In the opening pages of Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer's account of the journey undertaken by Christopher "Alexander Supertramp" McCandless, we are introduced to a young man who is in search of truth and beauty--something that he beleives can only be found in the unfettered existence and pure wilderness of the American frontier. At the end of chapter three, Krakauer does well to sum up the philosophy that inspired McCandless' break from the constraints of the "civilized world":
[...]The trip was to be an odyssey in the fullest sense of the word, an epic journey that would change everything. He had spent the previous four years, as he saw it, preparing to fulfill an absurd and onerous duty: to graduate from college. At long last he was unencumbered, emancipated from the stifling world of his parents and peers, a world of abstraction and security and material excess, a world in which he felt grievously cut off from the raw throb of existence.
Driving west out of Atlanta, he intended to invent an utterly new life for himself, one in which he would be free to wallow in unfiltered experience. To symbolize the complete severance from his previous life, he even adopted a new name. No longer would he answer to Chris McCandless; he was now Alexander Supertramp, master of his own destiny. (22-23)
In this way, McCandless voiced his protest against what he saw were the excesses of modern society, bound by an irrational reliance on money and business and industry and war and politics. Only when man ventured into the unknown, free of the illusions created by false societal ideals of fulfillment could he truly discover the human spirit, the God in everything.
That said, I would like you to, in a well-developed paragraph, share your initial thoughts upon reading the opening chapters of Into the Wild. Please be sure to quote the text as a way to illustrate any points you make in reference to the story. The format for doing is would be as follows: Krakauer writes, "...." (#).
This blog response is due by classtime, Wednesday, April 1, 2009.
Remember to place a heading at the top of your response:
Your Name
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April 1, 2009
In the meantime, please continue reading through chapter seven.
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25 comments:
John Yost
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April 1, 2009
For my whole life I have been taught that God is guiding you, not saying that there is nothing called destiny. I believe that God was guiding Chris through his journey as a spiritual awakening. Looking at the story from a reality perspective it seems incredibly stupid to do the things that he did, from not taking good gear to food. To him these were just material things that aren't needed.
I think that Chris was not crazy or misguided because he was very intelligent. I think that he was pure in his quest for one-ness with God and the basics of the world. Many would say he was crazy, I'm not one of them.
Into the Wild author Jon Krakauer writes,"...he entertained no illusions that he was trekking into a land of milk and honey..." In this quote Krakauer gives away one of the true purposes of Chris McCandless's strange actions. It's almost like Chris is expecting himself to die even though his incredible journey can begin. The real point is that Chris could care less about his own well being, the reason he embarked on the trip in the first place. In the bitter cold and misery of the Alaskan tundra Chris found his own land of milk and honey, his promised land. Not many of us would have the courage to give up the mostly normal lives that we live today, not to mention succumbing to the harsh polar environments Chris willingly made himself experience. He might be crazy, but Chris has made the decision that he thinks is right, ignoring the persuasions of his good friends not to do it. Instead of seeing the extreme pain that comes out of the situation, Chris sees God, the only thing he was ever looking for.
Matthew Miklasevich
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April 1, 2009
Krakauer writes, "The trip was to be an odyssey in the fullest sense of the word, an epic journey that would change everything." (22) Chris McCandless went on this journey to find out who he was, and the experience would strengthen his relationship with himself and God. I do not think he was crazy, but sometimes he made some decisions that were not too smart. When he prepared to enter the Alaskan wilderness with only a ten pound bag of rice and a small .22 caliber rifle, which would be almost useless. Although he wanted to be completely seperated from civilization, he should have saved some money for food. Burning his wallet had much spiritual significance, but did not play out well when he almost died of starvation numerous times. I do not think he is crazy, but sometimes his quest for isolation and self-awareness got in the way of his better judgement.
Nick Durkin
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April 1, 2009
So far I think this book is a capturing and interesting story. After reading the first couple chapters I was surprised that Chris would leave his home to live in the wild. Krakauer writes, "He arranged all his paper currency in a pile on the sand, a pathetic little stack of ones and fives and twenties-and put a match to it." He lived in a nice home and environment, he wasn't poor or abused. His family had lots of money and they were well educated. Chris left his family and most of his possesions behind without telling them where he was going. I felt it would have been hard for Chris to decide that he would leave his money and family behind and move out to the wilderness.
I don't believe he was crazy, but rather tired of all the noise and distaction civilization has to offer. He moved away to escape our greedy politicians, gluttunous lifestyles, and false idols, and find God in the natural beauty of the Earth.
Cam Brown
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April 1, 2009
I've learned that many different people can find God in many different ways. Some worship, some take action, and some study theology and religion. They all have their own way of connecting with God. In my opinion, Chris had a very unusual, but sound, way of doing this. He decided that he could find God through nature and suffering. I feel that he had the right idea that most would not have gone through with. This show his perseverance to become one with God. He relinquished his material riches to become a richer spirit, which is a large step for any person to take. This was just in his eyes. He might have been a crazy human, but he was a dedicated spirit.
Michael Uranker
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April 1, 2009
So far I think this book can be guiding and misguiding. It can be guiding by talking about a spiritual awakening. It can also guide you on the right path. It can be misguiding though by telling a person to leave their home and live in the wild. It can also be misguiding by telling some one to leave all their personal possesions.
Stephen Stuthers
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March 31,2009
The beginning few chapters of the book surprised me. I didn't think it was possible to give up, litterly, everything and go out to find god in the wild. Speaking as the person of Alex, Jon KraKauer, writes, " Alex admitted he only had a ten pound bag of rice in his backpack" (page 5). I think he pretty much was going out on a wild adventure so he could find god and also to become closer with the environment. I thnk he might of been insane. one other way he could get closer to god is to go to church and pray or camp out in the woods if he wanted to live in nauture. he didn't have to go to the extreme.
Jordan Edmunds
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April 1, 2009
God works in magnificent ways,is what i believe this book is trying to convey from reading through the first couple chapters. I believe God worked in a unexplainable way for Chris, he gave up all his money, and basically everything we would call necessary in ours lives today, to go live in the wild and experience God in nature. One example Krakauer writes, "I don't want to know what time it is. I don't want to know what day it is or where I am. None of that matters"(Pg 7).I believe krakauer used this passage to show how we should put everything we have into God's trust and he will always care for us.
In the opening chapters of Into the Wild, we met a character named Chris McCandless. He thought that in the modern world, people saw God through materials. Eventually Chris couldn't take it anymore, he decided to go into the wilderness of Alaska to be one with nature and with God. He only lasted there for a few months but during those months he was with God.
I do believe that Chris was out of mind. He didn't have to go into the Wilderness of Alaska to be with god. He could have just been with his family and be with God with them.
Matt Doherty
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April 1, 2009
Christopher McCandless entered the backwoods of Alaska with insufficient supplies and a specific mind set. He had a foggy vision to leave society and embrace nature at once. This task seemed possible to a hopeful young man fixed with a goal. The Chris that Graduated college with honors was gone and had been replaced by Alex. A young man on a quest for enlightenment in the wilderness. Chris was tired of a conformity and a design filled life. There were many questions that he sought for in nature. Alex gave Chris a different view of the questions entirely. He no longer was tied to society. Alex Supertramp enabled the separation he desired. With connections left to civilization Alex was able to search for the answers.
Vaughn Franz
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March 31, 2009
Christopher McCandless gave up his material and monetary possessions to live a life that denounced the materialism in society but also brought him into a deeper spiritual connection with nature and God. I can understand his decision to immerse himself in natural beauty. I think that as a person is around the most beautiful of creation they may be able to better understand a connection with God. However it would be difficult for me personally to put up such barriers between myself and other people. While i believe that being close to nature is important I also think that developing close personal relationships with people is also a necessary part of being close to God. Also i think that the way his lifestyle denounced consumerism is an important thing for people to understand. People need to realize that living in such great excess is not necessary and that living below your means is a good thing.
Alexander Supertramp entered the wild in search of something that he had always felt was missing. I can understand, and to some extent relate, to this life changing decision that he made. His entire life he saw the world as someone looking in at us, as opposed to being raised on the idea that money is king and accepting it, he decided to challenge that thought. At first I think that it is difficult for most of us to understand his decision because the life that society has formed for us is all that we know. However, if you take a deeper look into what Alex actually had on his mind his decision was not based on insanity, in fact quite the opposite. He was searching for a life away from the insanity that we call human life.
Teddy Larkin
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April 1, 2009
Christopher McCandless is a young man who believes he has been called by God to perform a specific task. I believe that Chris is a very determined person who would stop at nothing to reach his goal no matter how difficult, long, or extraneous it may seem. Krakauer writes, "He was what you'd call extremely ethical. He set pretty high standards for himself." (page 18).
I would not agree with his decisions to become homeless, a hitch-hiker, and bum unless he had not believed he had been called by God. If he had not been called, instead of going into the wilderness i think he should have helped out the poor or the homeless people himself. When he goes off and starves himself its almost like he is either committing suicide or he is just wasting the live God gave him to help others, not to go off and live alone like a hermit off of the land. He was a very bright and successful young man and had much more potential than what he became.
However this was his personal decision and I respect him for it. It is almost like the one example of the NFL football star who ended up going to Iraq as a soldier and dying for his country instead of playing football. He also like Christopher McCandless believed that was what he was meant to do even though he had much more potential as a football star.
He followed the calling that God had for him like Brother Peach becoming a brother, I hope that one day soon I will be able to discover my own calling.
I believe that what McCandless did was not only for God truly, but for himself. The action that he made, taking all of his money and giving it to charity, could not have been for just God because he seemed to need some self assurance of God's presence in his life. His quest too was to not only find God, but to establish unity with him through their relationship. It had to have been tough being a young man, and just giving and throwing everything away. But to do this, the man had to have at least some intelligence. This move also needs a deeply inspired movement to pull through, and that movement to McCandless was God.
Kevin Petnuch
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April 1, 2009
When I started Into Yhe Wild I was expecting a little bit of a diffretn story. I was very surpised that somone that young would want to leave his own family. As I read the book though, I realized what circumstances he was in. I do not blame him for leaving but,he should have sent letters or talked to his family while gone. He gave up what most would strive for and I think most people would think he was crazy for doing so. If they read the book I think their opinion on what he did would change dramatically.
Chris McNulty
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April 1, 2009
When I first started reading Into the Wild, I was very impressed with the way that Jon Krakauer described the experiences of Christopher McCandless. The tale of McCandless leaving his posh, comfortable life for one of living on the road with no money, eventually no car, and depending on complete strangers' generosity is very intriguing, especially the circumstances of his death. The way that Jon Krakauer writes the book in 1st person, like you are there with McCandless, also makes for a very exciting and intriguing book, while it also teaches the reader several lessons about life. All of these make for a very good book, and one that is very hard to put down. I am thoroughly enjoying reading it.
Patrick Doyle
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April 1, 2009
I think that the book "Into the Wild" is a facinating read so far. Chris McCandless seems to have a very interesting story, but it's a shame that he's not here to tell it himself because I would like to find out what's going on in his mind. Sure, he wrote in the journal, but he couldn't have portrayed everything he was feeling, through written words. As with this blog, I think that it is easier to speak and get a point accross then to write, so my idea is that we might be missing some vital information. Anyway, this is a facinating read, mainly because of its main plotline, but also because of its sub-plots. I would like the first few chapters to focous on "Alex"'s family too, because I would like to learn more about them. All in all, I think that this book is a very good read that really prys into the real element of human nature.
Conor Coleman
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April 1, 2009
Christopher McCandless, or Alexader Supertramp, is an symbol of freedom to many people. His journey and actions have called others to "wake up" in a sense, to realize how materialistic we truly are, how unnecessary most of what we have or want really is, and also to explore our surrondings and not just drone on with our daily activities. His actions of abandoning all he had and knew and entering the wild, or unknown, seems to some as a heroic act but to others one of selfishness and insanity. How could they be? Ridding one's self of ignorance is no act of insanity, rather one of enlightenment. If only all had the same opportunity as Supertramp, the world would be a far more cultured and respectable place. Actions such as McCandless's should be commemorated, not frowned upon.
George Tsounos
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April 1, 2009
The begining of this book suprized me becuase i really did not think it could be possible to just do what he did. I mean give up your whole life, give away your stuff,give your money to charity, and give up the life of a hitch hicker.I mean he have good grades, and money.I think he was crazy but maybe that is what he wanted to do it is his life.
This guy struck me as crazy. I mean who would leave away society for Alaska. It is kind of sad that he died. This book has a good story but the Chris appeared to be a little bit unstable.
When I was reading the beginning of Into the Wild, it struck how confident Chris McCandless was. He was almost cocky. It was like he wanted more than anything else to get away from society and be with God. This really impressed me. I first thought he was crazy, but then I realized that us thinking him crazy is just what he wanted to get away from. In our sciety, his acts seem crazy, but really, he wanted to prove that they were not by surviving. Even though he did die, he still proved a valid point, that someone colud do such a thing so willingly and freely.
Francesco Speziali
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Religion
April 1, 2009
After I realised that the only gruesome and controversial information was the second sentance of the book (Krakauer writes: Four months later his decomposed body was found by a party of moose hunters.), I became much less enthusiastic about the story.
I thought that although Christopher was very couragous and spiritually strong, being able to ignore all instinct and past memories and embark on a selfless mission to explore Alaska, what dissapointed me is that he only got himself killed. He gave away all of his money to charities, which is honorable, but anybody can do that. Then he walked, hitchhiked, and drove top Alaska, and died. In his letters and messages, he claimed he did this as a sign of discipline and selflessness, but the fact that he achieved nothing extraordinary by doing so affected me. He did not save anybody or anything, he did not perform his actions to help others. We can learn from his spiritual strength and willpower, but following in his footsteps will land us dead in the middle of Alaska
RyanA.Smith
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Rell011.o6
April3,2009
S.O.SI need your help.I injured, near death,and too weak to hide out of here.I am All Alone, this is No Joke.In the name of God, Please remain to save me.
I think that Chris McCandless was crazy for trying to go to Alaska.Even when Sim Gallien warned him about the bad weather conditions. Sim Gallien a native of Alaska, told Chris that he didn`t have enough food,or the right equipment for his adventure in Alaska. Then, when he was about to die, he ask God to save his life.
Stephen Stuthers
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April 8, 2009
In chapter four, what are three things that Walsh finds in the floorboards? What do you think they symbolize?
One of the items he finds in the floorboards is a Gianini guitar. the guitar is a way to express yourself and how you feel. when he left behind the guitar he left behing his self and some of his emotions. another thing that was in the floorboards is $4.93. He is leaving behind money to show that he really left with the bare minamum. If he could not help the pore with money he was going to live like the poor. the last thing chris finds in the floorboards is a football. he is leaving behind his childhood. all the time spent with his freinds. he is leaving behind a bunch of good memories.
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