Into the Wild

Into the Wild
Jon Krakauer’s “Death of an Innocent” appeared in the January 1993 issue of Outside magazine. Krakauer was curious in the young man’s story that he, himself set out to investigate the haunting truths that led to the death of Christopher McCandless. Krakauer reveals in his 1996 book “Into the Wild” an expansion to his article of the events that occurred. Jon Krakauer aims to convince his readers that McCandless’s story elicits strong, sympathizing reactions. Krakauer used many rhetorical strategies to create appeals to logos, ethos, and pathos in order to develop the ideas found in his novel.
An emotional appeal of pathos is Chris knowingly aware of what lies ahead and what potential risks are involved. He writes to Wayne Westerberg that read, “Please return all mail I receive to the sender. It might be a very long time before I return south. If this adventure proves fatal and you don’t ever hear from me again, I want you to know you’re a great man. I now walk into the wild” (Krakauer 69). McCandless knows that he won’t be well suitable in the environment he embarks and may not make it out if he returns. Krakauer is trying to make the readers feel sad due to McCandless’s final goodbye to his friend. After his body turns up dead in Alaska, there is nothing but to grieve over the loss of Chris McCandless. His death appealed to pathos because it made an impact on many individual’s actions. His sister, Carine was devastated. During the flight home from picking up Chris’s ashes, she ate every scrap of food the cabin attendants set in front of her. “I just couldn’t bear the thought of throwing away food since Chris had starved to death” (131). Carine’s appetite had vanished and lost ten pounds. It is easily relatable that the reader has had a loss and can get what Carine went through. Moreover, McCandless’s relationship with Ron Franz admitted that, “I turned my van around, drove back to the store, and bought a bottle of whiskey. And then I went out into the desert and drank it. I wasn’t used to drinking, so it made me sick. Hoped it’d kill me, but it didn’t. Just made me real, real sick” (60). Franz was confused and upset. He wanted to adopt Chris after the loss of his own family and it was hard to take in. Christopher McCandless was unique and made a difference in what people thought about him. He was deeply admired by anyone that came along his path. In this book, Kraukauer utilizes pathos in a way that the audience feels heartbroken.
The purpose of “Into the Wild” is how McCandless satisfied his own curiosity. He wrote to Ron Franz saying, “The very basic core of a man’s living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun” (57). McCandless wanted to lose himself in the wild, become independent and free. Another part of the motivation was his love for literature. He seemed to be trying to follow in the footsteps of some of the authors he idolized, like Thoreau and London.

Krakauer uses ethos in a contrasting way. Chris McCandless lived a truthful existence, yet he lacked certain parts. Not all the things he told his friends were all that true. He lied about his identity and where he lived.

Ex 2. didn’t value dollars, valued in living life. He was humble and wanted to live that way.He came to understand that happiness is only real when shared with others, which prompted his failed attempt at coming back into society.