Hoy
English
13 January 2011
“I have had a happy life and thank the lord. Goodbye and may god bless everyone” (qted Krakauer 199), Chris McCandless wrote before he went inside his sleeping bag and slipped into unconsciousness. American Romantic writers of the 1800’s shared their ideals of leaving the corrupt city for an answer in nature. Chris McCandless went into the wild in April of 1992 leaving all his possessions behind, giving his money away to charity, and changing his name. He sacrificed everything to go on an adventure or a life time. Chris McCandless’s journey to the wild reflects the ideas American Romantic writers of the 1800’s wrote and only dreamed of doing. McCandless is admired by many for his adventurous spirit and courage. When reading into the Wild readers also see his sensitive and kind side. During his journey to Alaska Chris starts to form a bond with most of the people he meets. Chris’s mother, Billie McCandless talked about his compassion for others, “Chris didn’t understand how people could possibly be allowed to go hungry, especially in this country,’ says Billie, “he would rave about that kind of thing for hours.”(Krakauer 113) Emerson, a famous American Romantic writer once said “For something to be truly beautiful, the presence of a higher, namely, of the spiritual element is essential to its perfection.” (Emerson 490) This means to be completely beautiful your spirit must be beautiful too. Chris does not purposely go to nature to accomplish this idea but carries out it out through his journey. Most people cannot deal with being alone for long periods of time. That’s one of the reasons why Chris McCandless’s journey seem impossible to most. Chris’s sister Catherine was closest to him, “Even when we were little,” she says, “he was very to himself. He wasn’t antisocial he always had friends, and everybody liked him but he could go off and entertain himself for hours. He didn’t seem to need toys or friends. He could be alone without being lonely.” (Krakauer 107) Chris ability to be alone made him able to embark on his journey. Emerson said “I become a transparent eyeball. I am nothing. I see all. The currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am a part of God.” (Emerson 513) Emerson is saying that in this world we are not visible but we see everything because we are a part of god. Chris relates to Emerson because he went into nature alone and saw the beauties of the wild. “The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation” (Thoreau 843), said by another well known American Romantic writer of the 1800’s Henry David Thoreau. Chris McCandless relates to this because he did what he wanted not what was expected from him. Chris was a very great student and went to a good college where he got straight A’s. His future seemed already made out but instead of going with a job he would soon hate, Chris lived his dream. Although Chris McCandless’s journey could seem selfish and idiotic at times, he carried out American Romantic writers of the 1800’s ideals. Chris went through his journey optimistic, independent, and lived his life the way he wanted. Chris McCandless did what most people would look at as impossible; although his journey ended early Chris still accomplished what he set out for and left the world in nature. Chris McCandless’s journey was exactly what American Romantic writers wrote about.
Work Cited:
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. “Nature.” The Norton Anthology of American Literature. Sixth Edition. Julia Readhead, Anne Hellman, Brian Baker. London, England. W.W. and Norton Company, 2003. 482-571. Print.
Krakauer, Jon. Into the Wild. New York: Anchor, 1997. Print.
Thoreau, Henry David. “Civil Disobedience.” The Norton Anthology of American Literature. Sixth Edition. Julia Readhead, Anne Hellman, Brian Baker. London, England. W.W. and Norton Company, 2003. 834-900. Print.
Cited: Emerson, Ralph Waldo. “Nature.” The Norton Anthology of American Literature. Sixth Edition. Julia Readhead, Anne Hellman, Brian Baker. London, England. W.W. and Norton Company, 2003. 482-571. Print. Krakauer, Jon. Into the Wild. New York: Anchor, 1997. Print. Thoreau, Henry David. “Civil Disobedience.” The Norton Anthology of American Literature. Sixth Edition. Julia Readhead, Anne Hellman, Brian Baker. London, England. W.W. and Norton Company, 2003. 834-900. Print.
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