her and led her astray throughout her life. Her memoir covers a pivotal time in her young life when she when from an immature young person to a woman who is self-reliant and able to be happy by her own means. The book is written mainly reflecting on her time on the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) when she was between the age 22 and 26 years old also remembering childhood events. Cheryl’s journey starts when her mother suddenly dies of caner and she was only 22 years old. Soon after her brother and sister become estranged, she goes through a divorce, becomes a drug addict, and has an abortion.

Read More
496 Words | 2 Pages

In the book Into The Wild by Jon Krakauer the main character Chris McCandless is not a role model and no one should be following what he did. After Graduating from college Chris thought it would be best for him to leave everything behind including his family and all the money his very successful father had left for him. Chris wanted to become homeless so he could figure out who he is as a person. One of the many reasons Chris left was because his father had two families and Chris's mother knew about his fathers double life but they both hid this from Chris and this made him furious. Chris went to the Alaskan bush in the winter and brought little supplies with him because he wanted to live off the land and survive with nothing, which is a horrible idea because Chris has no prior knowledge

Read More
931 Words | 4 Pages

Even though Chris McCandless intentionally isolated himself from society, he still could have benefitted from support from others. “I am alone, this is no joke. In the name of God, please remain to save me” (Krakauer 12). Chris went into the wild with the mindset that being alone would help him reach his full potential, but in the end it was what killed him. Once he arrived in Alaska, he claimed to be dependent of others and only reached out for help when it was unfortunately too late.

Read More
644 Words | 3 Pages

In the book Into the Wild the author states “No longer to be poisoned by civilization” this quote proves McCandless was free in the wild and he felt good not having to worry about others. Nonetheless, Even though McCandless felt free he was still selfish. He still left being family and friends and could have cared less. Thus Chris was selfish leaving his family and friends, no matter if he felt free or not he still left behind people who cared about

Read More
880 Words | 4 Pages

In the book “Into the Wild” by Jon Krakauer, Chris McCandless had many decisions to leave his old life behind and start over. Chris’ decision to leave was justified for the following reasons. When he suddenly disappeared, it made it easier for him to let go of his past and focus on what he wants to do in the future. McCandless could make all his own decisions, nobody had a chance to tell him that he could not leave and certainly did not allow anyone to find out where he was going. Finally he didn’t agree to social norms.

Read More
909 Words | 4 Pages

After being told many times that he would not be able to survive in the Alaskan wilderness, Chris McCandless had finally proved everyone wrong. He established his bearing in the woods and was successfully making it through the days. At last, he was on the

Read More
1327 Words | 6 Pages

Overall, Chris McCandless is a reckless and ill-prepared explorer because he made careless decisions, lacked personal closeness and connection with those he knew, and could not accept criticism. Chris McCandless was a callow adventurer who decided to walk into the wilderness of Alaska and make careless decisions. Just before Chris left his home to embark on a cross-country adventure, he made a questionable decision with all his money. The novel Into the Wild, by Jon Krakauer, quoted that “He would shortly donate all his money [$24,000] to OXFAM America, a charity dedicated to fighting hunger” (20). Chris opted to leave all the money behind in hopes of starting his journey on his own.

Read More
786 Words | 4 Pages

Chris McCandless running away into the wild is selfish because he left behind his loving family and friends, and gave up his hard-earned scholarship, which eventually led to his tragic death. Throughout the novel, the author refers to Chris as selfish and unprepared for

Read More
754 Words | 4 Pages

Following Chris McCandless death, there have been an uprising in people trying imitate what he did by leaving society and living all alone in the Alaskan wild. Unfortunately all of these people meet the same fate as Chris, proving just how harsh the living conditions are in Alaska. Living all alone in the Alaskan brush is something only a handful of people can accomplish. The winters are extremely cold and the wildlife can be a threat all on their own. For someone who had never lived in Alaska, Chris was able to successfully live on his own for about a month, killing and eating small game animals and with the minimal supplies that he brought.

Read More
1125 Words | 5 Pages

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.

Read More
688 Words | 3 Pages

“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.

Read More
362 Words | 2 Pages

The story Into The Wild is a coming of age story that has many examples of Chris McCandless growing up on his adventures in the west U.S. Chris was a very self driven person, and had always been independent most of his life. From being captain of his high school track team to having a 4.0 in college, and moving on to law school to become a lawyer. He was always seen as an extremely mature and stubborn person for his age, and that might have all but been his down fall in Alaska. A great example of this in the book would be when Krakauer the author said this about Chris “He became convinced that humans had devolved into progressively inferior beings,” this a prime example of how Chris though of others, and especially his father. Chris had always

Read More

More about How Is Chris Mccandless Selfish

Related Topics

Open Document