Chris Mccandless: A Loyal Follower of Transcendentalist Philosophy

In the film Into The Wild, Christopher McCandless sets out on a journey across the United States to Alaska to escape from the life that the average American goes through everyday. The film of Christopher McCandless going to Alaska while being completely unprepared sparks controversy among people. Chris set out on a journey foolishly, but he had great plans for himself and the wilderness.

Some people believe he left everything behind because he is confused and frustrated, who was blinded by his own pride to realize that his journey was a suicide mission. Other people believe he is a hero by showing his bravery to escape from standard life and live the life he wanted to live instead of the life his parents wanted him to fulfill.
Chris struggled to accept his family and the problems they faced, and later on decided to completely abandon his parents, sister, and friends. Chris has what Americans view as a ‘perfect’ life and Chris was seen as a fool to run away from the American epitome of success and flee to a life of being homeless and poor in the middle of nowhere. I believe Chris was in search of something more than just being tired of his normal life. Throughout the film Chris exemplifies his adventurous, strong-willed, and charismatic personality. Chris followed a Transcendentalist philosophy, by reading Thoreau and Emerson. Chris was a brave and fearless man who took the fate of his own life into his own hands.

Chris went out in the real world on his own to live his life by his own rules. Chris did not care what other people did, he did not want to live the way society wanted him to. By rejecting money, cars,weapons, and other things that could have helped keep him alive longer, he proved himself to be an independent young man. When Chris decided to go into the wild to live, he wanted to start a new life to find out who he is. His sister Carine said, “Chris knew exactly who he was. He was searching for a place in this world that he fit into, where he could be true to himself.”(Into The Wild) He didn’t want to think about the meaning of life, he wanted to live it for himself. He went traveling to find true happiness and beauty. That is the reason he did all what he did.

Lastly, Christopher McCandless went “Into the Wild” to discover what is summed up in his quote “happiness is only real when shared.”Before Chris died, I think he found exactly what he was looking for. I think that he felt that there was beauty and happiness in the wilderness, that there wasn’t in his life back at home. He had to begin a new life in order to obtain what he was searching for. I believed that he finally found a place where he belonged and fit in. Though I can see where Chris’s critics come from, I agree with what Jon Krakauer says that Chris wasn’t a nutcase, sociopath, or an outcast. I think he was a brave, fearless, heroic, and inspirational person that could’ve lived a life he loved.