Was Chris as Dumb as people thought he was?

630 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Chris mccandless character traits in book

In Into the Wild, Chris McCandless was a young man from Virginia who loved living his life on his own. On an adventure to Alaska, Chris ran into the some trouble and perished. While Chris’s death is a horrible event that will burn in the memory of his family and friends, it could have been easily prevented. If Chris was smarter he would have thought about his preparation, his motivation, and the possibility that he was mentally ill. He could have been able to live out in the Alaskan Wilderness and survive his adventure and return home safely. If Chris was better prepared, he may have been able to survive and a live the life he wanted to in the Alaskan wild. “His rifle was only .22 caliber, a bore too small to rely on if he expected to kill large animals like moose and caribou, which he would have to eat if he hoped to remain very long in the country. He had no ax, no bug dope, no snowshoes, no compass.” (Krakauer 5) Seeing that within the first couple of pages, Jim Gallien had pointed out that his supplies were not enough to sustain a long period of time in the wild, this should have been a red flag for Chris even before he went into the wilderness. In Roberts article called “Jon Krakauer + Sean Penn: Back Into the Wild”, Roberts quotes Krakauer’s original magazine article that talks to the hunters that found Chris’s body. "The kid didn't know what the hell he was doing up here” The hunters did not personally know Chris and did not meet him in person and they could tell by evidence only that Chris McCandless was not suited to live in the Alaskan Wilderness. Seeing that Chris did not have a sturdy relationship with his father, he was driven by anger to go out to the Alaskan wilderness, he may have survived this adventure, or ev... ... middle of paper ... ...s was smarter he would have thought about his preparation, his motivation, and the possibility that he was mentally ill. I do not fully blame Chris because his friends and family could have prevented him from going. If they saw that he could possibly have a mental illness, then they could have forbidden him to go and would have saved his life. Works Cited Kleinfeld, Judith. "¨McCandless: Hero or Dumb Jerk¨." N.p., 20 July 2001. Web. 27 Mar. 2014. Krakauer, Jon. Into the Wild. New York: Anchor, 1997. Print. Roberts, David. "Jon Krakauer + Sean Penn: Back Into the Wild." Into the Wild. National Geographic, n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2014. Christian, Peter. "Chris McCandless from an Alaskan Park Ranger's Perspective."Http://nmge.gmu.edu. N.p., n.d. Web. Medred, Craig. "Far North Science." Into The Wild: The False Being Within —. N.p., 13 Oct. 2007. Web. 26 Mar. 2014.

Show More
Related

  • Book Analysis: Chris Mccandless

    1372 Words  | 3 Pages

    "I think that Chris McCandless was bright and ignorant at the same time. He had no common sense, and he had no business going into Alaska with his Romantic silliness. He made a lot of mistakes based on ignorance. I don’t admire him at all for his courage nor his noble ideas. Really, I think he was just plain crazy”- Shaun Callarman. Feeling invincible is new for young adults, but Chris McCandless convinced himself that he knew he was immortal rather than just believing it. His adventure into the wild was mostly due to his rebellious spirit. Some would argue that his vacation wasn 't inspired by his irrational aspirations, but instead by his family. Some say that he skipped town to get away from the strict prison that he called

    Read More

  • Chris Mccandles Into The Wild

    590 Words  | 2 Pages

    Although it may be true that Chris McCandles was stubborn, people should consider that he had family problems, he loved nature and he also had an adventurous spirit. I believe that the motives that led him to the wild were family problems and emotional damage as well as his love of nature and his adventurous spirit. In Chris’s journal it seemed like he had lived for 113 days in that “magic bus” but in his last days he had written that “death looms” and that he was “too weak to walk out”. There are many evidence that connect with family problems as well as his adventurous spirit. As I go on with this essay I will state my theory on why Chris was led into the wild as well as evidence that support my claim.

    Read More

  • Chris Mccandless Analysis

    907 Words  | 2 Pages

    Chris McCandless is foolish when he drops everything, his riches, schooling, and more, just to go on an impossible trip through the backcountry of Alaska. “...he donated the $20,000 in his bank account to Oxfam, loaded up his car, and disappeared. From then on he scrupulously avoided contacting either his parents or Carine, the sister for whom he purportedly cared immensely.” (Krakauer 134). Why would he want to leave everything, his future, just to die out in the middle of nowhere

    Read More

  • Chris McCandless Was a Sociopath

    594 Words  | 2 Pages

    Was Chris McCandless deranged? Was he delusional? Or was he a hero? Since Chris’ body was found in bus 142 in the middle of the Alaskan wilderness, he has been called many things. Those who knew him believed that he wasn’t crazy; that his impulsive actions and aspirations to explore the world, were no more than the natural inclinations of a young and idealistic spirit. However, his desire to venture into the unknown with no source of human contact and nothing but a ten-pound bag of rice, is not considered normal behavior. Jon Kraukauer’s, Into The Wild, manifests how Chris McCandless’ antisocial demeanor, lack of remorse, and impulsive actions are directly relatable to behaviors associated with a sociopath.

    Read More

  • Humility In Jon Krakauer's Into The Wild

    981 Words  | 2 Pages

    He went through many obstacles that could have proved fatal. From canoeing in the Colorado River to picking the right berries, he was testing his intelligence. Chris had a true confidence in the land and in himself to set out on a mission so dangerous. “Wilderness appealed to those bored or disgusted with man and his works. It not only offered an escape from society but also was an ideal stage for the Romantic individual to exercise the cult that he frequently made of his own soul. The solitude and total freedom of the wilderness created a perfect setting for either melancholy or exaltation” (Nash; Krakauer 157). Chris longed to escape from society and rely on only mother nature. An innumerable amount of people desire to withdraw from society as Chris did; but they are so comfortable and secure with a normal life they do not dare take such a gutsy

    Read More

  • Was Chris Mccandless Crazy

    907 Words  | 2 Pages

    “McCandless was something else – although precisely what is hard to say.” (pg. 85). Chris was a very different person, but not crazy. He was emotionally motivated at the time and had his mind set on Alaska. In the end, Chris was nowhere near prepared for this journey, but was too caught up in what he was trying to do to realize this. I agree with Krakauer that Chris wasn’t crazy or insane, but in his attempts to survive in Alaska he made several mistakes and ultimately, led an ill-prepared journey to Alaska that killed him.

    Read More

  • Chris McCandless: Brave, Independent, and Courageous

    617 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...e wilderness.” Krakauer stats this in the book to explain what Chris was up against walking into the wilderness. No ordinary man would do this to survive out on his own facing the wilderness. Kleinfeld made an extraordinary remark in her article “McCandless: Hero or Dumb Jerk” “Jon Krakauer's best seller "Into the Wild" immortalizes this young man, who walked into the wilderness with no map, no ax, no mosquito repellent and no first aid equipment.” She makes a good statement about his bravery because not many men would go out with no supplies to make them survive. He went out by himself, no supplies and try to pull off to live in the wild.

    Read More

  • Determination In Chris Mccandless

    1171 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Jon Krakauer’s book Into the Wild, he documents the events that led up to the death of Chris McCandless. McCandless was a teenage boy who dealt with tremendous amounts of pressure from his parents to do well in school and keep family secrets — they apologized for it through buying him things that they thought he needed. However, Chris hated this and just wanted peace, and honesty at home. There was one place in which Chris could get this, and it is in nature — there was no chaos or dishonesty amongst his family. Before he would go to college, he would drive to unknown places on his own — cherishing the peace that he gets. And when he decides to go to Alaska, his journey leads him to

    Read More

  • Was Chris McCandless Prepared When He Went Into The Wild?

    1370 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Chris Mccandless Failure

    432 Words  | 1 Pages

    Chris’s family members probably feel guilty; they believe as if they could have saved him from

    Read More

  • Christopher Mccaandless Admirable Analysis

    1206 Words  | 3 Pages

    Living in the wilderness is difficult, but understanding the meaning of such lifestyle is even more difficult. One of the Christopher’s admirable qualities was that he was well aware of what he was doing. He knew about the difficulties and dangers that he would face into the wilderness, and was mentally prepared for that. Author Jon Krakauer says that “McCandless was green, and he overestimated his resilience, but he was sufficiently skilled to last for sixteen weeks on little more than his wits and ten pounds of rice. And he was fully aware when he entered the bush that he had given himself a perilously slim margin for error. He knew precisely what was at stake” (182). McCandless was an educated youth, who loved nature and dreamed of living in the Alaskan wilderness. Although he ignored to take many necessary things with him on this

    Read More

  • Chris McCandless: A True Hero

    920 Words  | 2 Pages

    Chris McCandless was still just a young man when he decided to drastically alter his life through the form of a child’s foolishness. However, Chris had not known at the time just how powerful his testimony against his father’s authority, society, or maybe even his own lifestyle was going to be revolutionary throughout not only Alaska,not even the lower 48, but the world. The story of Chris McCandless is a much talked about debate on topics of safety and preparedness in the wild, these things forever associated with the boy who was a little too eager for a death wish. Today, Chris is remember as a fool or a hero. The fool, a boy who allowed himself to be drowned in a fictional world inspired by his readings,dying because he ignored he was just a normal human being or the hero who set out to become something more.

    Read More

  • Chris McCandless is NOT a Hero

    1228 Words  | 3 Pages

    Into the Wild, written by John Krakauer tells of a young man named Chris McCandless who 1deserted his college degree and all his worldly possessions in favor of a primitive transient life in the wilderness. Krakauer first told the story of Chris in an article in Outside Magazine, but went on to write a thorough book, which encompasses his life in the hopes to explain what caused him to venture off alone into the wild. McCandless’ story soon became a national phenomenon, and had many people questioning why a “young man from a well-to-do East Coast family [would] hitchhike to Alaska” (Krakauer i). Chris comes from an affluent household and has parents that strived to create a desirable life for him and his sister. As Chris grows up, he becomes more and more disturbed by society’s ideals and the control they have on everyday life. He made a point of spiting his parents and the lifestyle they lived. This sense of unhappiness continues to build until after Chris has graduated college and decided to leave everything behind for the Alaskan wilderness. Knowing very little about how to survive in the wild, Chris ventures off on his adventure in a state of naïveté. It is obvious that he possessed monumental potential that was wasted on romanticized ideals and a lack of wisdom. Christopher McCandless is a unique and talented young man, but his selfish and ultimately complacent attitude towards life and his successes led to his demise.

    Read More

  • How Did Leo Tolstoy Influence Chris McCandless?

    974 Words  | 2 Pages

    Krakauer, Jon. Into the wild. New York: Anchor Books , a division of Random House Inc.,, 1997. Print.

    Read More

  • Theme and Setting of Into The Wild, by Jon Krakauer

    921 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

More about Was Chris as Dumb as people thought he was?

Open Document