Into The Wild Materialism

The corrupt and ignorant society that has shaped the world today can either be ignored by those who follow in the footsteps of the diminishing culture, or noticed and opposed by those who encounter the “real world” and seek to remove themselves from it. Materialistic matters can blind those who obsess over a perfect society, leading people farther away from a natural truth. Though he grew up in a household that worshipped materialistic items on top of lavish, temporary objects, Christopher McCandless was one of the few people in his culture who sought to change the corrupt world and exile himself from it completely. Into the Wild is a true story about a man who seeks happiness in things that cannot be touched or even seen. Its author, Jon
Moreover, it angered him. Instead of existing in this lifestyle and coping with the forced boundaries, Chris walks into the wild and leaves his “privileged background” (“A Critical Review of Into the Wild”) behind him without a second glance. Chris spent his entire life in search of something more, something beyond the large house and extravagant cars; he tried to, “discover what was authentic and what was not, to test himself, to experience the raw throb of life without a safety net,” (Krakauer). When reading Into the Wild, audiences can choose to read across the surface of the novel or to dig beyond the obvious interpretations. Hints throughout Krakauer’s story pinpoint how McCandless rid of all his unnecessary, privileged materialistic items. For instance, when McCandless vacates his car, Krakauer implies that the abandonment is solely due to the car being flooded. Audiences can infer that the leaving behind of Chris’ prized Datsun had to have been his final let-go of the artificial society that he kept holding onto, following the burning of his college savings, license, and social security card. McCandless’s rebellion and endless fight against over-rated materialism lead readers to believe that “McCandless desired truth before money, which explains why he tried to invent a new economy for
Transcendentalism ties into Chris’ despise for materialism; Chris’ plan to donate “his $20,000–plus trust fund to charity, left his family with no word of his whereabouts and set off on a two-year journey to transform himself,” (Karlinsky) represents the start of his transcendentalist movement. Chris gives up these things in exchange for a pure nature and mindset that does not rely on a false society and culture. On his quest, Chris connects with people he believes have a pure soul and happy heart without a construct society to rely on to feel content. Additionally, readers can infer throughout the novel that Chris avoids questions from such new friends about his parents in a slight attempt to forget about them (Vera). “Transcendentalists like Chris want to escape the confines of society,” (“From Into the Wild…”) in a grand attempt to rely mainly on nature and pure societies and people. Chris expresses little respect to the people in his past and classifies them as fraud supporters of a false society; he tries to distance himself from the people of his past to move on with his new morals. Krakaur and other researchers alike can conclude that Chris’ society-based background was another factor that continued to push him into the