Into the Wild 1

Audrey Jolly

 

 

Into the Wild, written by Jon Krakauer, is the true story of a young man named Chris McCandless, who ventures off into the wilderness to "get away from society," and to "rid himself of material things." He was seeking adventure, to test his limits, and live out his dreams inspired by Tolstoy and Thoreau. 

He was a bright, intelligent student, graduating from Emory University as a star student and athlete.  He was raised by wealthy parents, living in an upper middle class neighborhood.  Although he was physically comfortable, not all families are perfect, for his father had an affair.  This effected Chris deeply, and he was never really close to his family.  After graduating college, he announced to his parents that he was traveling for the summer in his old, beat up yellow Datsun car, and they never heard from him again. 

Chris McCandless's abandonment of all material things is an example of how he embraced asceticism.  He preferred to live with as little as possible, maintaining discipline.  He didn't even carry a map, which proved to be fatal in the end, and when he ventured into the Alaskan wilderness, he was barely prepared to survive the harsh, bitter winters.  McCandless didn't even have the proper winter boots.  He abandoned his car, the yellow Datsun, in the desert.  Americans value their cars, yet he left it.  He even burned all his money in the desert dirt, and before leaving on his journey, donated all his savings to charity.  Living simply is okay, but choosing to live with nothing, and being unprepared to survive in the wilderness is the hubris that McCandless displays many times, and ultimately kills him.