Into The Wild Chris Mccandless Family

Chris McCandless was a young man who had a lot going for him. He decided to end his schooling and get rid of his life by leaving his life behind and hitchhiking all the way to Alaska and living off the land up there. Unfortunately this story doesn’t have a happy ending. Chris McCandless dies in Alaska, he was found in August of 1992 by a moose hunter who had found him inside an old school bus that Chris was living in. Chris died from eating berries that were poisonous and wouldn’t allow him to digest food causing him to die of starvation. McCandless has many reasons for making that decision about leaving his life behind. Chris’s parents had a big impact on why he made this decision. He had many thoughts on his parents. I have many thoughts

He would call them “plastic people”. He didn't like the lifestyle they lived and did not want any part of it. His parents had a huge amount of money and wanted to let everyone know they had it. They would buy things and it seems like buy people to hid the truth that was going on, that people didn’t see. They cared more about what society thought even though it drove Chris apart from them. Chris at one point wrote a letter to his sister before his disappearance saying “I’m going to divorce them as my parents once and for all and never speak to either of those idiots again as long as I live.” (Into The Wild Summary, Cliff Notes, Chapter

To other people things seemed perfect. Things weren't so “perfect” as you step foot into the McCandless household. There was lots of violence going on and although they didn’t have the hardest childhood, they had a roof over their heads, food to eat, school, things that when on when they were younger impacted Chris and the rest of his life. His dad would sometimes hit and choke his mother, often belting the kids and often assaulting them. Chris’s dad kept many secrets from Chris and his younger sister Carine. His dad had a whole other family that he had at the same time as he had Chris and Carine. Walt McCandless had 6 other children that he would split his time between. His mom knew the whole time and never said anything to Chris or Carine. With his father doing this it made him have so much anger and hate towards Walt. He didn’t even find out directly from his parents. He took a road trip and during this trip he stopped by his hometown to El Segundo, California. There is where he discovered the truth about his father. He never directly told his parents that he knew. He instead to keep it to himself and expresses his rage obliquely. Once his parents found out that he was done with them and had left, they hired a private investigator to try and find him. I feel like his parents are showing that they care a little too late. Chris made it impossible to find him, changing his name and going to great lengths to leave no traceable tracks.