Was Chris Mccandless Crazy

     One of the chief reasons why Chris McCandles had died of starvation in Alaska was because he was reckless. He was reckless because he was so ill prepared for his journey, and arrogant because he refused to listen to the advice of natives, such as Alex. Chris was intelligent and he knew the conditions of Alaska, but he did not prepare for it. Even after Chris was warned he was determined in carrying out his plans. He was also reckless in thinking that he would be able to come out of Alaska alive. Krakuer writes that Gallien said, ‘I said hunting wasn’t easy that where he was going he could go days without killing any game’ (Krakuer 6). He adds that ‘Alex didn’t seem too worried and he wouldn’t give an inch. He had an answer for everything I threw at him’ (Krakuer 6). If Chris was properly prepared he may have made it out of Alaska alive, rather than dying of starvation. However, he traveled with cheap leather hiking boots, a .22 caliber that was

Lastly, Chris Mccandless got to fulfill his dream, live his own life, and now he even got to find his inner self, find out who he truly is. Chris was the kind of person that lived dangerously unlike most people, he was different “It is hardly unusual for a young man to be drawn to a pursuit considered reckless by his elders...Danger has always held a certain allure. McCandless, in his fashion, merely took risk-taking to its logical extreme” (Krakauer, 182). Chris’s true self-was one that was riskful and daring until he could finish the task. Furthermore, he was different from others and throughout his journey, others could see that. In the end that was the kind of person Chris Mccandless was, and this is the person he became after fulfilling his dream and living his own life. In contrast, others did

Introduction: Throughout the book of Into The Wild Chris McCandless is known to be a wacko reckless idiot, and is also known to be courageous and heroic. However does a courageous person go out into the wilderness knowing that the outcome will be fatal? People viewed him from different perspectives and also have broad range of opinions of this young man. Some deemed him to be incredibly dim-witted or a man that simply just followed his heart. Evidence shows that Chris McCandless is actually a mix of both. The first opinion that described McCandless was brainless, idiotic, and extremely foolish. Many passages from Into The Wild can support this outlook.

b) In the beginning of his journey, Chris McCandless is very adventurous and has a positive outlook throughout his journey. “I’ll be fine with what I’ve got.” (Krakauer, 6) This shows he is happy, as he wanted to ‘live off the land’ and is eager to get there. By the end of his journey Chris is in need of help as he is starving in his base camp in Alaska. Although his poor health, and awareness that his death would come soon, he is overall content with his journey and had accepted his death writing in a death note, “I have had a happy life and thank the lord. Goodbye and may god bless all.” (Krakauer, 199) This shows he was in a happy state when he died that day. Chris’ character had not changed much throughout his journey because of who he

Chris McCandless was possessed by a nomadic existence and was trying to share his principle of life to his friend by telling that the truth about life was to explore the nature. Chris McCandless's last letter to Wayne revealed his true passion of nature. "This is the last you shall hear from me...I now walk into the wild"(pg 69). Some people concluded that it was Chris McCandless's suicide letter. However, in my opinion, Chris McCandless was just a victim of his own ego, pride and confidence that made him to neglect basic precautions that keep one person alive. He was controlled by his own delusions and that made him eager to test himself into strenuousness which proved fatal to him.

decisions to leave his old life behind and start over. Chris’ decision to leave was

In the book “The Wild Truth”, Carine writes of the abuse she and Chris endured that “compared to [their] reality, [Krakauer’s] book, and [Penn’s] film were extremely kind” to Walt and Billie (Mccandless 15). This is one of the reasons why someone may think Chris was justified in his decision to “go into the wild”; in fact, one could say that it was his parents’ fault for driving him away. It may be a valid reason for why he left his family’s home, but it does not really justify how he hurt those who he met during his travels. The people that he effected after his death, excluding his parents, had not wronged or hurt him in any way; therefore, it is still not justifiable, in terms of his actions after he left his old home behind. Another thing that should be pointed out would be his reluctance to accept help from others. In the film, he had little to no problem with staying with others for a short time, yet he would be extremely reluctant to accept anything that could potentially help him survive the wild. Due to this reluctance, he was very underprepared when he entered the wild and eventually he died. Even though his death may have been from a mistake he had made, if he had been better prepared or even accepted a bit more help from the people he met, he probably could have survived a

As far a Chris was concerned Christopher Johnson McCandless was dead. There was no more Chris as long as he was concerned his name was Alex and that was it. There was no college degree, no parents, no luxuries or free money. From now on he worked for everything he needed to survive and he started his new life bound for new territory.

Some say that Chris was an idiot for going out into the Alaskan wilderness unprepared and without any knowledge of nature. “Why would anyone intending to live off the land for a few months forget boy scout rule number one: Be prepared” (krakauer, 71). This was a complaint sent in by a Alaskan hunter, and there were many more that followed that. The people writing the negative comments all believed that Chris either wanted attention, was stupid, or went out on a suicide mission. However, Chris was none of those things, he wouldn’t have been able to survive 113 days off

“Wolves had scattered the bones some,” Thompson had told me, “but it was obvious that the animal was a caribou. The kid didn’t know what the hell he was doing up here.” “It was definitely a caribou,” Samel had scornfully piped in. “When I read in the paper that he thought he’d shot a moose, that told me right there he wasn’t no Alaskan. There’s a big difference between a moose and a caribou. A real big difference. You’d have to be pretty stupid not to be able to tell them apart.””

In what could have been Chris McCandless’s last contact with humanity he tells his new comrade, Wayne Westerberg, “If this adventure proves fatal and you don’t hear from me again I want you to know you are a great man. I now walk into the wild” (Krakauer 3). For 112 days Chris lived off the harsh Alaskan land. For anyone who is brave enough to travel on the stampede trail and cross the treacherous Teklanika River you will come across the Fairbanks City Transit System Bus 142. Once a backcountry shelter for hunters, trappers, ranger patrols, and for a short time Chris McCandless, Bus 142 now serves as a memorial for Chris McCandless. Travelers will make the trip to witness the basic resources Chris had at hand and the courage it took to

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,

Yes, Chris did not have enough knowledge to survive. He at least had the knowledge to survive longer than a normal person would have. Just that alone is very impressive to be able to do. No normal person would burn their money, ignore their family and just randomly go off into the wilderness. Chris lived off of land and decided to do everything the old fashioned way, that takes a lot of guts to do. Another example that Chris is not incompetent is when he decided to give others a different name so he would not be found. Chris also had a few jobs along the

and convince them that his death is on their hands. Not only did Chris complete what he was trying to

Christopher McCandless was an adventurer no doubt. He spent the last few years of his life living purely off the land and exploring, doing what he felt called to do. However, to venture off on such an intense, dangerous, and wild journey, a person most likely has some deeply thought out reason as to why he or she is embarking on the mission. Chris himself seems to have had some reasons, besides his curiosity, as to why he explored. However, he made a decision to leave without truly thinking about just how dangerous his journey was going to be. Due to his rash actions, Chris eventually died in an abandoned bus out in the wild. Now, some folks today think that Chris was a hero for doing what interested him and for doing his own thing without worrying about the trivial things in life. However, I have reason to believe that Chris was indeed not a hero. Instead, I believe that Chris McCandless’s journey into the wild was rash, ludicrous and foolish.