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.
After reading Krakauer’s Into the Wild and Henry David Thoreau’s exerts from Walden, we can see a deep connection between Christopher McCandless and Thoreau’s transcendental beliefs. Both Chris McCandless and Thoreau show transcendentalism in their actions of self-wisdom, differences, and liberation. Chris McCandless life choices in Into the wild reflect the transcendental beliefs of Thoreau’s Walden. The first transcendental belief of McCandless is that he marches to the beat of a different drummer.
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.
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.
Jon Krakauer, Chris McCandless, and Henry David Thoreau express the aspects of Transcendentalism in their three points of view. Transcendentalism is based on the belief that human beings have self-wisdom and may gain this knowledge or wisdom by how nature flows. It has three common themes: self-wisdom, nature and its meaning, and social reform. Chris McCandless’s life expressed in Krakauer’s Into the Wild is similar to the Transcendental beliefs of Thoreau’s Walden. The first Transcendental point of Chris McCandless’s and Henry David Thoreau’s lives is their dislike of material possessions.
In the 19th and 20th century transcendentalism was a new and exciting topic that caused tremendous controversy. In the novel Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, Chris McCandless was a man with a very unique character. In more detailed words Chris McCandless was a transcendentalist. His actions and moods played a big part in his life, from beginning to end. He was a transcendentalist because of his self-reliance, confidence and non-conformity.
“It is easy, when we are young, to believe that what you desire is is no less than what you deserve, to assume that if you want something bad enough, it is your God-given right to have it,” pg. 155 Into the Wild Jon Krakauer. Published in 1996, and made into a move in 2007, Into the Wild is a book about one man’s journey to follow his dreams, and discover who he is. The story is told, mainly, by the people he met along the way and his journal entries. Throughout the book the main character, Chris McCandless, demonstrates multiple characteristics that can be seen as transcendentalist characteristics.
Chris McCandless, Jon Krakauer, and Henry David Thoreau are some adventurous people that had Transcendentalism throughout their lives. In Krakauer’s book Into the Wild the reader can see that Chris McCandless relates to Henry David Thoreau’s excerpts from Walden by showing Transcendental beliefs. Both of the mean show that they are simple, seek individualism, and love the flow of nature. The way Chris McCandless attempts to live his life in Krakauer’s book Into the Wild is just like the way Henry David Thoreau describes a true Transcendentalist. One of the first transcendental beliefs that Chris McCandless seeks is a simple life.
In Jon Krakauer's "Into the Wild," the quote "The trip would be an odyssey in the fullest sense of the word, an epic journey that would change everything" refers to the protagonist Christopher McCandless' journey into the Alaskan wilderness. The quote is significant because it highlights the transformative nature of McCandless' journey and the impact it had on his life. The word "odyssey" has several meanings, most notably as a reference to Homer's epic poem, "The Odyssey," which chronicles the adventures of the hero Odysseus as he travels home from the Trojan War. Similarly, McCandless' journey into the Alaskan wilderness is an epic adventure, full of danger and discovery, as he tests his limits and explores the natural world.
Tashi Schorr Ms. Glick English 10 Period 2 10 April 2024. Into the Wild “To symbolize the complete severance from his previous life, he even adopted a new name. No longer would he answer to Chris McCandless; he was now Alexander Supertramp, master of his own destiny” (Krakauer 23). The non-fiction story, Into the Wild, by Jon Krakauer is a story about reinvention that follows a young man who abandons the status quo of his normal life and finds meaning through his adventures across the United States, until his demise in Alaska. The reinvention of Christopher McCandless creates a captivating story and mystery about who this kid is, and his personality and beliefs about the world are what caused him to reinvent himself.
Literary texts offer insight into other cultures by providing a new perspective of the beliefs, values, customs, and societal norms of that culture. Jon Krakauer's “Into the Wild” gives us a look into American wilderness, and the spirit of adventure and individualism that is deeply rooted in American culture. The protagonist, Chris McCandless, sets out on an adventure to explore the American wilderness, throughout the book we learn about his past and what he seeks to find in his journey. Into the Wild is set in various locations across America. Moreover, Chris McCandless travels to Arizona, California, South Dakota, and Oregon throughout his journey.
In Into the Wild, John Krakauer, shows through the character of Alex McCandless that community is not essential to happiness, through the actions he does in the book. A community is a group of people in the same area or sharing the same characteristics. And Alex McCandless proves community is not essential to happiness by introducing the relationships he makes along the way and learning more about him. Alex gets uncomfortable with human intimacy and making friendships, showing it’s not essential. “McCandless was thrilled to be on his way north, and he was relieved as well- relieved that he had again evaded the impending threat of human intimacy, of friendship, and all the messy emotional baggage that comes along with it (55).”
The book, Into The Wild, provides the most popular and detailed outline of Chris McCandless’ adventures. Through the examination of this book, it can be seen that Chris McCandless is a transcendentalist. A transcendentalist is a person who seeks to find their relation to the universe through a direct relationship with God and nature and believes in the tenets of transcendentalism. The validity of McCandless being a transcendentalist can be seen in his time in the Detrital Valley. In addition to examining whether McCandless is a transcendentalist, it is helpful to self-reflect and determine if I am a transcendentalist.
Into the Wild: Transcendentalism Into the Wild is a harrowing account of the events surrounding a young individual’s death by Jon Krakauer. A question is presented within this novel about whether this man’s actions make him a transcendentalist or not. Christopher John McCandless is a modern-day transcendentalist in the minds of those who wish they were, but he is only a childish rebel in the minds of those who would think of themselves as, perhaps, realists. The type of people that idolize McCandless are the whimsical naturalists that trick themselves into thinking they are somehow more self-enlightened than those who take a more reasonable and levelheaded approach to life. “McCandless...read like...an above average, somewhat histrionic
Polite speech has been used for centuries by people worldwide for various reasons such as introductions, business meetings, or even simply serving food. It is typically a sign of respect or friendliness commonly used to greet people daily, informally and formally. Although some believe it is wasteful, the value of polite speech is extremely high as it can enhance the halo effect and improve peer relations. Admittedly, polite speech may be wasteful to some; however, polite speech can have a large impact on others' perceptions of oneself. For example, in Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, numerous people Christopher McCandless met on his crusade to Alaska such as Jan Burres would not have become as fond of him if he had not been respectful and utilized
