Transcendentalist Mccandless Essay

There are many challenges for people while they are growing up. In fact, these challenges are very common for most teenagers. However, many authors have written pieces with the intention to help students overcome their struggles. That is why a student who is struggling to find their inner self can trust several of the ideas of transcendentalism. In fact, Thoreau and Emerson include the ideas of optimism, intuition, and originality in many of their pieces of literature. It is clear that a teenager who is struggling developing their character should connect with the transcendent ideas from Thoreau and Emerson.

Both Henry David Thoreau and Christopher McCandless ventured out into the woods to get away from the dreariness of everyday society and to find themselves. Only one lived to tell the tale. What was the fatal flaw of the man who didn’t continue on? The only way to find this is to analyze the differences and similarities between the two. McCandless, while embracing some of the same values as Thoreau, was ultimately a different man. While they led very contrasting lives in very distant times, both McCandless and Thoreau sought a type of freedom that can only be achieved when immersed in nature. Thoreau’s entitlement and cozy cabin in the woods is a far cry from McCandless’s constant struggle during his expedition, however, certain parallels

Why is solitude looked down on society? It should be advised by people to start engaging in the concept of solitude. Henry David Thoreau and Chris McCandless were both transcendentalism that believes in the key fundamental idea that the human body should partake in such as solitude. Henry Thoreau was a transcendentalist that practiced the form of solitude throughout his life. He left society and moved into the woods to be removed from the confines of society. Along with Thoreau, a more modern-day transcendentalist was known as Chris McCandless. McCandless journeyed to the wilderness in Alaska to be able to experience a minimal amount of human interaction along with the solitude that comes with it. The concept of solitude should be

Transcendentalism is a philosophical and literary movement that has major themes of nature and spirituality while going against society and materialistic things. Christopher McCandless is a Transcendentalist in every sense of the word. The young adventurer, who is the main character in Jon Krakauer's nonfiction text Into the Wild, travels throughout North America, following three main Transcendentalist ideals: the disconnection of society, a minimalist lifestyle, and a reverence for both God and nature.

Throughout his life, Chris McCandless shows multiple examples of transcendental actions. McCandless does what he wants and does not care what people think about him. Chris McCandless would set up tents and live away from society because it was where he was happiest. As a child, McCandless did not like playing with other children. He preferred to be alone and entertain himself. Chris McCandless did not like to wear socks; he felt confined in them. He demonstrated Transcendentalism through reduce dependence on property, self-reliance, and nonconformity.

Transcendentalism by definition means to live a rational life with nature and becoming one entity that rules over itself. That seems difficult though because living in this day an age without having to worry about anything or about anyone else is like asking for forever lasting gum. In the book Into The Wild, Chris McCandless tries to do just that and succeeds. While on his journey to Alaska, Chris becomes the embodiment of transcendentalism. He embraces multiply of the qualities of transcendentalism but there were three that were the most prominent throughout the story. He believed in living closer to nature, relied on self trust and self reliance, and also he insists on breaking from traditions like government or paying taxes like most

However, the dark side of this perspective is we do not follow our true beliefs. Transcendentalism certainly does not mean getting out of control and live freely under your will (The Positives and Negatives of Transcendentalism). Transcendentalism certainly means to live to adapt to the surroundings based on what suits the situation well, but still have an appreciation towards natural surroundings. By one appreciating their own instincts and beliefs, they can certainly pioneer a new pathway that could be harder to pass through, but can bring one more joy and happiness after. The movie “Into the Wild” explicitly portrays the main character - Chris McCandless - who was highly educated and was interested in transcendentalism, connects with the nature and with him living under hard circumstances, he learns that fully adapting himself into the nature is very hard as he does not have any knowledge about the setting around him. After Chris living in the nature for a certain time, he learns to celebrate his natural surroundings. However, as he was not prepared to fully commit himself into the world of nature, he reaches death by eating the

The transcendentalist philosopher Henry David Thoreau once wrote, “Most men even in this comparatively free country, through mere ignorance and mistake, are so occupied with the facetious cares and superfluously coarse labors of life that its finer fruits cannot be plucked by them.” Thoreau advocated simplifying life and the benefits of living in isolation from society in the wilderness to “suck the marrow out of life”. In the non-fiction book titled Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, the young man Chris McCandless’ story is told. McCandless traveled to Alaska to experience the most extreme transcendentalist existence foretold by Thoreau. While in Alaska he meet his end, and many historians contemplate why he took this tremendous undertaking to

“Wilderness appealed to those bored or disgusted with man and his works” (Roderick Nash). Chris McCandless, a modern transcendentalist, sent out on an adventure to find his true self in the wilderness of the North American continent. In the two years he was away, he met many individuals he called his friends and explored the extent of the American West. However, Chris was found dead in an abandoned bus on the Stampede Trail in the deep wilderness of Alaska in early September 1992. Chris believed he could live his life without the disruption of others. Henry David Thoreau believed that individuals can strive for themselves without government interruption. Chris McCandless, in Jon Krakauer’s documentary Into the Wild, believes that living off the land and life to its fullest without help from others compares to Henry David Thoreau’s beliefs in his writing “Civil Disobedience.”

Chris McCandless: a man so infatuated with nature, he practically committed suicide to bring himself nearer to it. This extreme liking for nature, along with other ideals, makes up the core tenets of the transcendentalist philosophy. McCandless demonstrates other tenets of transcendentalism as well, most notably the supremacy of the individual, by detaching himself from the mammon of this world. Another way he shows the supremacy of the individual, by the belief that one should not conform to the usual policies of life, causes him great trouble in some cases. As well as the belief that the individual supersedes all else, McCandless received much of his inspiration from nature. Finally, always following what he believes correct, McCandless

What does it take for someone to be considered a transcendentalist? Can someone be a transcendentalist if they do not mean to be one? In the life of Chris McCandless, many transcendental aspects are exhibited, such as nonconformity and self-reliance, but experts and readers are left wondering whether or not to consider him a transcendentalist. McCandless exhibits these traits willingly, which leads most readers to call him a transcendentalist. Chris McCandless is a transcendentalist because he knowingly follows the transcendental tenets and is heavily influenced by the works of the transcendentalists before him. Examples of the tenets that he follows are nonconformity, love and treasury of nature, self-reliance and free thought.

Throughout history, people encounter a stage in their lives where they feel the necessity to assert their independence and challenge their abilities and self-worth. In the book, Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, the author shares his understanding and kinship with the main character, Chris McCandless, a young man who thrusts himself into a life of solitude and a harsh environment during his search for meaning to his life. Krakauer depicts himself and McCandless as modern day transcendentalists with an abundance of competency, resourcefulness and skills as naturalists. Although McCandless chose to experience a life of solitude and face the hazards that nature presents, his lack of preparedness prevented him from completing his endeavor successfully.

Chris McCandless left all that he had back home to go on this long transcendental trip to the Alaskan wilds that he thought he would find out who he is. He left behind family, friends, college, burned his money, and his life. When he left he did so without saying anything to his family and changes his name so he can truly start over. During his trip he has had many hardships and points where he should have died, but he kept going on in the end to reach his end goal of reaching Alaska and a goal he managed to complete, but it would not last long as in August of 1992 Chris died from starvation, but one question arose from his story. Was he truly transcendental? Some believe he was and other do not, it is sometimes up to opinion to decide whether he was or not, but you must first must understand what transcendentalism is before you can decide whether or not Chris McCandless was a transcendental person or not. The key things to know about transcendentalism is its core beliefs, those who “found” transcendentalism and their differences, and how these beliefs from these founders differed from what McCandless did during his transcendental trip. So, did Chris McCandless leave everything behind to become transcendental and die as a transcendentalist or was he a fool that left home because he was a rebellious person who ended up dying alone in a bus in the middle of the Alaskan wilds?

Henry Thoreau’s masterpiece, Walden or a Life in the Woods, shows the impact transcendentalism had on Thoreau’s worldview. Transcendentalism is a philosophy that asserts the primacy of the spiritual over the material. Transcendentalism puts the emphasis on spiritual growth and understanding as opposed to worldly pleasures. Thoreau’s idea of transcendentalism stressed the importance of nature and being close to nature. He believed that nature was a metaphor for spiritual enlightenment. A walk in the woods therefore was a search for spiritual enlightenment. One should look ‘through’ nature, not merely ‘at’ her.

Transcendentalism is a religious, philosophical, literary, and social movement of the nineteenth century. Essentially, this movement was based upon the ideals of the “sixth sense,” nature, and non-conformity, as well as individualism, intuition, idealism, imagination, and inspiration. A few of the works featured in the transcendental unit include Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, Song of Myself by Walt Whitman, and Walden by Ralph Waldo Emerson. The primary focus of this essay is to provide an opinion on a strikingly debatable topic; Whether or not Christopher McCandless, hero of Krakauer’s Into the Wild, was a true transcendentalist. Despite the bold actions of Chris McCandless on his daring Alaskan odyssey, he turned out to be far from a true transcendentalist, failing to meet the definition of transcendentalism, being solely concerned with himself, and acting out of revenge rather than seeking self discovery - nothing more than a childish suicidal rebel.