The stories of Chris McCandless and Timothy Treadwell’s journeys to Alaska, provokes the common person to ask at the end of it all: Are they men that people should look up to, or are they just individuals who bit off a little more than they could chew? The author of Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer, reveals Chris McCandless to be an introvert who feels the need to remove himself from a typical life in society and begin his own adventures to figure out who he really is. In an effort to show the issues of living in the wilderness on your own, director Werner Herzog introduces Timothy Treadwell and his disturbing transformation during his 13 summers in the wilderness. McCandless and Treadwell both had different motives for venturing into the wild.
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At the same time, their similarities of trying to break the mold, live outside of society, and be themselves is shown throughout the book and documentary.
Both McCandless and Treadwell had similarities and differences. Their reasons for leaving society stemmed from similar things but shared their differences. McCandless left because he wanted to escape society and his personal issues. A few years before he left on his adventure he had discovered a long hidden family secret. He discovered that his father had another family besides his own. He was unable to look past this and was stuck in a toxic circle of not being able to forgive his parents, feeling as if they had lied to him his whole life. This …show more content…
When it came to family, neither one of the men had a strong connection with them. When McCandless started his adventure he split himself completely off from his family. His father comments, “How is it, that a kid with so much compassion could cause his parents so much pain?” (104). His parents were confused on why McCandless didn’t keep their feelings in mind. This was partially because of how he felt about his father's actions, but if he viewed them in a good light he would have at least told them his plan instead of having them worrying for years. In addition, his mother commented , “He told us what he thought we needed to know and nothing more. He was that way about everything” (120). McCandless’ distant nature didn’t go unnoticed by his family. However, Treadwell's parents were very distant with him. His dad said, he “spiraled down”, but didn’t know how to help. Treadwell went off his medications and took other harmful drugs. They were supportive of his decision to go to Alaska but knew that he had other deep rooted issues which could have caused his obsession. During the film, Treadwell barely makes mention of his family showing their unimportance to him. Both men had distant friends. McCandless had friends in high school and college but didn’t keep in contact with him. His most relevant friends near the time of his adventures would be Wayne Westerberg and Jan Burres. He met these people on his
At the same time, their similarities of trying to break the mold, live outside of society, and be themselves is shown throughout the book and documentary.
Both McCandless and Treadwell had similarities and differences. Their reasons for leaving society stemmed from similar things but shared their differences. McCandless left because he wanted to escape society and his personal issues. A few years before he left on his adventure he had discovered a long hidden family secret. He discovered that his father had another family besides his own. He was unable to look past this and was stuck in a toxic circle of not being able to forgive his parents, feeling as if they had lied to him his whole life. This …show more content…
When it came to family, neither one of the men had a strong connection with them. When McCandless started his adventure he split himself completely off from his family. His father comments, “How is it, that a kid with so much compassion could cause his parents so much pain?” (104). His parents were confused on why McCandless didn’t keep their feelings in mind. This was partially because of how he felt about his father's actions, but if he viewed them in a good light he would have at least told them his plan instead of having them worrying for years. In addition, his mother commented , “He told us what he thought we needed to know and nothing more. He was that way about everything” (120). McCandless’ distant nature didn’t go unnoticed by his family. However, Treadwell's parents were very distant with him. His dad said, he “spiraled down”, but didn’t know how to help. Treadwell went off his medications and took other harmful drugs. They were supportive of his decision to go to Alaska but knew that he had other deep rooted issues which could have caused his obsession. During the film, Treadwell barely makes mention of his family showing their unimportance to him. Both men had distant friends. McCandless had friends in high school and college but didn’t keep in contact with him. His most relevant friends near the time of his adventures would be Wayne Westerberg and Jan Burres. He met these people on his