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Christopher Mccandless Conformity

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In the book Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer depicts a teenager named Christopher McCandless, who is unsatisfied with the values emphasized by our currently materialistic society. Although many of us today may evaluate his behavior as eccentric and absurd, we must not hastily make judgements about his behavior with our conventional way reasoning. To dive deeply into Christopher’s cognitive process we can analyze a letter written by him to Ronald Franz. In this letter Christopher’s values are laid bare for us to see. Christopher is a person who enjoys living on the edge and despises reactionary and complacent thinking, and he is shown to highly emphasizes the importance of adventure,

Christopher McCandless’s believes that the happiness in our …show more content…

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

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