Jon Burge

Would you be able to cut your own arm off with a dull knife to survive? Aron Ralston, an accomplished mountaineer, discovered that he had what it took to complete this gruesome task. Ralston decided to take a simple day trip to Blue John Canyon, Utah for some canyoneering in 2003. Unfortunately, the trip took a turn for the worst after an 800 pound boulder fell onto his right forearm, crushing and trapping him in the confined space. This trip was supposed to be a leisurely break from his usual…

It is well known that there are many ways to complete an endeavor such as there are multiple ways to get to class. While one may work well for one person it may not work for the other. The same thing occurs when discussing perspective. The mindsets of John Krakauer and Weihenmayer are extremely different. Weihenmayer knew he could not summit Mount Everest on his own. This of course being due to the fact that he is blind whereas Krakauer is not. Krakauer on the other hand decides to summit the…

In Krakauer’s widely known novel, Into The Wild, Krakauer explains a story about how a man named Chris went to Alaska and died of starvation. Chris was born into a rich family and graduated from a prodigious university. However, he was not complacent with his life and wanted to avoid family trauma. He then ran away from his problems and decided to leave for Alaska. Since he was an ascetic and fervently believed that he belonged in the wild, he immediately left his home and abandoned his…

In chapters 8 and 9 of Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer quotes many of the negative letters, many of whom were Alaskans, he received after the original article about McCandless ran in Outside magazine. “‘I personally see nothing positive at all about Christ McCandless’s lifestyle or wilderness doctrine,’ […]” (Krakauer 71). Alaskans thought he didn’t respect the Alaskan wilderness, while others could not believe someone could act so impulsive. Some even believed, “‘Krakauer is a kook if he doesn’t…

“Ride Your F#%king Bike – The Movie. Powered by Chainsaw.” Directed by Ryan Marcus. Featuring Fox athletes Josh Bryceland, Josh Lewis, Kirt Voreis and other Fox teammates, the movie documents three weeks on the road with a wild crew up for anything. Filming kicked off at Fox Headquarters in Irvine, California and continued north through Oregon and Washington before crossing the Canadian border and reaching Vancouver Island. The movie is dedicated to Steve Smith, aka Chainsaw, a World Cup…

My project is about the Ernest Shackleton expedition. My thesis is: In 1914, the Ernest Shackleton expedition set out to be the first to cross the Antarctic continent. Shackleton encountered many challenges. Although the expedition never reached their goal, they set an example for future generations that with perseverance and the human will to survive, anything is possible. The idea came from my interest in the outdoors. This story of survival caught my attention. This topic relates to the…

My room was a mess with clothes I had got from Christmas and I mean a lot from jeans, sweaters, and of course flannels. I had ignored all the mess and focused on the task at hand which was finish reading the book "Into thin air" by Jon Krakauer. I spent the whole day reading it that I managed to get to half of the book done. What I really did is skip couple pages here and there. I knew at that point I would fail miserably trying to finish this book and write an essay on it. So what…

were to grow up in a house that tends to lie and you are exposed to abuse at a young age, your views on the world tend to be skewed. The second of the two extremes is represented through the character Chris McCandless from the book Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer. Chris also grew up in a seemingly positive yet It is somewhat…

Chris McCandless was a brave person who traveled into the wild with no money and not a lot of supplies. Some people think he was stupid but I think he is a brave person. Life chose that path for him and he enjoyed traveling the country and continent of North America. The wilderness eventually caught up with him though. People wonder how he could have survived or had better chances to survive. I think he could have survived with a person by his side the whole time. He touched a lot of…

It is inevitable that at some point in life or another, everyone will face challenges. The way individuals respond in the face of these challenges is what truly makes or breaks them. Societies are impacted similarly, for what determines the success of a society but the actions of a group of individuals. The greatest feats of mankind have come upon in the wake of being faced with difficulty. Humans have the capability to surpass any challenge; it is only the question of how we deal with said…