ALLUSIONS ON INTO THE WILD

Given Walt’s need to exert control and Chris’s extravagantly independent nature, polarization was inevitable.” – Jon Krakauer on ‘Into the Wild’ Chris had an apathetic feeling with his family, he was not at ease, even less, with his father because Walt McCandless, father of Chris, was a very materialistic and controlling man, the opposite of what McCandless is; humble and an adventurer. Their two temperaments weren't compatible at all, which used to made them argue. As well, Billie and Walt had high expectations for Chris, wanted him to get involved in a law school and become perhaps a wealthy businessman. He was not very attached to his family except for his sister Carine, she was the one who knew Chris more than his own parents did. She said that once Chris told her “he would have to be real careful not to accept any gifts from them in the future because they will think they have bought [his] respect” McCandless had no interest about the material, he appreciated things in a different and unique way, living with his family was not favorable, it wasn’t easy to get the feeling of the real appreciation that he wanted around his

Running , fighting, killing. This was Buck's’ new way of life adapted to the harsh winters in the Klondike. In the novel The Call of The Wild by (Jack London). Buck a Saint Bernard Scotch Shepherd was living in the sunny Santa Clara Valley California was taken from his home to be shipped to the Yukon and sold into people's sled dog teams in the wilderness of the Yukon he learns how to fight and the “Law of Club And Fang”. One of the main themes in the book was Survival of the Fittest. In the novel The Call of The Wild the theme Survival of the Fittest is prevalent all throughout the novel the theme is expressed by Buck and all the sled dog team members. This quote was said by Buck while he was watching Curly another sled dog get brutally killed he decided that would not be his fate. “So that was the way . No fair play,once down that was the end of you. Well he would see to it that he never went down”. (London 17). This quote shows that Buck along with many other dogs learn how to survive and to never fall down during a fight,

One reason I believe Chris’s adventure was ludicrous is because he left originally in part to get away from his family due to ongoing conflicts. Conflicts between family members is a natural process within a family and certainly is resolvable with attention and problem-solving the issue. In McCandless’s situation specifically, he developed anger most directly related to his father’s adultery from his past. As Krakauer writes, “Long after falling in love with Billie, long after she gave birth to Chris, Walt continued his

In the book Into the Wild, We learn about Chris McCandless who wanted to set off on a journey Into the Wild. Chris was a smart young man and decided to set out for his own life seeking adventure after he graduated college. On the road Chris would write about his experiences and the things he thought about while being alone or in nature. To connect the reader with the text more and to understand the theme, Krakauer added epigraphs from other pieces of writing to the beginning of every chapter. In the book the epigraphs before every chapter relate to that certain chapter and helps add more tone to the story. Also the epigraphs can help set the mood of the chapter and both the content and style of the novel.

Chris McCandless's parents were prepared to send him to law school upon his graduation from Emory University because they were under the impression that that's what he wanted to do. They had no idea what their son was really planning. “'We misread him,' his father admits. What Walt, Billie, and Carine didn't know...was that he would shortly donate all the money in his college fund to...a charity dedicated to fighting hunger.” (20) They had no idea what he was really up to, and that's how he wanted it. He just wanted to live his own life without his parents even knowing where he was.

Chris McCandless finds many conflicts within his life such as his conflict with his father Walt. Walt McCandless was very educated he was one of the most important NASA engineers of the time. He lived his life in normality by finding a job and wife and simply living a simple. For Chris he was a lot different than from his

McCandless is eager to free himself of the “confines” of his relationships with anyone that genuinely cares about him and his well-being. This lack of compassion for others shows how foolish McCandless is. He has cast aside everyone that cares about him in order to pursue a new lifestyle to discover the true meaning of life. By avoiding intimate relations with anyone, McCandless has unintentionally caused a lot of pain for those close to him: “Seven weeks after the body of his son turned up in Alaska wrapped in a blue sleeping bag that Billie had sewn for Chris from a kit, Walt studies a sailboat scudding beneath the window of his waterfront townhouse. ‘How is it,’ he wonders aloud as he gazes blankly across Chesapeake Bay, ‘that a kid with so much compassion could cause his parents so much pain?’” (Krakauer 103-104). It is a remarkable quality of McCandless to be able to completely devote himself to his quest for meaning and peace. However, in doing so he has also unveiled a selfish quality

thought he was capable of living in the woods with the supplies he had and no help what so ever. “No longer to be poisoned by civilization he flees; and walks alone upon the land to become lost into the wild” (163). This shows that McCandless doesn't like civilization and he wants to be lost in the wild. That is one of his motivations to leave. He wants to live his best life which apparently for him is alone.

His carelessness rested with his opinions on rules and laws. While travelling the first part of his journey in his yellow Datsun, McCandless drove his car to Lake Mead. “Ignoring posted warnings that off-road driving was strictly forbidden, McCandless steered the Datsun off the pavement where it crossed a broad, sandy wash” (27, Krakauer). His ignorance showed through when his car was left after a flash flood because the battery had burned out. McCandless could have made his trip immensely more simple if he had just listened to the warning signs, but that is not how he works. He likes to be different and stray from the law which can be seen yet again in another incident; “Unable to find work in the rainy Northwest, McCandless has hopped a series of freight trains back to the desert. In Colton, California, he was discovered by another bull and thrown in jail.” (54, Krakauer). By getting thrown in jail McCandless risked the option of his parents finding out where he was and ruining his entire trip. Another reason it was careless to put himself in a situation where he could, and did, get arrested are his emotional ties to other

In my opinion on what motivated Chris McCandless to venture off into the wild was his need to get out of mainstream society and to not live the life that was originally planned out for him. On his journey to Mt. McKinley, Alaska, he met some friends. One in particular was Ron Franz who

Walt McCandless remembers that when hiking Longs Peak in Colorado “Chris wanted to keep going to the top... If he’d been fourteen or fifteen, he would have simply gone on without me (Krakauer, 109).” McCandless knew what he wanted to achieve, regardless of whether it meant disobeying orders. If Chris wanted something, he would work to get it. This rationale only grew until he was almost unstoppable in his teenage years, which is why “It’s somewhat surprising that Chris ceded to pressure from Walt and Billie about attending college when he refused to listen to them about so many other things (Krakauer, 114).” Through his teenage years, Chris consistently disobeyed his parents orders and suggestions because he despised his father’s past. Even while on the road, many of those who met Chris picked up on his strong distaste for his father, as Wayne Westerberg noted, “From the things he said, you could tell something wasn’t right between him and his family (Krakauer, 18).” Chris hated the man who told him lies throughout his life and about his past, and it seems that Chris associated anything that Walt did, with evil. Any moral decisions Walt made had to be inherently malicious, so McCandless contradicted most of Walt’s decrees. Scientists had discovered that character flaws like stubbornness can be developed due to “misconceptions about the nature of self , life or others

Although McCandless’s family loves him, Krakauer shows family disputes to create the enigma for novel and a suggested reason for McCandless to leave. Soon “after Chris unearthed the particulars of Walt’s divorce, two years passed before his anger began to leak to the surface…” and McCandless’ community became a disarray causing a personality change and lost in trust (122). Krakauer shows McCandless as extremely emotional towards his family after this revelation, being a contributing factor to the rebellious side of McCandless to be expressed. McCandless ended most communications with his family after school, by sending a note, with no means of telling them what he was going to be doing this summer. The end of the note read “…Not much else happening,.. Say Hi to everyone from me… It was the last anyone in McCandless’s family would ever hear from him” (22). Throughout the note it seemed as if McCandless was being supportive and missed them. However, because McCandless knew the truth, it seemed as if this letter was a way of keeping his family away from Atlanta, and not ask questions on what he was doing that summer. Before he left on his second trip to Alaska, at school “[McCandless] seldom contacted his parents that year…” which caused his parents to worry, but McCandless did not have much care for these types of

McCandless can be described as a Caterpillar breaking through the unbreakable cocoon and spreading his wings to fly. He loved the life he lived and for him it went from all negative to positive by leaving home. The reasons why McCandless left home were exceptionally justified. McCandless became tired of being around self centered rich people whom only cared about their possessions in life. He grew tired of being around people who were not connected to nature and the real world. This is evident when Billie says, “Chris started

The novel Into the Wild is a nonfiction novel published by Jon Krakauer who investigated the life and death of a free spirited individual named Christopher McCandless. McCandless was a recent Emory University graduate who sought to suck the marrow out of life through an independent experience in nature and purposely sought to this experience in the rawest form of supplies. He was found dead in August of 1992 in an abandoned bus in the Alaskan wilderness. For the sake of his journey, he purposely didn't bring an adequate amount of food or supplies.   Consequently, those who read of his actions wonder what evoked him to live the way he

Into the Wild is a modern day exploration of liberty found by eschewing custom and flinging oneself into the literal wilderness. Exploring Christopher McCandless' true story, the film couches McCandless' search for freedom in noble terms, quoting Lord Byron, for example. In addition, both John Stuart Mill and Anne Norton would appear to agree with McCandless' adventure, though there is also the cautionary possibility that McCandless was troubled and selfish rather than noble. John Stuart Mill and Anne Norton both argue for throwing off custom in order to find greater personal freedom. In that respect, McCandless certainly was a man after their own hearts. Unfortunately, it could also be forcefully argued that McCandless was utterly ignorant and lacked respect for the wilderness, for others who knew how to live in the wilderness, and for the family that he put through hell. Even 10-year-old girl scouts know that you should always be prepared but McCandless, a grown, intelligent man, did not bother to prepare himself. Consequently, McCandless could be viewed as a noble adventurer or as a fool.