Monday, March 21, 2011

Christopher McCandless Final Assessment

In the Author's note of Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer presents an argument that has ensued from the release of McCandless's adventures into print. He states: "Some readers admired the boy immensely for his courage and noble ideals; others fulminated that he was a reckless idiot, a wacko, a narcissist who perished out of arrogance and stupidity – and was undeserving of the considerable media attention he received."

After reading about Chris McCandless in Into the Wild, I have come to my own conclusions on the subject. My general attitude towards McCandless contains elements of both sides of the argument.

I admire him for his ability to dream and being able to follow his dream. He is one of the few who will stand up for what he believes, despite adversity and critisim.

But, I also believe McCandless was reckless and irresponsible. He thought alot about his journey and how it would affect him, yet he never seemed to ponder on how much it would affect the people around him, should he fail. He also had a slight arrogance problem and did not want to admit he was wrong.

Overall, I believe that McCandless was wrong in his actions. His motives were pure, but the consequences and real life effects were not worth the journey. He may have gaind special insight, but at what cost? The ends did not justify the means.

This is a side note, but I do not believe McCandless was undeserving of the media attention he recieved. I think Chris was wrong, but telling his story can help us all learn from it. I believe everyone has a story and that their story should be told (if they wish), if just to have it out there for someone to learn or be affected by.

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