Saron M. Desta Mr. Darling ENG4U 20 October 2014 The “crazy” man with the dream: Chris McCandless’s influence on Ronald Franz Steve Jobs once said, “The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.” Those that have a different outlook on life are usually the ones that are ‘bent out of society’ simply because they decide not to conform to the social norms. In Jon Krakauer’s famous non-fiction novel “Into the Wild” Chris McCandles, later known as Alex Supertramp, is a well educated twenty-four-year-old American who dreams of an ‘Alaskan Odyssey’. Alex believes that beauty is found in freedom and nature rather than materialistic possessions such as money.…
“McCandless was something else--although precisely what is hard to say. A pilgrim, perhaps” (85). Even with the multiple comparisons Chris is different and the reader is left to decide whether he is unique or if he is “just another case of underprepared, overconfident men bumbling around out there”…
Many people have different opinions of why Jon Krakauer wrote a book about a man that he has no relation to. In the book, Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, Chris McCandless hitchhiked to Alaska and walked alone into the wild after giving up all his belongings to start his new life. Krakauer’s purpose for writing this book is to further explain Chris McCandless’s motive for his adventures in a way that the readers will understand it. Krakauer wants his readers to understand Chris’s motives as if he was not insane and had a reason for doing what he did. He gives stories from others who have gone into the wild, epigraphs at the beginning of each chapter, eyewitness testimony, letters from Chris and many other things to help understand Chris’s motive,…
He wanted to be free from the mundane circumstances of his current life, so he cut off all ties with his family and friends to minimize association with mainstream civilization. McCandless is quoted saying, “ ‘I think I’m going to disappear for a while’ ” (Krakauer 21.) After saying this, he sent a brief letter to his parents which “was the last anyone in Chris’s family would ever hear from him” (Krakauer 22.) By doing this, McCandless began his streak of self-reliance.…
Professor and author Roderick Nash describes an ideal in which the wilderness serves as a place for those stressed over the actions of mankind to take refuge from everything occurring while remaining at peace with themselves. So much freedom exists in seclusion that it offers a stage on which humans have the opportunity to express themselves freely with “melancholy or exultation.” However, interactions with several elements of the outside community still have the ability to take place in the wild. While Nash correctly asserts that the simplicity of the wilderness helps the individual escape from society, one cannot possibly achieve complete freedom from man and his works. Literature often uses a character’s thoughts to depict the craving for freedom in the wilderness.…
The epigraph concludes that Chris wanted to free himself from worry and stress, but displayed no concern of his family while turning away from society. In response to Chris’s death, his sister Carnie stated, “I just don’t understand why he had to take that kind of chances” (Krakauer 91). While Chris McCandless was wealthy as a child, he was not happy. He believed those in need were more deserving of wealth than he was and was against the idea of his family spoiling him. Chris may have been mad at his father for living a “double life”, but the true motive behind his odyssey was he wanted to forget this spoiled childhood and prove to his family he could live without material.…
He determined that he would travel to Alaska, get further away from it all, and face nature at its finest. He traveled exceptionally light. He didn?t take much, a parka, a small rifle, some boots, a few clothes, a ten pound bag of rice, books, and little else. ? The heaviest item in McCandless?s half-full backpack was his library: nine or ten paperbound books.…
For Example, Leo Tolstoy states “Life is a place of service, and in that service one has to suffer a great deal that is hard to bear, but more often to experience a great deal of joy.” (Leo). Leo is stating that in life you have to suffer a great deal, the suffering leads to a great deal of happiness in life. Chris viewed this as an inspiration, because he had suffered throughout his journey, even though he had a lot of obstacles he did not quit until he finally met his initial point, it is what made him happy. Leo also inspired Chris in many different ways, in which Chris showed in the movie Into the Wild.…
Foolish or Honorable? Chris McCandless’s journey outlined by the novel Into The Wild by Jon Krakauer supports that it is simple and indisputable to apprehend that McCandless was not a heroic figure, just one persuaded by inaccurate decisions. McCandless was not your average student, he had a very bright future ahead of him graduating with high honors from one of the country's most prestigious universities; Emory University, however, threw it all down the drain when he took an everlasting adventure hiking into the Alaskan bush unprepared and alone. Many perceive him to be a hero, leaving the social norms one is expected to carry out throughout life, but, many also view him as a fool who wasted all this god given talent, just to die a cold hearted death. What could persuade a human…
McCandless wasn't some feckless slacker, adrift, and confused, racked by existential despair. To the contrary: His life hummed with meaning and purpose." (187). Krakauer emphasizes the good within McCandless, stating that all of his actions were deliberate and meaningful. By using extreme wording such as “even a modicum” and “feckless slacker”, Krakauer clearly distinguishes Chris from the regular man.…
The Search For Identity, The Dilemma of Chris McCandless One may often question the motives of Chris McCandless as he set off, abandoning his family and friends, without anything, not even a goodbye. The truth lies with Chris Himself. It was no secret to his friends that Chris had changed at Emory, But the discovery of his Father's double life not only brooded resent, but ultimately angered Chris to the point he lost himself. He couldn’t bear the weight of the bigamy his father had taken part in, and he had to flee.…
Chris McCandless had no responsibility to keep in contact with his family or anyone for that matter so it made taking risks easier, because he didn’t have to think of his actions affecting his parents. He also did this with every person he met he would create friendships and slip out of their lives before “... flitting out of their lives before anything were expected of him” (Krakauer, pg. 39). When Krakauer wrote about McCandless mother he discusses a memory that his sister Carine recalled Chris wanting to take their dog Buck with him on these adventures. They thought the outcome might have been different if he took the dog because, “Chris didn’t think twice about risking his own life, but he never would have out Buckley in any kind of danger.” (Krakauer, page. 89).…
Chris believes the only way his life would be meaningful is if he did exactly what he is after. His strong willed nature is also shown when Chris leaves without telling anyone about his plans. He believes that he doesn’t need to tell anyone because he “will not run into anything that he can’t deal with” ( Krakauer 6). McCandless has such a strong will that he doesn't really think about the negative aspects of…
McCandless made an ineffaceable impression on a fair amount of people he came across, whom he may have only spent a few days with. Whether people agreed with Chris or not, he still strived to spread his values in an attempt to improve the lives of others in the same way his life was enhanced as well. However, the person who Chris formed the closest relationship with was Ronald Franz as he supports Chris’s ambition of seeking his meaning in life by disregarding society. Picking up McCandless hitchhiking, Franz soon develops a strong fondness towards the young adult, and eventually they form a like father-son relationship. However, after developing this affection for one another, Chris continues his trek to Alaska, but without periodically sending letters to Franz.…
McCandless was different from the rest of his peers and many other people. McCandless didn't really believe in having relationships with people, in fact he had a bad relationship with his parents and all he really wanted was to get away from everything in his life, his parents, school, and society. He gave up his savings to charity and burned his social security number before he head out to his journey. This comes to show that no matter how much of s good life you could have doesn't mean you're always happy. If I wasn't happy at all in the environment that I live in I would take actions to try and make the situation i'm in, a better one but not drastic actions like McCandless decided to take when he set out for the wilderness in Alaska to get away from his problems.…