An Analysis Of Mccandless 'The Ugly Truth'

McCandless exhibits the transcendental tenet of nonconformity in his actions throughout his journey. First, McCandless did not connect with society, because he hated that people were left to die. He believed in equality, a transcendental ideal, so when his car broke down on his road trip to Alaska “he abandoned it in the Arizona desert” (4). He then proceeded “to bury most of his worldly possessions in the parched earth of Detrital Wash and then ... burned his last remaining cash” (4). These acts signify that he refuses to be materialistic and conform to society standards, but he chooses to live by his own morals. Second, in the movie, McCandless visits a bar with his coworkers where he explains his dislike of society. He says, “Society, man! You

After graduating from Emory University in Atlanta, McCandless’s parents offered to buy him a new car as their graduation present. Contrasting what most teenagers would feel about this news, McCandless was shocked and offended, he “couldn’t believe they’d try and buy me a car” (21). McCandless did not believe in the idea of tangible gifts, he explained to his sister that “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” (21). McCandless near insecurity of gifts, and his longing for a peaceful and moral world caused him to want to search for another life. After burning his wallet, giving all his remaining money to charity, and leaving his beloved car behind, McCandless abandoned his family and hitchhiked his way west as far as possible. These actions and ideas that McCandless developed while studying in college were only a blueprint for his tragic flaw, which would further establish itself while traveling alone in the West.

He left behind comfort and security in favor of the unpredictability, and self reliant nature of living off the grid. McCandless embraced the transcendentalist way of life, much of which he already believed, and accepted as his own methods. McCandless lived his early life thinking minimally, and wanting to help people, carrying this over into his adventures in his twenties. He felt that wealth was not necessary to be happy, that you didn’t need fancy things to make a go of life. Transcendentalism was how McCandless tried to live his life from the beginning, but it took full force later on.

Although, his disregard for society made the journey much more difficult for him, he knew his dreams of ultimate freedom were becoming a reality. There were multiple instances in which McCandless runs into the law, for example, he was put into jail for illegally crossing the Mexican border, “Caught by immigration authorities trying to slip into the country without ID, he spent a night in custody”(36). He also rejected money to the point where he ended up donating twenty five thousand dollars to a charity, “...he would shortly donate all the money in his college fund to OXFAM America”(Author’s Note). With all this, it is evident that McCandless was trying to achieve the goal of ultimate freedom, he wanted to be unbounded by the constraints and restrictions that society had put on him. Unfortunately, in doing so, McCandless greatly struggled during his journey, facing hunger and jail

McCandless was trapped in a society that created an illusion of his own fake happiness while he was looking to discover himself. He possessed a desperate need to find the true meaning that only he could answer. McCandless quotes “I'm going to paraphrase Thoreau here... rather than love, than money, than faith, than fame, than fairness... give me

Besides his views on “mainstream American life” (52), Christopher McCandless had strong convictions of issues beyond America. Racial oppression and widespread hunger particularly fueled him and he made several attempts to make a difference for both issues. During high school he would talk to his friends about smuggling weapons into South Africa to end apartheid (113) and after he finished university, he donated the remaining $24,000 from his education fund to OXFAM America, a charity dedicated to fighting hunger (20). His desire to end those issues of racism and hunger may have diminished once he perceived how ambitious his desire really was. Perhaps it was the feeling of not making a difference in what he was truly passionate about that drove McCandless to run away and escape from essentially being insignificant. He was driven away from the comfort of his life by the discomforts of the world around him; McCandless was not happy with the state of both his local society and the distant world and decided he could only find solace by venturing out into the wilderness.

Losing one’s self in the wilderness, is more risky than euphoric. In the book, “Into The Wild”, by Jon Krakauer, Jon tries to retell a glimpse of Chris McCandless’s story. Chris McCandless came from a wealthy family and he attended a prestigious college. At this point, he had it all. His parents offered him a new car, but he became enraged and refused to accept it.

Christopher McCandless insists that conforming to societal values detrimental to the innate passion for adventure everyone possess, and he expresses the disdain he has for people who choose to conform to society’s conventional and mundane lifestyle. Chris McCandless believes the key to a fulfilling life is pursuing a man’s innate passion for adventure. In his letter he states “The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences.” Despite these infinite joy that comes from adventure so many people are still “conditioned to a lifestyle of security, conformity, conservatism.” His use of catalogue here emphasizes the three elements that destroys one’s passion for adventure. These three elements are false sense of satisfaction and security that confines men with the shackle of responsibility. We can learn that McCandless greatly appreciates the day to day unpredictability and the thrill it brings than the conforming and materialistic lifestyle that brings security. Additionally the only object blocking so many people from going outside and exploring is the because “conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism”, even when they live in “unhappy circumstances.” Chris has a very active view on life, and hopes people will be willing to actively change their flaws and hindrances. If you don't actively try to fix or change your life nothing will happen;If you want change “all you have to do is reach for it”. Being complacent with the day to day mundane lifestyle blinds you from seeking true freedom. People who are disillusioned by this will find unhealthy and convenient ways such as drugs and alcohol without seeking healthier ways to seek a new life. But the majority will be complacent and discard the notion of change so Chris tells Ronald to lose “inclination for monotonous security.” By contending that men are born to seek adventure

Hitchhiking with strangers, little money or resources, struggling to find a meal, having no companionship, and fighting for your life; this all comes with a life on the road. It can seem strange to hear or read many tales of people who have chosen to leave their families, jobs, and lives to live an unconventional life of recluse. People who abandon their life of privilege only to vanish into the wilderness’ sometimes never to be heard from again. Jon Krakauer’s book Into the Wild illustrates the true story of Chris McCandless and many others who chose to live on the periphery of societal bounds and in turn endured harsh consequences. While it is important to explore

McCandless's rage toward his parents, and particularly his father, is something that many of those who meet him pick up on. It seems to be their lifestyle more than anything else that McCandless is rejecting when he flees the conventional middle-class American way of life, though why it so repels him is never made completely clear by Into the Wild. It is not uncommon for men and women of Christopher McCandless's age to flee

A frugal introvert such as McCandless should be perfectly suited to a life in the wild. The ability to lead a spartan lifestyle is something to be admired, but McCandless does not come across as admirable. Rather, he is spoiled and obstinate. The fact he had $24,000 of college money to donate upon graduating, money which was given to him by a family friend no less, shows that McCandless could not have lead a truly sparse life. There was no fear of a next meal or a lack of a roof overhead. Anything he wanted, McCandless had access to. His refusal to give gifts comes across as selfish and ostentation. McCandless’ letter encouraging Franz to find joy in travel rather than personal relationships demonstrates his self righteousness. By putting his lifestyle of choice on a pedestal, McCandless shows just how little regard he holds for the beliefs of others. McCandless holds the ideals of a young man squirming to get away from the wealth of his parents, but rather than use compassion to atone for his privilege, he becomes jaded and cuts off positive interaction with those he should be able to rely on. Krakauer does his best to make McCandless’ past justify his trek into the wild, but succeeds only in making McCandless look like a brat.

McCandless, the young man who decided to leave society and civilization, to embark on what

McCandless tries to settle down in Bullhead City for “probably the longest he stayed in one place from the time he left Atlanta until he went to Alaska” (Krakauer 39). In this “haphazard sprawl of subdivisions and stripmalls” (Krakauer 39), McCandless settles into a low-stakes lifestyle as he finds a steady job at McDonalds and even opens “a savings account at a local bank” (Krakauer 39). Yet, McCandless found no satisfaction in his life, developed “itchy feet” (Krakauer 39), and “just walked out the door and quit” (Krakauer 41). His life of security quickly decayed into a miserable rut rather than providing the fulfillment he needed. Infact, this is the only stage of the story where Krakauer seems to be even mocking McCandless. Previously McCandless’s quirks were just portrayed as idiosyncrasies of a man ahead of his time. In contrast, this section shows rather demeaning traits, such as the petty need to take socks off in order to make a “statement, to let [them] know we didn’t own him” (Krakauer 40). While usually carrying an alluring demeanor, McCandless would now “show up for work smelling bad,” so bad infact that the McDonalds manager had “to tell him that he needed to take a bath more often” and even coworkers started “asking him if he needed some soap or anything” (Krakauer 41). While living a more sedentary lifestyle is not a smoking gun for despair and humiliation, it is evident that a life completely devoid of risk is not one where one can find fulfillment and

McCandless held a lot of teenage angst inside that, according to his sister, he had always struggled with throughout high school and college. He spouted to one man, Ron Franz, his dissatisfaction with the world, when “...[his] face would darken with anger and he’d fulminate about his parents or politicians or the endemic idiocy of mainstream American life”. (Krakauer 115) The depth to which McCandless felt about the idea of parents, and anyone’s control over himself but himself, was the polar opposite of how much he loved the wild. Indeed, he grew to appreciate the freedoms of the wild because they were in such stark contrast to the constructs and obligations of society, and he could truly be an individual and define his own success there. Such was his dedication to separating himself from society and challenging himself that he threw out any maps that could help him traverse and survive the Alaskan wilderness,

McCandless, abandons the normalized civilization and only keeps to himself what is necessary to him. He does not accept any form of materials and he follows what is just necessary and is satisfying to him. For example, when the car that he is driving becomes stuck in the mad instead of being depressed he becomes excited: “He saw the flash flood as an opportunity to shed unnecessary baggage....” (Krakauer, p.29). He sees the act as an opportunity for him to lose the material that he did not want. He also saw money as a factor in achieving a good lifestyle