Blog #5

When I was told that I would have to read Into The Wild, a book about a crazy kid, who ran from civilization to become ‘one with nature’ like a crazed jungle man, was “Oh, God. Please no!” But, I soon began to become fond of Chris’ outlandish Alaskan adventure. The thought of a person surviving (more like perishing) off the land brought back memories of my childhood backyard survival adventures. The book was absolutely worth reading. It would have been more enjoyable if Krakauer had more information about Chris, rather than himself or the other misfortunate, senseless, and eccentric travelers. The book made me think of how we really do depend and adhere to modern technology. Most people would be disoriented and lost without their beloved iPhones, laptops, or game consoles. However, Chris is one of the exceptions to the rule. When he schemed of his departure, he did not second guess himself, he just left. Nowadays, we have lost touch with our primal roots. It also made me think of how everyone, no matter how many times they deny it, need interaction and human contact. Overall, it is a very good and interesting book. It is very deep and moving, but a serious note to take is: Do not go into the wild with ignorance and a lack of skill!

Krakauer illustrates that Chris McCandless was known to almost effortlessly make friends and acquaintances on his travels. What do I think of him? I feel that to like someone as a person, requires actually meeting someone, not reading about them. But, if I had gotten to know him before he met his demise, I would probably like him, as I like most people. Chris’ critics say that he is a narcissistic, ignorant, naïve, mentally ill idealist. I would have to say that I do agree that he is naïve and ignorant of survival, but I don’t believe he is narcissistic or mentally ill. I can somewhat see their reasoning behind the belief that he was a narcissist, but normal people just do not leave their family, without telling them, for no good reason. One reason for leaving could be that there was an emotional strain between Chris and his parents. Krakauer says that Chris’ father had made some mistakes in the past. He was not mentally ill because he was most likely an impressionable kid who dreamed of living out the stories of his favorite literary heroes, as Krakauer says. For those who knew Chris, or Alexander Supertramp, he was an intelligent, hardworking and overachieving young adult that loved to read, and often referenced everyday life to quotes from novels he had read. As the late Chris McCandless once said, “I HAVE HAD A HAPPY LIFE AND THANK THE LORD. GOODBYE AND MAY GOD BLESS ALL!”

Blog #4

- They had Billy McCandless' dream in the beginning
- The movie made it clearer of how Alaska looked
- The guitar music made the movie seem more earthy and naturey
- I liked the shots of the mountains
- His graduation is too early in the movie
- The poem Chris recites is added

Into the Wild’s adaptation in the movie has a lot of differences when compared to the book. In the movie, the order of scenes is different than in the book. They don’t actually have Krakauer in the movie, the main focus is on Chris. There also is more of a focus on Chris and Tracy, even though the book didn’t say much about them together. The movie’s narrator is Carine, Chris’s sister, rather than Krakauer. The book shows Chris’s “bad side,” and the movie portrays him as a more “Chris like” person.
The film improves on the book because it actually shows how Alaska looked to Chris and showed what Chris did while he lived in the bus. The book is more superior to the movie because it makes Chris seem more realistic and it has more details about his life. I would say that the film was really good, but showed Chris as someone more Chris like and unnatural. I really liked the book because it was almost like a biography of Chris and analyzed him to see why he would do such a thing as go out to Alaska unprepared.

Blog # 3

Instead of having a belt of my life, like Chris, I would use a charm bracelet. On my charm bracelet, my first charm would be my initials, TNB. My second charm would be an artist’s paint palette and a paintbrush. The reason why I would have that is because I really love to paint. Another symbol I would have would be the batman symbol because my friend and I really love the batman movies. There would also be Cinderella’s castle from Disneyworld. My family always goes there, and I’ve gone since I was two years old. Another symbol that means a lot to me would be a black cat. When I was younger, I had two black cats, Sherlock and Watson. My best friend’s initials are AKM, so I would also have then as a charm. I liked the movie Up, so I would have a balloon charm. My final charm would be the Cheshire cat because I always loved him since I first started talking.

Post #2

DIRECT:
- Wayne said he was hardworking ( 18)
- Wayne said he was ethical (18)
- Wayne said he was intelligent because he used a lot of big words. (18)
- Jan Burres said he was a good kid. (30)
- Wayne's mother said he was fascinating. (67)

INDIRECT:
- Hypocritical - He says that taking money and food is cheating, yet he sometimes agrees to take stuff.
- Determined (5-6)- Gallien tells him that where he was going, there weren't many game, there were bears, and there weren't many trees. He still was determined to go.
- Stubborn (6) - He refused to get decent hunting gear and sandwiches from Gallien.
- Rejects Authority (6) - He says that how he feeds himself in none of the government's business.
- Selfish (22) - He leaves without telling his family and doesn't keep in touch.


Chris McCandless can be described with numerous adjectives. Some direct characterizations that describe Chris include: hardworking, ethical, intelligent, fascinating, and a good kid. Through his short career with Wayne, he grew a strong bond with him. Wayne described him as hardworking, ethical, and intelligent. He said these things because Chris did jobs that no one else wanted to complete. He realized Chris was intelligent because he always used big words. Wayne's mother also noticed that Chris was a special and fascinating guy. Jan Burres, a woman who picked Chris up while he was hitchhiking, said he was a good and nice kid. The indirect characterizations of Chris are that he is hypocritical, determined, stubborn, selfish, and he rejects authority. He is hypocritical because he says that taking money and other items is like cheating, instead of living off the land, but sometimes he accepts money and food from certain people. We first notice his determination when Gallien tells stories of bears and sparse game to hunt. Chris shrugs this information off and is determined to go about his somewhat crazy plan. Gallien offers to buy him decent hunting equipment and give him his sandwiches his wife made him for lunch. Chris, again, rejects the things, showing that he is stubborn. Chris leaves his family, without any notion on where he is going or if, or when, he is coming back. Some may think that he is selfish for doing this. When Gallien asks if Chris has a hunting license, Chris feels that the government doesn't need to know how he feeds himself. He seems to have a grudge against authority and therefore rejects it.

First Post! :D

When I think of nature, I picture towering mountains, dusted with white snow. I also picture birds darting in between pine trees, and a chilled lake with shrubs surrounding it. I think that nature is somewhat dominant over people. Look at the size of canyons, mountains, and big oak trees. If you really think about it, we seem insignificant or almost trivial. But the table can be turned.

Nature can also be thought of as majestic entity that is slowly being corroded away by the ignorance of the human race. Sometimes, it can be visualized as smog filled air or a once blue ocean, occupied by the carcasses of dead fish. Obviously, something needs to change. It would be nice to live in a world, with no pollution. Possibly, it could happen in the future. For now, all we can do is to do our part to keep nature clean.