Mccandless Wild Characteristics

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Chris McCandless shows different charecteristics throughout the story. His curiosity about the wild leads to traits such rebeliousness, uniqueness, and distancy. McCandless reads Tolstoy and Thoreau which inspires him to go into the wild. McCandless tries to follow in their footstep by living the same life style in the wild. McCandless believes he doesn’t have to follow society rules which describes his disobedience. Walt McCandless states, “He didn’t think the odds applied to him. We were always trying to pull him back from the edge”(11). McCandless believes he can create his own rules. McCandless goes to the wild because he doesn’t have to worry about society putting restrictions on his life. Krakauer mentions, “Lab reports had to be written …show more content…
Krakauer states, “[Chris] the teenage Tolstoyan, believed that wealth was shameful, corrupting, inherently evil …”(113). Considereing the fact he was born into capitalism he believes there is no need for money or any sort of materialism. This explains why he abandons his car and burns his money. Kraukauer notes, “ McCandless took inequities to heart. He became obsessed with racial oppression in South Africa”(113). This makes him unique because most teengaers do not visualize themselves in getting involved with political issues in different countries.
Krakauer makes it seems as if McCandless wants to forget about his past when he explains how McCandless wants to remain distant from his parents. McCandless writes, “I’m going to divorce them as my parents once and for all and never speak to either of those idiots again as long as Ilive” (64). From this letter it proves that he wants to separated from his family. Going to Alaska gives him the space he wants from his parents. Krakauer acknowleges, “To symbolize the complete severance from his previous life, he even adopted a new name…” (23). Clearly McCandless doesn’t want people to search for him. He wants to become a different person which will help him forget his past.
McCandless’s purpose of going to the wild is to get away from rules, his parents, and the corruption of wealth. The wild helps him find his self because no one is telling him
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