Chris Mccandless

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“It is easy, when you are young, to believe that what you desire is no less than what you deserve, to assume that if you want something badly enough, it is your God-given right to have it. When I decided to go to Alaska that April, like Chris McCandless, I was a raw youth who mistook passion for insight and acted according to an obscure, gap-ridden logic. I thought climbing the Devils Thumb would fix all that was wrong with my life. In the end, of course, it changed almost nothing. But I came to appreciate that mountains make poor receptacles for dreams. And I lived to tell my tale.” Into the Wild, 155 This passage sets the tone for Into the Wild. Chris McCandless is an adult, but still very much a child. His stubbornness and selfish behavior…show more content…
He was highly intelligent & successful with his undertakings. He had close relationships with his family & friends but especially his little sister Carine. Their personalities were very similar, both energetic, self-assured, and high-achievers. However, Carine was very sociable, forgiving of people’s faults, and happily fit into normal society. Chris’s life started to change after he graduated from high school. He sets out alone on a cross country road trip. On this trip, Chris goes back to visit his old neighborhood, El Segundo, California and uncovers a family secret. His father had another family. He discovers his father continued his relationship with his first wife long after he was with Chris’s mom, Billie. His father, Walt had another son with his first wife. This betrayal was the catalyst that pushed Chris over the edge from a little eccentric to extremely radical. In Chapters 12 and 13, Chris starts to separate himself from his family. His normal happy personality starts to darken and he begins to pull away from his friends & family. He resents his parents and their lifestyle. By the time Chris graduates from college he is boiling with fury. He casts aside his upper class upbringing, as well as his most of his worldly possessions. Chris believed that you only needed what you could carry on your back. When Chris leaves on his journey, he doesn’t share his plans with his family. He just packs up and leaves.…show more content…
Even in these relationships he maintains a distance. One of the first friendships that Chris makes on the road is Jan Burres and her boyfriend Bob. Jan sees him picking berries on the side of the road and stops to see if he needs a ride. Jan is estranged from her own son and takes on a motherly role for Chris. She feels the she can look out for Chris and teach him about being on the road. She wants to take care of Chris because she would want someone to do the same for her son. On their first encounter, Chris ends up staying and camping with them for a week. Jan thought that after he left they would never see or hear from him again. However, Chris made a point of staying in touch. A consideration that he didn’t do for his own family. Chris catches up to Jan at the Slab. She has a booth at the flea market and Chris happily pitches in to help her sell books. She says that Chris, was no recluse: "He had a good time when he was around people, a real good time. At the swap meet he'd talk and talk and talk to everybody who came by. He must have met six or seven dozen people in Niland, and he was friendly with every one of them.” Into the Wild, 36 The minute Jan starts pressing Chris about his family and expressing her thoughts about his Alaskan journey he shuts down. Jan offers to give Chris money as well as items that he may need on his “odyssey”. He initially

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