Chris attempts to give Gallien his watch and loose change but Gallien implores him to take leftover lunch so that he can eat well while in the woods as well as use them for warmth or dryness if necessary. Gallien drops Alex off on the edge of The Stampede Trail. But Chris refuses his advice, declaring that he will handle all obstacles on his own and without help from anyone else including family members with whom he has cut ties. Sensing that Alex is unprepared, Gallien attempts to dissuade him from hiking alone into the forest. He shows Gallien his crude map of the national park, pointing out his intended hiking route: The Stampede Trail. On the drive, Alex seems to be a charming and adventurous young man because he talks about nearly dying off the coast of Mexico during a storm. He also observed that his.22 caliber rifle wasn’t powerful enough to kill big animals. However, he agreed to drive him there because he noticed that his backpack was light and Chris’s boots were poor quality for the weather. Gallien thought that Alex was a Jack London fan who wanted to live in the Alaskan wilderness. The man introduced himself as Alex and said that he wanted to live off the land for a few months. Jim Gallien, who was driving on the outskirts of Fairbanks, Alaska, picked up a young hitchhiker. On April 27th, 1992, Alex wrote: “If this adventure proves fatal and you don’t ever hear from me again I want you to know that you are great man. Jon Krakauer begins the chapter by describing a postcard Alex sent to his friend Wayne in Carthage, South Dakota. Jon Krakauer invites the reader to form their own opinion on this matter, but at some point in his book it will become clear what his own convictions are regarding this story. Some people think he was brave, while others believe he was reckless and arrogant. There are many different opinions and letters about the story of Christopher McCandless. However, two mistakes ultimately led to his death. Krakauer believes that if McCandless had survived his journey into the Alaskan wilderness, he would have continued with his adventurous lifestyle. Krakauer argues that McCandless was not looking for a land of milk and honey, but rather he went to Alaska in search of adversity. Finally, Krakauer describes Chris as an extremely intense young man who had trouble fitting in with modern society because of his stubborn idealism about living a simple life without wealth or privilege like Leo Tolstoy did. In addition, while trying not to insert himself into the narrative too much, he does interrupt McCandless’ story with excerpts from his own youth. Despite claiming that he isn’t an impartial biographer of Chris McCandless’ life story, Krakauer reveals that he was personally affected by it. He also explores why young men are drawn to high-risk activities and how fathers and sons interact with each other.
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So, instead of just writing a book about how he died, this book is my research on why Chris McCandless died.”Īuthor Jon Krakauer describes the main theme of his book, which is to explore how wilderness has a hold on the American imagination. But as I researched more into him and his life, I was intrigued by what caused him to do what he did. “When McCandless died, I wrote an article about his death and the things he left behind. Then he disappeared off the grid by abandoning his car, giving up all of his possessions and burning all the cash in his wallet. He explains that McCandless grew up in an affluent suburb, was a star student and athlete, graduated from Emory University with honors, changed his name and donated all his money to charity. Outside magazine asked Jon Krakauer to write about the story of Chris McCandless. His body was found months later by hunters. He’s from an affluent family, but he decides to go on his own into the wilderness of Alaska. This book is about a young man who goes to Alaska and gets lost. 1-Page Summary of Into the Wild Overall Summary Author’s Note