Rebellious youth

“It is hardly unusual for a young man to be drawn to a pursuit considered reckless by his elders; engaging in risky behavior is a rite of passage in our culture no less than in most others. Danger has always held a certain allure. That, in large part, is why so many teenagers drive too fast and drink too much and take too many drugs, why it has always been so easy for nations to recruit young men to go to war. It can be argued that youthful derring-do is in fact evolutionarily adaptive, a behavior encoded in our genes. McCandless, in his fashion, merely took risk-taking to its logical extreme”(Krakauer182).

Inspiration or Fool?

This passage justifies McCandless's behavior that was labeled unique or unusual. Though he lived in a way that very few people do, the driving force behind his behavior is not unusual. This also reflects the idea that if he survived, he would of been looked at with admiration and considered to have accomplished something very impressive. Because he dies, however, many critics have seen his adventure only as arrogance and stupidity.

Young Wild & Free

“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”(Krakauer155).

Inspiration or Fool?

The quote above illustrates Krakauer's feelings about McCandless and how he believes that McCandless had the common misperception that many young adults have in life. The misperception that if you really want something and go after it, you'll be rewarded. Krakauer went to Alaska because his young minded self felt the need to, without fully assessing the logic or consequences of his decision. He connected actions with an idea that they would solve his problems and uncertainty within his life, when fulfilling his desires, merely did nothing. Chris's decisions at such a young age were out of desire to fix what was not right in his life, like his abusive father and live in a fashion that he dreamed of for years. His passion to live in an uncivilized environment and his disagreement with society overrode the cons behind his decision to leave normality.  

Just because you don't receive an answer, does not mean you are being ignored

"Please return all mail I receive to the sender. It might be a very long time before I return South. If this adventure proves fatal and you don't even hear from me again, I want you to know you're a great man. I now walk into the wild"(Krakauer 69).

Inspiration or Fool?

Many readers have used the quote above as evidence that his trek into the wild was suicidal in intent, but this seems highly unlikely to me. I believe this acknowledgment of the risk and what is at stake shows that his arrogance and stubbornness was just as extreme as many portrayed it to be. I don't think he wants to die by any means but I do think he knows how dangerous this adventure will be and that the margin for error is very slim. He is willing to take these risks in return for the real experience of living a independent and free life which he's never truly experienced. In an effort to find himself and live his true meaning of life McCandless was willing to leave everything behind and embark on the adventure of his life.