“McCandless made an indelible impression on a number of people during the course of his hegira, most of whom spent only a few days in his company, a week or two at most. Nobody, however, was affected more powerfully by his or her brief contact with the boy than Ronald Franz, who was eighty years old when their paths intersected in January 1992. “ (Krakauer 48). Ronald Franz was considered a hardened man recovering from the death of his children and wife and alcoholism as well as the fact that he was a veteran. Franz, at age 80, had his life changed forever when he met a young man named “Alex McCandles”, actually Chris McCandles. Alex met Franz when he was hitchhiking through the deserts of the Southwest United States. McCandles got a ride …show more content…
This statement says a lot about Chris McCandles, given his scraggly appearance and state of starvation and misery. Chris met Jan Burres, “…a forty-one-year-old rubber tramp who was traveling around the West selling knick-knacks at flea markets…” (Krakauer 30), when he was picking berries on the side of the road. Burres saw Chris and pulled over to see what was wrong. Then Chris introduced himself, as Alex, and said that he had been living off of edible plants for a couple weeks and was starving. As an act of benevolence Burres, and her boyfriend, took Chris in, instantly loved him, and treated him as a part of their family. This was mostly due to Chris’ amiability and charisma. It seemed that everyone Chris met instantly liked him. Chris continued this relationship through letters. Chris’s general likeability paid off later in life when Jan Burres took Chris back in to her home. It appears that Chris understood the importance of being likable and developing relationships in order to get through his …show more content…
Many times in the book Chris was starving or needed a job and because he was charming either at the time or previously he could always find a meal or job. An example of this is when Westerburg first picks up Chris, Chris had not eaten in days, but because Chris was cordial he got a meal at Wayne’s friend’s house. After this he also got housing and a job from Wayne purely because of his friendliness. In the end, however, Chris McCandles’ final lesson was only realized through his death. Throughout his journeys many people gave Chris advice on hunting, gathering, and overall survival. He never took this advice, and in the end it took his life. Chris McCandles’ transcendental journey ended with him starving to death in a sleeping bag, alone and in
“Don’t judge a book by it’s cover, it’s what’s inside counts” This quote reminds people about how they should not judge other people from the outside but look deep into their true personalities. Looking from the appearance and how Chris lives, everyone would assume that Chris is a crazy, foolish person and does everything without thinking. If people try to know more about Chris, they would have different perspective. Chris is intelligent, determined, independent and follows what he believes. He went into the wilderness to escape from the society that tries to suppress him and look for the meaning of life.
Pg 71 "why would anyone intending to 'live off the land for a few months, ' forget Boy Scout rule number one, be prepared. Why would any son cause his parents and family such permanent and perplexing pain?" There were many more people that thought Chris was a reckless idiot, but there were also many people that didn 't think Chris was a reckless idiot, and instead thought that Chris was very smart and brave for what Chris did. There were many people that Chris met during his travels and was able to truly touch their hearts and change their lives forever. Jim Gallien, Wayne Westerberg, Jon Krakauer, Walt McCandless, Billie McCandless, Carine McCandless, Charlie, Ronald Franz, and Jan Burres were some of them. Chris knew these people in life or met them during Chris travels. Chris definitely made an impact in all these people 's lives and these people probably wouldn 't call Chris a reckless idiot, but instead would call Chris intelligent and courageous. One of the people that Chris met during the travels that really stuck out was Ronald Franz. Franz was an eighty year old veteran who lived in Salton City,
Christopher McCandless came from a rich suburb of Washington D.C. He excelled in school and had been an outstanding athlete. He graduated with honors from Emory University in the summer of 1990, and soon after he dropped out of sight. He changed his name from Chris to Alex, gave his twenty-four-thousand dollar savings account to charity, abandoned his car and most of his possessions, and burned all of the cash in his wallet. He desired to live off of the land and traveled across North America.
He was extremely admirable for the sake that he had the courage to live out his dream. He said he would live off of the land for 100 days and he did. Most people always have that dream vacation, the goal or rite of passage that they always say they will do. But when the opportunity arrives for them to achieve their dream, they shy away at the first sign of risk. And Chris followed through and knew he was going to live out his dream or die
Chris McCandless- a name immortalized due to his inexplicable desire to escape the civilized life for one in the wild. This desire inadvertently led to Chris McCandless’ death by starvation. Chris was an arrogant young man who believed he could do nearly anything. Little did he know that this excessive self-confidence would lead to his demise. Many readers still care about Chris McCandless and yearn for the answer to Chris’ death. Some adore Chris and try to emulate him. Others are adverse to these views and condemn Chris’ choices hoping others will not follow his self-destructive path.
... had a room “furnished with milk crates”. Outside of his “house” a professor specifically gave Chris a key for “after-hours access to the library.” (124) This life, this desire, this simplicity is exactly what Chris had an eagerness for. Being simple, cutting ties from those who cared, but moreover from society as a whole ends up being his downfall. Chris passed in a way no one should want to. The call when you need someone, when you are “NEAR DEATH, AND TOO WEAK”(12) and need that person who can support you, that person you can go to help for but because of this simplicity you have bestowed upon yourself, no one comes is truly heartbreaking. And in the end, the pressure to stay alive on this journey overshadowed the thoughts, of actually cherishing the real meaning of life. McCandless adhered to the transcendentalist ideas so much so that it ended taking his life.
McCandless is a very independent person, a person with high hopes, that has a lot of courage, and is a very brave man for going out by himself in the wild of Alaska of the Stampede Trail. Chris McCandless had a lot of courage on going to Alaska by himself at a young age. While Chris was at any city or anybody’s house, he was ready to go to Alaska. But while he was there, close to the end of his life, he left a note on the back of the bus saying, “S.O.S I need your help. I am injured, near death, and too weak to hike out of here i am all alone, this is no joke. In the name of god, please remain to save me. I am out collecting berries close by and shall return by evening. Thank you, Chris McCandless. August?” Chris McCandless was by himself at the time. He shows his courage because while by himself, he went back out even though he was near death. He went out for food. Food for his health. That shows how much courage he had for his trip. Chris McCandless encouraged many young men to ...
The book about Chris McCandless’s journey into the Alaskan bush, Into The Wild by Jon Krakauer, received a lot of criticism about Chris being foolish for being unprepared. From the articles that I have read, most of the sources do believe that he was poorly prepared for his journey. But there are a few people who believe he was prepared mentally, and an even smaller amount believe he was fully prepared. I believe that Chris only knew what he was doing mentally. He did not have the correct tools or the developed skills to survive, for an extended period of time in the wild. But, he did know what he was about to get himself into. He planned out the trip and knew exactly what his risk factors were. Chris McCandless was either prepared mentally, both mentally and physically, or he was ill-prepared for his voyage.
On Chris’s journey to Alaska, he met a gentleman by the name of Ronald Franz, and is able to leave a lasting impression on him that Ron is not able to reciprocate to Chris. In the book, author Jon Krakauer states “McCandless made an indelible impression on a number of people during the course of his hegira, most of whom spent only a few days in his company, a weeks or two at most. Nobody, however, was affected more powerfully by his or her brief contact with the boy than Ronald Franz” (Krakauer 48). This quotes shows that although there time together is brief, Chris is able to leave an indelible impact on Ron. Nobody understands the life and journey to Alaska that Chris took more than Krakauer, and through his words, he acknowledges that Chris made the biggest impact on Ron. Ron viewed Chris almost like a son. Franz admitted that “even when he was sleeping, I was happy just knowing he was there…At one point Franz dared to make a special request of McCandless…Now that my own boy’s dead, I’m the end of the line. When I’m gone, my family will be finished, gone forever. So I asked Alex if I could adopt him, if he would be my grandson” (Krakauer 55). This quote shows how to Ron, at the time, Chris meant the world to him. It is very touching because Ron admits that he is getting older, and when he dies there will be nobody to carry on his...
... every aspect of his life whether it be his education, physical endurance, or making it through the Alaskan wilderness with nothing more than a rifle, a backpack, and a road map. Chris was aware of his differences and that he did not fit into society. He fully embraced that and and chose to lead his own path. Chris led a happy life according to one of his last journal entries he wrote, “I have had a happy life and thank the lord. Goodbye and may God bless all!” (Krakauer 199). Chris was willing to risk everything to gain that happiness. His ambition to enter the wilderness, in the end, took his life but that did not stop him. He would have rather died a happy man than lived a miserable one. Chris ventured out into the wilderness and found himself; a tragic story for a tragic hero.
...s was at peace. Chris McCandless died happy and at peace with life because of the all the sights he had seen, all the people he had met, and ultimately the goal he had wanted to achieve was at his fingertips. He did not make it out of the “Great Alaska,” but he died trying. He had survived one hundred plus days. He had walked all over America. He had met some amazing tramps along the way. He had caused heartbreak, but he helped thousands. I believe, based on the fact that he stated he would write a book upon his return, all he wanted to be a legend and have a legacy. He did just that. Chris has died over ten years ago, and here I am in the tenth grade learning about his eventful life. Chris ‘Alexander Supertramp’ McCandless had lived an eventful life in his twenty-four years of living than most do in their one hundred years of life. His legacy will live on forever.
Have you ever heard about the hippie who had to go to a Middle School after living on a remote farm in the novel Schooled by Gordon Korman? Well, Capricorn Anderson is a flower child who lives at Garland Farms until his grandmother, Rain, falls out of a plum tree, which changes this hippie’s life. Now, Cap has to go to a public middle school and live with Mrs.Donnelley, a social worker, which he is not prepared for.He is just a hippie with a soul of good, who is not prepared for physical fights, cursing, and even video games! He doesn’t understand this modern world; he’s as lost as a kit who couldn’t find her mother.
All in all, it is interesting how the trials of life can lead a person into an awakening that inspires millions. Many people believe that walking “into the wild” to live off the land and find himself alone in nature was arrogant, foolish and irresponsible. Chris lacks of knowledge about the wild was a major factor in his death. Chris did not plan how he will survive in the wilderness without proper equipments. He misunderstood that he would have no problem in setting in the wild. Chris immature manner and decisions lead him to starvation and ultimately death. If he planned it out in the beginning he would have saved his life.
Chris McCandless consumes an abundant amount of wild animals, fruits, vegetables, and other plants. Slowly he becomes fragile and is unable to collect his own food. He eventually starves to death in an abandoned bus due to unknown causes. Before his death, he managed to scribble two notes: “ I have had a happy life and thank the lord. Goodbye and May God bless all.” And “Attention possible visitors. S.O.S. I need your help. I am injured, near death, and too weak to hike out of here. I am all alone. This is no joke. In the name of God, please remain to save me. I am out collection berried close by and shall return this evening. Thank you, Chris McCandless August ?” Only nineteen days later a group of people stumbled upon to the bus (Timeline). Chris McCandless took the journey of a lifetime. He ventured out of the “normal comfort zones” in order to find his true identity, not blinded by materialistic or societal demands (Once More). However he was not the only one who influenced by the work of Henry David Thoreau and went on to lead a life stripped from the grasps of delusional wants.
“Saturday is a day for torturing people,” Klaus Mikaelson, who is certainly a unique character, once stated. Klaus is a vampire in The Originals, who has certainly changed the face of supernatural media. When one thinks of power, witches and vampires, such as Klaus Mikaelson, are both thought of. Why? Magic and blood are both linked to power. These two topics have greatly influenced the world of mythology for as long as superstition has been around. The modern world now is surrounded by new supernatural aspects, as seen in shows such as Charmed and The Originals. Charmed and The Originals are related in the sense that they have supernatural characters, an emphasis on family values, and they show the endeavor between good and evil.