Analysis Of Chris Mccandless 's ' The Wild And Understanding His Life '

One would agree with the author that Chris McCandless wasn’t a crazy person, a sociopath, or an outcast because he got along with many people very well, but he did seem incompetent, even though he survived for a while in the wild on his own. It was amazing Chris survived for so long but he did know stuff about the wild, just not enough, but he was very bright and made good decision. Also on his journey he made friends easily and had a very strong impact on them.

In his novel, Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer establishes young Christopher McCandless as a heroic and brave figure. Krakauer supports his portrayal of Chris by utilizing a narrative form and focusing on the relatable, human aspects of Chris, and by contrasting his story with the cautionary tales that are scattered throughout the history of the Alaskan wilderness. The author’s purpose is to promote his own theories and opinions on the boy’s life and death in order to establish what he believes to be the truth. The author writes in a fond tone for aspiring wilderness explorers and their critics.

Chris was a very stubborn individual and never wanted to compromise his morals to please others. Chris never listened to suggestions or advisement of others as he was on his journey. His incompetence and inability to take other people’s advisement into account was ultimately was caused his death. Gallien tried to warn McCandless of the rough conditions by telling him “the hunting wasn’t easy where he was going, that he could go days without killing any game” (Krakauer 5). Gallien is just one example of someone who tried to help McCandless realize that living alone in Alaska would be very gueling, but McCandless assumed that if he could survive for a month in the Gulf of California, he would also be able to thrive in Alaska. Of course Chris ignored Galliens advice and did things his own way because he’s stubborn. One of Chris’ flaws was that he had very strong opinions that were so different from the rest of society and was fiercely independent. Chris’ beliefs and points of view led to him going into the wild without anyone aware of his whereabouts. Chris never wanted help from anyone and he expressed this when he said, “I won’t run into anything I can’t deal with on my own”(Krakauer 6). Chris also “hadn’t spoken to his family in nearly two years”(Krakauer 6). Both of these quotes emphasize the fact that he felt the need to be utterly alone. If Chris had told someone his real name and his desired destination then he wouldn’t have died alone in Alaska. Chris would’ve been better off if he had listened to the advice he was given and if he had told people about his whereabouts.

Chris McCandless was a complex, if not contradictory person. He was warm and friendly towards others, yet he avoided long-term relationships with those he met on his journey. Also, he was strongly independent, yet graciously accepted rides as a hitchhiker. Chris was also a paradox in that he was ashamed of his wealth, yet was successful at making a profit. However, Chris was above all, a sojourner. He sought to live apart from human civilization, apart from government authority, and liberated from a life that was dependent on a multitude of material possessions.

In his novel, Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer recounts the true tale of Chris McCandless, a recent college graduate who decided against a professional career and instead opted for a life of adventuring and self-reliance. Readers of Into the Wild have shared differing opinions of McCandless. Some view him as passionate, courageous, and admirable while others view him as reckless, arrogant, and “unworthy of the considerable media attention he received.” (Author’s Note) Though McCandless’ courage and steadfast dedication to his beliefs are admirable, I believe that his hubris, naivete, and his inadequate preparation should be the most important points in any discussion of his trips and subsequent death.

Chris McCandless is a person of great strength of mind that is not well used for he became arrogant in his life and stayed stubbornly away from new knowledge that could have helped him. While chris may have ended his life's story with his odyssey he is still one of the few people to actually follow their dreams all the way to their ends even if it meant

The desire to be at one with nature sometimes becomes apparent within some of us. Into The Wild by Jon Krakauer highlights the fact that Chris McCandless is a reckless fool and a narcissist due to his carelessness, ignorance, and incompetence.

In spite of Chris’s pleasant childhood and a job he loved, he felt as if he was meant to do more for himself and

To the average person, going off and living off the land is far fetched from the ideal “perfect life” or “American Dream”. To Christopher McCandless, it’s another story, he isn’t the type of person to “stick to the status quo”, he follows the things that he believes could benefit himself. To some people, it may be narcissistic because it’s selfish to only think about what is good for yourself, but to others it could be heroic to have courage to be able to stand out from and break conformity. Chris McCandless, who was well liked and very educated man, left the life that many people desire to have behind and he went off to “live off the land, to survive off of the resources that nature offered he immersed himself in nature to find himself. It takes a lot of courage and guts to go out and “live off the land” with limited supplies but it also takes a lot of skills to do it well, and he underestimated what Mother Nature could do, leading to his death.

What seems most hurtful and regrettable is Chris’ resentment towards the parents who did so much for him. Chris spent two years with no contact, and now they will never be able to see him again. His childishness clouded his judgment, and caused him to rewrite history, convincing him that his parents were his enemy when instead, they were supportive and proud of Chris. It was shameful “that a kid with so much compassion could his parents so much pain”(104). His travels seemed to be an escape from his family, and a reactionary revenge against his comfortable life. Something strange was happening to him, he became resentful of the life offered

Chris is a charismatic young man, but takes extensive measures to ensure he does not become too close with anyone. By going out into the wild without so much as a letter to his parents,

A famous transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau once said, “Rather than love, money, or fame, give me truth.” In Jon Krakauer’s biography Into the Wild about Chris McCandless and his journey to the west coast and up to Alaska, Krakauer investigates the different events that occurred throughout Chris’s life that caused him to reach the point of no return. He finds that Chris’s parents gave Chris many material commodities. With Chris’s significant interest in transcendentalist authors such as Henry David Thoreau and Idealism, he rejected this materialistic and conformist lifestyle forced upon him by his parents. Chris left his family and embarked on a journey out west and would eventually journey to the final destination of his entire life, Alaska. Chris McCandless was an admirable idealist, but lacked the experience necessary to survive in the wild.

Throughout his life, Chris always went against society creating his identity which expressed that he does things the way he wants and won’t accept doing it differently. In high school, Chris, who is very intelligent, received an F on his physics lab for ignoring to complete it in the correct format because he thought it was stupid (Krauker 109). Another example is Chris quitting his job at McDonald’s because the establishment required him to wear socks as he worked (Krauker 40). When Chris meat a new person while hitchhiking and they tried to make suggestions or help them buy better supplies he becomes stubborn and always declines their offer because he was confident in himself. One of Chris’s friends, Wayne Westerberg thought, “What got him into trouble was he did too much thinking,” which resulted to the death of Chris McCandless (Krauker 18). Even though Chris had never been associated with any religion he believed in spirituality and valued the elements of nature. Before Chris died, he had shoot a moose for food, but ended up throwing it out for the wolves because he felt bad for killing the innocent animal (Krauker 169). Chris’ character demonstrated rebellious actions that showed how he opposed rules and also shared a connection with nature by feeling guilt for killing an

He was very self-reliant. “When she tried to give him a little money for helping out at the swap meet,’ she recalls,’he acted real offended.”(46) Burres was a women who treated Chris as her own child. But when she tried to give Chris some money for helping her out, he declined. McCandless did not need anything from anyone even if he might have earned it. He did a lot of things just for the enjoyment and the face to face interaction to others. Christopher really didn't want anything from his parents. “I’m going to have to be real careful not to accept an gifts from them in the future.”(21) Chris and his parents had a weak relationship because of events that happen to him in his childhood. So Chris was on his own and away from others. From the time he was able to drive. Chris ws self-reliant and even bought his own care. Being self-reliant help Christopher in the past but ultimately led to his

The author creates Chris’s credibility when Chris keeps his promise of keeping in touch with the people he meets and having the impeccable ability to never quitting once he starts something. Jan Burres and her husband, Bob, liked Chris very much and “when [Chris] left, [Jan and Bob] never expected to hear from him again, but [Chris] made a point of staying in touch.” Over the course of two years, Chris sends Jan and Bob a postcard every month or two. Without getting too attached, Chris is able to keep his promise of keeping in touch which proves that he is reliable. Westerberg claims that Chris “was the hardest worker [Westerberg had] ever seen” for he would do even the dirtiest of jobs