Introduction to “Into the Wild”
The book “Into the Wild” is a non-fiction piece of work, written by Jon Krakauer. It details the life of Christopher McCandless, a young man who proceeded into the wilderness of Alaska in search for the meaning of the life.
The book was published in 1996 and it is an expansion of the article that Krakauer previously composed for the Outside magazine known as ‘Death of an Innocent’. Through number of interviews, individual testimonies, and Alex’s journals and photographs, Krakauer recreates the journey of the man who would become Alexander Supertramp from a privileged college graduate to a mysterious vagabond.
The novel describes the process of McCandless’s personal development and his rejection of the social order. He disbands his wealth, donates his money to the charity, and moves on a cross-country journey of the America, culminating in his death in Alaska. The novel deals with the issues of self reliance, appeal of the utopia, the process of finding one’s place in the world, and the relationships within the family.
Themes in “Into the Wild“
1- Individualism and Nonconformity
“Two years he walks the earth. No phone, no pool, no pets, no cigarettes. Ultimate freedom. An extremist. An aesthetic voyager whose home is the road.”
The passage shows the McCandless’s desire for freedom and a longing to break free from the conventional way of life. He wants to escape the ties of contemporary society, to become a simple man, a wanderer.
This aspect makes him a nonconformist who does not want to be like everybody else and has to live his life in his way.
2- The Allure of the Wilderness
“The very basic core of a man’s living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun.”
The theme “allure of the wilderness” has been vividly discussed in the book. McCandless wants to embrace the wild because he ought to experience the life in its natural form and have an adventurous life.
The wilderness signifies a vast and pristine world where he can escape from the confinement of society and get closer to the natural world. This theme captures the beauty of the wild, and the role of nature in changing the lives of the people.
3- The Quest for Identity
“I now walk into the wild.”
The imagery of the harsh Alaskan wilderness is associated with the road, which actually symbolizes McCandless’s search for the meaning of his life or his individual identity. Changing his life by killing his old self and walking into the abyss of the desert, he pursues the meaning of life and his role in it.
This single realized profound statement explained his intention to this journey and readiness to accept whoever is waiting for him with the next challenges/revelations.
See also: Themes in The Chimney Sweeper
4- The Impact of Family Dynamics
“I’m going to paraphrase Thoreau here… rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth. I’m going to find an unfiltered experience, the truth of the pure, raw wilderness.”
Another aspect that contributes to the quest of McCandless is a bad relationship with his family and especially his father. His need for ‘unfiltered experience’ and ‘truth’ is, in some ways, a response to the ‘fake’ and ‘crazy’ state in his family.
This theme analyze the role of family and the impact which it have on his actions and giving him the appropriate mentality.
5- The Dangers of Idealism
“I have had a happy life and thank the Lord. Goodbye and may God bless all!”
This last note indicates the young man’s ponderings and optimism reflected in the story and the dangers of extremism. Despite he faced hardships, still he did not change his ideals and beliefs.
His idealism was the root of his problem because he did not pay enough attention to the fact that the wilderness can be dangerous and finally ended up dying. This theme reflects on the fine line between greatness and foolishness in a character.
Quotes in “Into the Wild”
Quote#1
“Happiness is only real when shared.”
This central idea from the real-life events is taken from McCandless’ diary and reveals one of the chief insights he gained during his time in the wilderness.
He accepts that although he has no desire for association and wants to be free and on his own, human being associations are vital for happiness. This is a moment of enlightenment that calls for fellowship and strongly detests the American Super unbundling ideology that isolates everyone from everyone else.
Quote#2
“Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth.”
The quote has been taken from Henry David Thoreau encapsulates the outlook on life of the protagonist. Berger is more interested in the facts and actuality than in success and happiness as defined within the framework of the typical American Dream. This indicates the striving for an honest life despite all the hardships, the refusal from the generally accepted norms and comfort.
Quote#3
“The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences.”
In this quote, one can decipher how important the aspect of the adventure was to McCandless. He thinks that only actions and objectives, creating new impressions and tests can bring happiness and meaning to one’s life. This perception is evident of why he lets go of a comfortable life for the unknown quest in the wilderness.
Quote#4
“I now walk into the wild.”
The statement formally initiates McCandless’s last journey into the frozen wilds of Alaska. It symbolizes his resolution and preparedness to meet his unknown kind, which is best suited at liberty and spiritual awakening. It is a new phase of his life literally but also figuratively, as this marks the new start of the protagonist.
Quote#5
“I have had a happy life and thank the Lord. Goodbye and may God bless all!”
McCandless expresses appreciation for life and says his final ‘good bye’ to the world. Even though he is in a very critical situation and his chances of coming out alive or even in one piece are very rare, he is calm and does not complain. This quote sheds light to his invincibility and the spirit persisted in him even when he was in the throes of death.
Summary of “Into the wild“
Jon Krakauer’s non-fiction novel reveals fascinating and heart wrenching story of Christopher McCandless, a eager man who voluntarily quits ordinary life trying to find true meaning out in the wild. Having grown up a rich man’s son in Virginia, he became disillusioned with materialism and social expectations.
The basic themes described in the book came out of an idea that the author, after graduating from Emory University in 1990, and using money that he earned, gave it to charity, cut off all of his belongings and lived in the wilderness assuming the fictitious name of Alexander Supertramp.
In his interaction with people, McCandless made an impact as he was an optimistic man with noble and unyielding personality of a man who wants to live life to the fullest.
Throughout the voyage of the Ross’s car McCandless traveled through the desert of the Southwest, the fields of South Dakota and even Mexico. He only lives from day to day performing various odd jobs that are available, eating whatever he could scavenge, and staying in whatever place he could find either by paying for it or with the help of some people he chance to meet.
His last plan was to go to Alaska, and get lost surviving only on what he would find in the bush. He arrived at the Stampede Trail in Alaska in April 1992 on foot by hitchhiking; Chris then built his habitation from an old abandoned bus commonly referred to as the “Magic bus”.
At first the protagonist experienced happiness and satisfaction with the independence, which he received in the process of the survival, as well as the natural views that amazed him.
As the time passed, the life became more problematic for him. He was starving as he could not find enough food to eat; his food supply had severely decreased over the period of a few days. In July 1992, he tried to exit the wilderness, but the Teklanika River was no longer fordable due to melting snow; thus, he failed.
Isolated and progressively getting weaker, he ate plants that are poisonous and his nutrient deficiency deepened. Nevertheless, he persisted in chronicling his aspects in his journal, although he was visibly and mentally declining quickly.
In August 1992, he wrote his last entry, wherein he expressed his gratitude for his life and departed from the world. His body was found by moose hunters on the 6th of September, 1992.
Krakauer’s story presents several themes including individualism, the temptation of the wild, identity search, family influence and the cost of idolization. Casting the interviews of the people who knew McCandless and based on the available data based on his journals and photographs, Krakauer presents a rather complex picture of the boy’s life.
To conclude, the book “Into the Wild” is an inspirational and at the same time can also be seen as a warning about the dangers of the quest for freedom while robbing life of rules and responsibilities.
