Into the Wild Blog # 5

Positive

1. Cared about the condition of the world.
2. Commitment (in ways)
3. Appreciation of nature

Negative

1. Inconsistent-unreliable
2. Lack of common sense
3. Unrealistic

Chris McCandless, in my mind was a “lost soul”. He struggled to find meaning in the world, and where he fit into this world. I suppose I would say his first positive attribute would be that he cared about “the condition of the world”.  He definitely did not know all the answers, but conditions of the homeless and hungry were a concern that bothered him. I think we live in a very narcissistic society today; I feel many people are far less sincere in their caring about others. It tends to be overly competitive and superficial. The priorities that he wanted to stand for are much more basic.

Overall, Chris could be committed to things. Family relationships were not exactly at the top of his list. However, when he was a runner, he was committed to his team.  As a student, he was very committed to his grades. This “positive”, seemed to maybe cause part of his downfall. Although he was capable of achieving expectations people had of him, he did not like the pressure. He also had different priorities than others.

He had loved nature, combined with his apparent “wanderlust” it drew him to explore and want to be part of the outdoors. We learn his Grandfather, had similar tendencies. The only thing is, I do not believe he put great thought into what would be needed to survive within a harsh environment.

Chris nonetheless was inconsistent. He did not have a strictly planned out path or plan.  He bounced around, sometimes it seemed aimlessly. He held job, but he did not do it in a reliable manner.

 To live as if Chris wanted to live would have entailed a great deal of preparation and knowledge. I think he lacked the common sense to realize this. He felt that it would come very easy. Then at some point, he comes to question his ability to be successful, but he does not change his plans, or prepare better. He simply proceeds, letting people know “he may not return”. This also displays how unrealistic he was with the overall plan.

Although, I generally have not changed my mind that McCandless had a degree of mental/emotional issues going on. Perhaps a personality disorder, which affected his relationships, as well as his brash decisions, and risk taking behavior. I think his lack of common sense and planning, seem to be a trait that is bound to stick out in the minds of many readers.

Krakauer saw images of himself in McCandless; in his ways and actions. When he was a young man he was “willful, self-absorbed, intermittently reckless, moody” (Krakauer, 134 paragraph 3). These adjectives could definitely be used to describe Chris too.

Krakauer goes on to say that “figures of male authority aroused in me a confusing medley of corked fury and hunger to please. If something captured my undisciplined imagination, I pursued it with a zeal bordering on obsession “ (134 paragraph 3).

The author also mentions that when he was obsessively climbing, he also read a lot; “a literary diet overly rich in the works of Nietzsche, Kerouac, and John Menlowe Edwards” (135, paragraph 2). Chris McCandless also read from some similar authors.

Krakauer also had a turbulent relationship with his father. “I had a knack for living up to the old man’s worst expectations”.(147, paragraph 2). He wanted to prove himself to his father, like climbing “The Devils Thumb”.  “we were similarly affected by the skewed relationships we had with our fathers” (155 paragraph 3).  He also tells that he retaliated against his father’s expectations of him going to college, by working as a carpenter. Chris, although he did obtain his undergrad degree, he left when they were all expecting him to enter law school.

He also explains in the last of page 155-156, the fact that at age 18, death was not a clear concept for him. At that age, he feels he felt that it was remote, if not impossible. This mentality is essentially normal for young people, many are not yet touched and familiar with the premise of “death”, they do not look at it as something that “could happen to them”, he feels Chris was probably like this too, and that his death would have been accidental not suicidal.

However, Krakauer differed from Chris in ways too. His obsession was mountain climbing in particular. He seemed more prepared by way of supplies and his known direction. He also began to miss human connections, the lack of intimacy bothered him much more than Chris. He seemed to be more rationale and therfore maybe that is why Krakauer lived to tell.