Preview

How Did Chris Mccandless Survive In The Wild

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
513 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
How Did Chris Mccandless Survive In The Wild
The wilderness has a certain allure as a pristine place for free of the evils of a modern society. Chris McCandless also learns it's a place where one can be free and get in touch with one's soul. However, the reality of living in the wilderness can be quite different from the romantic notions harbored by those who set it as an escape. Chris McCandless simply is fascinated with the wilderness, but will learn that it's beauty carries many hardships you must endure to survive in it.

While Chris is distracted by the allure of the wilderness, he doesn't account for its harshness. He is a well educated person that graduated from college, but lacks the common sense it takes to survive in the wild. He is too overconfident in himself and doesn't take in the reality of the preparations he should have taken to live in the wild. Chris McCandless wouldn't have survived the length he did in the wild if it wasn't for kind hearted people and strangers along the way that had aided him on his journey.
…show more content…
Before Chris’s journey he found out that his father was married and had a kid with another woman while he was raising him. This ultimately grew a thick rage inside of him and he wanted to escape to the life he was at and turned into a place he would seek refuge, the wilderness. He thought of the wild as if a pain killer to help aid his problem. Upon entering and living among the wilderness he found himself in great solitude, that he believed would cause him have a different view of the

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    The first way Chris shows regret is when writing the S.O.S note, the text says, “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 THIS EVENING. THANK YOU, CHRIS MCCANDLESS. AUGUST?” (Krakauer 11). After writing this you can tell that Chris is actually about to die and since there is nothing else all he can rely on is someone walking by to help. This shows he is in a desperate need for help and needs some type of miracle. Next in the book it says, “Reality, however, was quick to intrude on McCandless’s reverie” (Krakauer 112). This explains that what Chris thought to be easy was actually very hard. This realization would make him have a second thought about everything, and what he has done. After being in the wild for sometime in the book it says, “At that point he gave up on preserving the bulk of the meat and abandoned the carcass to the wolves” (Krakauer 114). This shows the troubles Chris had trying to find and preserve food. Also how he regrets killing the moose because he wasted its life and became unable to save any food for…

    • 919 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In the book Into the Wild it explains a true story that had changed the the lives of many. A young man who all he wanted was to escape society and get away from the world. His life did end shortly after his disappearance. But that does not mean he did not live his life to the fullest. Jon Krakauer the author of the book Into the Wild describes Chris McCandless faults and traits. Chris is an intelligent guy but he finds a new meaning for life and wants to go discover it. He didn't have any contact with his parents but was contacting his sister carrie. Krakauer does a tremendous job of interviewing everyone who had anything to do with McCandless from his parents, when he grew up, to the people who found his body in the abandoned bus in Alaska.…

    • 286 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In 1992 a man began his four month journey of leaving everything behind, college, family, and all his relationships to start a completely new life in the wild. In the book The Wild by Jon Krakauer, Chris McCandless recreates a new life for himself. while following his long journey, Chris renamed himself Alexander Supertramp and met many people along the way like Gallion, Franz, and Westerberg. Although some people think that Chris’s death has purpose, really Chris died in vain, alone in the woods.Chris proves this when he risks his life countless times and gets repeatedly questioned for it by friends along his trip. Chris wasted his time in the woods and could have lived if he listened to the people around him who were trying to help him.…

    • 761 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Chris Mccandless Argument

    • 696 Words
    • 3 Pages

    It is said that Chris McCandless was a bright and ignorant person according to Cellarmans argument and maybe others point of views. In my perspective I agree but disagree as well although I agree with the argument that was said by Callarmans. As I state a quote that was said by Shaun Callarman “ had no business going into Alaska with his Romantic silliness”. As it says “Romantic silliness” he was meaning that he wanted to die in a poetic but as well as a beautiful surrounding of love and happiness. He traveled to find himself into the wilderness to figure out who he is.…

    • 696 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Chris got so caught up in the books about nature that he felt it must be true. One of his favorite authors, Jack London, had barely even lived in the wild but Chris was to caught up in the fictional stories to realize that. He even chose epigraphs from his readings about the beauty and joy of nature. Even in his final goodbye notes he left quotes from authors he had read. He was about to die and he was still doing this, it shows you how crazy he was to get that caught up in his readings in the first place. Also a majority of what Chris had brought with him on his journey was books, instead of proper supplies or equipment that could have saved his life. Due to his sensitivity and craziness, Chris died. He was emaciated by the time his final days drew to a close. He should have just left the wild and came back to civilization, content with his adventure.…

    • 750 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Who was Chris ? What kind of person was he ? Some say he was foolish others say he was intelligent. Some say that Chris was a man full of hate others say he was full of love. What was Chris searching for? Perhaps it was Happiness others say it was an escape from society. If you read the book Into the Wild by John Krakuer it is clear that Chris is the mix of the both Worlds.…

    • 578 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Chris McCandless longed for independence and freedom from the life he was living and embarks on the adventure of a lifetime. Jon Krakauer, the author of Into the Wild, begins the book by giving the reader a narration of his journey ,then shortly after changes into a mystery by telling the reader of a dead body found in the bus. The readers can infer that the body found is Chris, giving the reader a feeling that he was crazy for making this venture into the wild and doubt his mental state. Krakauer, then tells the reader of Everett Ruess, a young man who did the same journey and died, giving the reader his view on Chris that he didn’t go out into the wild, because he was crazy but it was more for his own good as a person. The author would continue…

    • 1472 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Chris McCandless ventured on a grand journey that would change everything and transform his life. He grew up in a hostile environment where his choices were not his own. His parent's violence toward each other began to affect his world views at a very young age. This lead to Chris having high standards for himself and to embark on a journey to find peace and serenity in the wilderness. Radical adventurer seeking enlightenment through traveling motivated by the authors he admired and government corruption.…

    • 1001 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Chris was set out to show his love for nature. While in the wild McCandless was telling us “Tramping is too easy with all this money. [His] days were more exciting when [he] was penniless and had to forage around for my [his] next meal” (Krakauer 33). While McCandless scavenges for food he has to know how nature works in order to eat the food; also, showing his love for nature by knowing how nature processes. McCandless rather find essensuals out in the wild to survive instead of everything to be given to him.…

    • 532 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Although some may believe that Chris McCandless went into the wild because of inspiration, I think that his primary reason was due to his family issues and emotional damage. I feel as if he was trying to run away and leave his past life. I can agree with others beliefs that he was inspired because he did read many things and was very influenced by some writings. However, the apparent problems he had with his family caused this issue because he showed many times before that he didn’t like his home life. Others even saw that he was unhappy with his parents and he wanted to leave and live what he thought to be a more peaceful life. Not only was just his parents divorce talks, his arguments with his father, and his distance he felt from his mom and dad a huge problem for him, he also was emotionally damaged by other…

    • 862 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    He was an adept hunter, and while he “made some mistakes on the Stampede Trail, but confusing a caribou with a moose wasn’t among them.” (Krakauer, 178) something the Alaskan hunters who found him, mixed up. Those who knew Chris understood that while he might be idealistic, he was not a fool. Many letters were written to Outsider, after the Chris article, stating that Chris was ignorant and underprepared. “His ignorance, which could have been cured by...is what killed him.” (Krakauer, 72) While Chris was arrogant, he was not stupid. Chris just did not see things the way others did, seeing his Alaska excursion as “The great triumphant joy of living to the fullest extent.” (Krakauer, 37) A phenomenon of human nature is that we do not see things in the same way, and Chris definitely saw things in a different…

    • 509 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Chris has done good in his life but his arrogance is very overwhelming. It's hard to look past the fact that he never listened to anyone who warned him. How could he get that close to people and just leave? Did he even have a heart? So what was his legacy for. Taking a hike and dying. Now chris mccandless was a great person,very stupid but he was a great guy. In the book it s his sister said that he is not selfish enough to burn down trees to save his own life. Does that make him even more selfish. He did not care if he died evan with his sister and his parents both at home worried sick if he was ever going to return. That's also a very selfish thing for him to do even though there was a way to stop that.…

    • 634 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Chris Mccandless

    • 516 Words
    • 3 Pages

    McCandless early year of his life was abusive and unsettling because his father abused him in many ways that only siblings and he can explain. His father also had another family and impacted McCandless. McCandless could express it. Growing up, his family wanted the best for him. His parents believed that they could buy his respect. McCandless thought other. Overall, Chris McCandless’s childhood wasn’t the best. His journey was the highlight of his life until it came to the end. He was poisoned and suffered for many days with an illness of starvation and was barely able to stand up. During his last days, Chris McCandless writes, “‘I HAVE HAD A HAPPY LIFE AND THANK THE LORD. GOODBYE AND MAY GOD BLESS ALL!’” (Krakauer 199). Chris McCandless finally opened eyes to see what he had in front of him because he realized that his family did care for him and that the people he met along the way gave him happiness, but was too much of a fool to realize. Another most obvious reason for Chris McCandless being a fool for him leaving his life. He left his family, money and career behind to go chase his goal to Alaska. It was awfully nice of him to donate his money to charity, but he lost everything he…

    • 516 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    into the wild

    • 944 Words
    • 4 Pages

    “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 THIS EVENING. THANK YOU, CHRIS MCCANDLESS. AUGUST?” The novel Into The Wild by Jon Krakauer is about a young man named Chris McCandless. This individual, right after college had left in the pursuit of adventure and into the wilderness. He left without telling anyone, family and friends alike of his whereabouts and with small portions and little provisions. For this particular reason, some see McCandless as a misguided wacko who caused his own demise, while on the other hand some see him as noble, just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Chris McCandless is indeed noble! He possessed courage and ideals which I admired. He was noble for his self-reliance, being intellectual, and that he was not materialistic.…

    • 944 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    One might argue that all the things Chris did on his “odyssey” were unimportant and made little difference to the world. He did, however, change the lives of the people he had met. As chronicled in Krakauer’s book, Chris made such an impact on the people he’d encountered during his journey, they remembered so much about him years after he had left them, apparently. Ron Franz, a man Chris stay and bonded with for some time, even lost his faith because of his love for the boy. Chris had a huge impact wherever he went, and was an important person.…

    • 442 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays