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Individualism In Into The Wild, By Jon Krakauer

689 Words3 Pages

Jake Melini
Walter
English 11 Advanced (4)
5 May 2023
How individualism and nature influenced Chris McCandless Into The Wild is a nonfiction book written by Jon Krakauer. This story follows a man named Chris Mccandless. Chris is obsessed with the outdoors and exploring but could never quench his thirst for it. Chris always lived by trying new lifestyles and not letting his fear control what he does. McCandless is fearless, but also dumb for some of the decisions he made. 150 years earlier a man named Henry David Thoreau lived exactly how Chris is living. Thoreau spoke about individuality, and nature which inspired Chris. Chris McCandless is most affected by the Transcendental ideas of Individualism and Nature; these ideas gave him an artificial …show more content…

Thoreau lived by his ideas, but the two that correlate to Chris the most are Individualism and Nature. Chris shows a lot of involvement in individualism during his life. Chris explained, “We like companionship, but we can't stand people for very long” (PG 96). Chris explained how he is a very individualistic person and enjoys living by himself, especially in nature. Chris describes himself all throughout the book, but nothing shows more than his individuality traits. Thoreau's book explains the individualistic lifestyle of people: “ if man does not keep peace with his companions, perhaps it's because he hears a different drum”. This deeply relates to Chris and his lifestyle. This quote explains Chris's actions and attitude in school and his family. A song quote that relates to him is “it's a song about my individuality” (0.45 Individualism). Chris shows these transcendental ideas throughout the book. It shows how attached he is to them and how his lifestyle changed because of …show more content…

Jack London is the reason why Chris is the way he is, ever since Chris read the book about Alaska he knew that is the journey he had to take. Chris is a very influenced based person who listens to the people he looks up to. That's the reason he became so obsessed with nature and the outdoors. Before Chris took his journey he said to himself, “ I now walk into the wild '' (PG 3). He is influenced by all these people he looks up to and he thrives to live a lifestyle based upon theirs. Thoreau stated, “ I went to the woods to live deliberately” ( .N.P. Thoreau). Chris is also very influenced by him because he wanted to live like him. A song choice that is relevant to Chris is “What a wonderful world” (1.13 Armstrong). This song quote explains Chris in a way because it's stating how they are alone and walking through the woods. Chris shows to be heavily influenced by writers. But, he chose the wrong path to go down, these influencers led him down a wrong path which killed

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Analysis Of Chris Mccandless In Into The Wild, By Jon Krakauer

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Into the Wild recounts the story of a young man, Chris McCandless, who tries to escape from society in order to find himself. Fascinated by nature, Chris gives up most of his material possessions to hitchhike around the western United States. Interestingly enough, he severs all ties with his family and believes that he can find happiness within himself, yet makes connections with several people along his journal. Fueled by the ideology of writers such as Tolstoy, London, and Thoreau, Chris camps alone in the Alaskan wild to find a purer version of himself until his death. Throughout Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer develops the idea that Chris McCandless’ quest for solitude is essential to obtain true freedom; however, Chris ultimately realizes

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Similarities Between Chandless And Chris Mccandless

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Henry David Thoreau once said, “Never look back unless you are planning to go that way.” It almost seems as Thoreau said this just to inspire Chris McCandless himself. Chris and Henry both lived off the land and loved to read books. Chris and Henry also lived in different places in the woods. Henry was a transcendentalist, whereas Chris was not.

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Summary Of Into The Wild, By Jon Krakauer

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Into the wild is a biography and nonfiction book written by Jon Krakauer. The book is about the journey of Christopher Johnson Mccandless ( Alex )journey throughout the west coast of the USA. Christopher’s journey takes him places such as the the snowy state of Alaska, and the mountainous terrains of the Sierra Nevada’s. The main protagonist Christopher Mccandless is 24 years old, and believes that life is best lived alone. Testing his theory Christopher goes to live alone in the western US, until testing his limits and venturing to Alaska.

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Differences And Similarities Between Chris Mccandless And Thoreau

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One of the very first rules Chris McCandless follows is the anxiousness of individualism when he deserts all his belongings , grants his savings to charity, and leaves his family. After Chris abandoned his own belongings and everyone he associated with, he worked up the urged of seeking individualism. There is a quote from Thoreau that can be a comparison to Chris McCandless. Thoreau states that, ”let everyone mind his own business, and endear too be what he was model” (Walden). This quote clearly can relates to what Chris is trying to achieve in life.

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Transcendentalism In Into The Wild, By Jon Krakauer

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He believes that believing in yourself is a key way to survive, and that anyone can do whatever they want if they just go with what their heart tells them to do. In the last picture taken of Chris McCandless while he was alive, it is evident that he struggled immensely while out on his own. He looks as though he weighs below 100 pounds and his face is just sunken in from the lack of food and nutrients he was receiving, but by really looking at his face, it becomes evident that he was truly at peace and happy. Through all the physical pain, Chris has a bright smile and his eyes show nothing but pure pleasure. Emerson statement that “a man is relieved and gay when he has put

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Chris Mccandless A Transcendentalist Analysis

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By relying on himself instead of others, Chris managed to embody one of the most important pillars of transcendentalism; to only focus on what he needs, not on what society tells him is

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Chris Mccandless's Independence In Into The Wild

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He isolated himself from everybody that truly cared about him, and he even went so far as to turn his back on society. Chris and I may both value our independence, except we chose to go about these beliefs in drastically different ways. I chose to value my interpersonal connections instead of driving them away. I found that being close to somebody and discovering different views of the world can allow you to self-reflect without having to be on your own. McCandless drove away human connection and decided he needed to do this on his own.

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Into The Wild, By Jon Krakauer

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Into the Wild, written by Jon Krakauer, is a non-fiction book based on the real-life story of Christopher McCandless, a young man who leaves his comfortable life behind to live in the wilderness of Alaska. The book is a fascinating exploration of McCandless's motivations and the reasons behind his decision to abandon society and embrace the wilderness. One of the key themes in the book is the tension between the desire for freedom and the need for human connection. Throughout the book, Krakauer explores how McCandless's desire for freedom and independence led him to reject the traditional trappings of society, including money, possessions, and even his own name.

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Analysis Of Into The Wild: A Letter To Jon Krakauer

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Dear John Krakauer, In a world where people make assumptions without any credentials, it is important to tell a story for what it is. When reading your book, Into the Wild, I greatly appreciated the rawness of Chris’ story. What Chris McCandless did opened people's eyes to the reality of a strong and brave man. As an avid adventurer myself, the way you portray Chris McCandless shows a lot about the courage that goes into adventuring alone.

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Into The Wild, By Jon Krakauer

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This quote shows how Chris always loved to adventure and how it was a part of him, it allowed him to keep doing what he did as a kid, keeping that part of him with him always. Chris’s knack for adventure always allowed him to be his truest

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The Theme Of Chris Mccandless In Into The Wild

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This quote portrays his rule for his belongings, "that you should own nothing except what you can carry on your back at a dead run,” (Penn). He views the wilderness as a place of self-discovery, seeking the beauty and serenity of nature. Chris sees materialism and capitalism as the root causes of societal decay, and though there are opposing views on his idealism, his belief that life is about pursuing experiences rather than commodities is a principle worth

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Into The Woods Quotes

237 Words | 1 Pages

As Chris follows Henry David Thoreau’s footsteps by going into the woods he starts to realize that he's not as prepared as he thought he was. Chris was obviously not an experience outdoors man from the way he acted in certain situations. One example of this is when Chris killed a moose and tried to smoke the meat which is not easy for an under experienced outdoors man like Chris. “Alaskan hunters know that the easiest way to preserve meat in the bush is to slice it into thin strips and then air-dry it on a makeshift rack”(166). This quote shows that Chris is not well equipped for the wild which lead people to think that he died unhappy because he was struggling in the woods.

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Into The Wild Relationships

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Chris had a huge impact on everyone he knew, but he would not let them influence him or his decisions at all. He rebelled against his family because his father was too controlling. Later on, when any of his companions told him not to go to Alaska, or tried telling him to do anything that he did not want to, he would totally ignore them, and change the subject. As Krakauer writes in chapter 6, “McCandless…relieved that he had again evaded the impending threat of human intimacy, of friendship, and all the messy emotional baggage that comes with it. He had fled the claustrophobic confines of his family.

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Into The Wild Psychological Analysis

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He was not concerned with the trivial details of life that most people would have. He constantly tried to get away from society. Chris never wanted to stay in a place for too long. He had a mentality of “Don’t come closer or I’ll have to go / Holding me like gravity are places that pull” (Vedder, Guaranteed). Whenever Chris got close to someone he would always leave.

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Character Analysis Of Chris Mccandless In 'Into The Wild'

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Chris McCandless was a college student with a need for adventure. On April 28, 1992, he left on a journey which would lead to the end of his life. After news of his death had reached public ear, most people came to the same conclusion: Chris McCandless was an uneducated, arrogant boy who went on a journey seeking death. However, in the novel Into the Wild, Jon Krakaur portrays Chris McCandless’ transcendental quest as a journey full of wonder. Throughout the novel, Krakaur defines McCandless as an intelligent, hard working, determined young man.

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