Into the Wild essay
Some people may think that Chris McCandless went into the forrest because he wanted to do things on his own go explore, live free without having to pay bills and live under his parents he wanted to be on his own with no one surrounding him. But that's not the full reason behind what drove him to the wild he hated his parents because they offered to pay for his law school and buy him a new car because his old one wasn’t running good anymore. There are many other reasons why Chris left his home his family and many other people to go into the wild.
One reason why Chris left was because he wasn’t really that social with other people he never talked to anyone and when he did it was only short statements he didn't really have any friends he was a very quiet guy. In his journey to the
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He wanted his parents to suffer and he wanted to give them payback because they offered to buy him a car and to pay for law school. Chris states in the story Into the Wild “ I’m going to have to be real careful not to accept a new car from them in the future because they will think they have bought my respect ”. Chris obviously doesn’t respect his parents enough that they have to do everything for him so that he would love them more. But Chris is very stubborn he doesn’t like the fact that they were willing to get him a new car for school. He wants to go into the wild to teach his parents a lesson that they will miss him when he’s gone. To me thats a mixture of stubbornness and stupidity. Because not only did he go into the wild without any help or GPS or knowledge about living in the wild, he didn’t tell his parents anything or tell them where he was so maybe they would help. But chris died eating poison berries but he didn’t know that they were poisoned and he left his parents wondering where he was but they never knew where he
Although Chris McCandless' life at home growing up was hounded by his so called "ignorant" father or his "bigot" parents, made the best out of his life whenever he could. He was on the cross country team when he was younger, and they all ran out into the wild almost, purposely getting lost. Being on that team and experiencing that made him happier and started his interest and passion for embracing nature. Chris even found solace and was content with providing food, such as hamburgers, stated by his cross country teammate Eric Hathway, providing company to people less fortunate than him. Taking hikes with his grandfather and doing things as mentioned previously (cross country), eventually influenced him to make his greatest adventure and unbeknownst
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.
In Chapter Seven, it is discovered that Chris wrote a letter, addressed to his sister Carine. In the letter, he wrote about his parents, both of which he had a rather rocky connections too. One of the things he wrote in the letter was “I'm going to divorce them as my parents once and for all and never speak to either of those idiots again as long as I live." In this way, it makes it seem as if Chris decided to run away from his problems instead
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.
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
Was he a reckless idiot? That is the big question. This is what people always seem to talk about when they talk about Chris McCandless. There are many people who think that Chris McCandless was a reckless idiot who was mentally ill, or something else was wrong with Chris. It seems that almost everybody that met Chris thought maybe Chris was crazy or had problems. Here are just a few things that people said about Chris and his state of mind. Pg 40 Zarza admits saying, "he was always going on about trees and nature and weird stuff like that. We all thought he was missing a few screws. Pg 42 Charlie said, "seemed like a kid who was looking for something." Pg 45 Burres said "I thought Alex had lost his mind when he told us about his 'great Alaskan odyssey, ' as he called it."
To begin with, McCandless’s decision to walk into the wild was acceptable because he wanted to become an inspiration and an individual. Emerson states, “There is a time in every man’s education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance: that imitation is suicide” (Emerson). Chris McCandless left to shun the conformist society that he could feel changing him. Chris wanted the chains that bound him to be broken. Society takes the individual and locks it up and destroys it. According to Emerson, “It is easy in the world to live after the world’s opinion: it is easy to in solitude to live after our own: but the great man is he who in the midst of the crow keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude” (Emerson). McCandless left his materialistic family to be his own person ad to be unique. The world’s opinion does not make the man wh...
Chris McCandless, the main character of “Into the wild” was angered by his father’s infidelity and bigamy. As a result, Chris McCandless wanted to separate himself from his family and he begins a spiritual adventure to search for his identity. Chris McCandless isolates himself physically and emotionally to find freedom and peace by adventuring into the wild. Therefore, McCandless escapes from Emory University and immediately flees his dull and predictable life, heading west without a word to his family. Although, McCandless journey ends in a tragic ending, he fulfilled his ambition by pursuing his ambition and inner peace. In conclusion, McCandless journey was both a search for inner peace and transition to maturity.
At the end of “Into the Wild” by John Krakauer epilogue, my view towards McCandless’s journey and death is emotionally similar to McCandless’s parents as they accept Chris’s death. Chris’s parents weren’t really involved in his life so they never really knew why he cut everyone off. My initial guess is that Chris got tired of his parents controlling his life and just wanted to get away. Throughout “Into The Wild” Chris’s parents seemed like they didn’t support or care about Chris, or they didn’t know how to show it, however my opinion about Chris’s parents did change because the author shined light on his parents and how they came to senses with their son’s death and that they actually really did care about their son Chris McCandless.
Chris McCandless was a young man who did everything in his power to try and represent that freedom he was searching for. McCandless had everything before we went out but he decided to go out and travel by choice. He was considered a selfish man because when someone offered him to help him he rejects it in a nice way since we wants to do things himself. In the book Into the wild he states that,"You don't need to worry about me. I have a college education. I'm not destitute. I'm living like this by choice."
He left and “walked into the wild”, as he said, to escape his problems (Krakauer, 69). He never confronted his dad about his feelings. Carine McCandless talks about this personality trait in Chris saying, “Chris was the sort of person who brooded on things. If something bothered him; he wouldn’t come right out and say it” (Krakauer, 122). He changed his name, He wasn’t trying to take pride in his “adventure”. It was an extra and unnecessary precaution to ensure that his problems would not affect his escape. Chris McCandless changed his name and then continued his life ignoring all of the problems he had ever
Chris McCandless lived a life in which he disgusted by human civilization, and left it, eventually being led to his death in Alaska. McCandless entered the Alaskan wilderness severely unprepared, a brutal error that cost him his life. In the novel, Into the Wild by John Krakauer, Chris glances into his mindset by they way of his journal, history, and analysis of his life reveals that Chris McCandless as an arrogant and judgemental narcissist, while not mentally unstable, had a condescending attitude towards society and perished not only from his reckless stupidity but also from his unparalleled ego. Chris McCandless was immune to love and had an obsession with nature and society, him showing characteristics that created the appearance of McCandless
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.
Due to the information provided in this single quote, one can conclude that Chris intended on bettering his life so he could carry it out as he pleased. Suicide is often viewed as giving up on life, so Chris really didn’t give up on life since he wanted to make it better. Readers also express that he was suicidal because of the harsh living conditions he subjected himself to. Once again, Chris himself disproves this hypothesis when he writes that “I’m living like this by choice,”(Krakauer 52). Based on these quotations, it’s known that Chris’s intent of the expedition was not to kill himself, but rather to improve his quality of life. “The world was suddenly rich with possibility,”(Krakauer 136). Chris finally found where he could cultivate his new life when he reached Alaska. However, this quotation also illustrates that Chris did, in a sense, want to “kill” his old lifestyle. Since he only says, “the world was rich with opportunity” after he’s embarked on this journey, it is in his new life where he feels there is a purpose, and it’s where he feels he truly belongs. “Individuals that are suicidal do not usually really want to die, rather they see dying as the only solution to the pain that they are currently facing,” (Mental Health Daily 2014). After reading that quotation, it is also clear that Chris was not suicidal because he wanted to improve his life. Obviously, if he felt death was the
Was Chris a reckless idiot? That has been a question people have been wondering since his death. I believe in some ways he was but i can relate to chris in him wanting to get away from reality. I think all of us think about just getting away but chris had the guts to actually do it.