Chris McCandless, a young man from Virginia, died from potato seeds. Potato seeds/starvation is written cause of death, but there is so much more. McCandless’s supposed cause of death has changed since he died varying from mold in the seeds to an amino acid called L-canavanine. The external factors to his death include his desire to live free from the constraints of society, which was completed through both living in solitude and adopting the new persona that was Alexander Supertramp. The factors of his death vary from person to person as everyone reads his life in different perspectives. One perspective is that of the Alaskans, who intensely despise McCandless for dying in their wilderness. McCandless’s death stirs up feelings of admiration …show more content…
The seeds themselves were not poisonous, but the mold that grew on them, was quite poisonous. The mold is a fungus named Rhizoctonia leguminicola. Rhizoctonia leguminicola produces a potent alkaloid known as swainsonine, a compound well known to ranchers and veterinarians as a killer of livestock (Krakauer 193-194). The mold theory was disproved by University of Alaska chemists Edward Treadwell and Thomas Clausen in 2007 (205). Clausen and Treadwell concluded that the amino acid L-canavanine caused his death. The amino acid included antimetabolite, which in large amounts can be lethal. McCandless suspected that the potato seeds killed him as written in his journal is, “Extremely weak, fault of pot. seed” (189). For many years, many believed the theory of the mold. Until 2007, when Clausen and Treadwell examined the seeds thoroughly and concluded it was the amino acid. Clausen and Treadwell were not the first chemists/biochemists to examine and study the story of Chris McCandless. Another well-known theory was that a neurotoxin referred to as beta-ODAP had killed him (207). Scientifically speaking, Chris McCandless died because of an amino acid; lethal in large amounts, but what brought him to only eat potato seeds is as much the cause of death as the …show more content…
Alexander Supertramp was the identity that Chris adopted that severed the ties between him and his material possessions and biological family. Chris McCandless died when Alexander Supertramp came into existence. Supertramp was a vagabond, who lived off the land and saw real freedom as being cut off from society. Alexander Supertramp was very much a character to McCandless and was his reasoning behind conducting himself in a way any logical mortal would not. Alexander Supertramp could live in the wild and come out alive because to McCandless, Supertramp was an immortal figure. To the rest of the world, however, Supertramp was nothing more than fiction. Supertramp was a way for McCandless to live outside of the constraints that being Chris McCandless had created for him, that way of life killed him. McCandless’s death was brought on by living in the philosophical view of Alexander Supertramp, who became nonexistent by the end of McCandless’s life. As in his SOS note, McCandless signed, “Chris McCandless August?” (198), signifying the death of Alexander Supertramp and resurrection of Chris McCandless, but the new life of Chris McCandless was extremely short-lived. McCandless returned to his former identity as he tried to leave the wilderness and reenter society. His death as Chris McCandless, a mortal being, has brought much loathing from the Alaskan
In the book “Into the Wild” by Jon Krakauer, Chris McCandless had many decisions to leave his old life behind and start over. Chris’ decision to leave was justified for the following reasons. When he suddenly disappeared, it made it easier for him to let go of his past and focus on what he wants to do in the future. McCandless could make all his own decisions, nobody had a chance to tell him that he could not leave and certainly did not allow anyone to find out where he was going. Finally he didn’t agree to social norms.
A trait simply described as the overestimation of oneself can be a quintessential element in understanding a character’s downfall. People such as Chris McCandless, Oedipus and Tiger Woods are key examples when trying to relate, understand, and analyze what we know today as “Hubris”. The connections that can be made between each of these characters describe the very nature of how a hero will ultimately meet their bane as a result of being blinded by their own flaws. The death of Chris McCandless was an extremely controversial subject that involved many different people. The justification of his death can be argued in a way .
In Into The wild, Krakauer narrates the last couple of journeys Mccandless had on his adventure to Alaska where he ultimately died. Mccandless Touched many people's lives through all of his journeys. Mccandless went on these journeys because he was confused in life when he figured out his dad had cheated on his mom. This changed Mccandless to the point he began to hate his parents. Mccandless had a lot of confidence in himself so he left on an adventure to find his identity.
it is highly likely that the ingestion of relatively large amounts of this antimetablolite was a contributing factor to his death."
Chris McCandless from the book “Into the Wild” by Jon Krakauer is a character who is extremely well liked by all. His smarts give him the ability to hold conversations with a variety of different people. Chris does not use his knowledge in a negative way that causes people to think that he is arrogant, it just comes out of him naturally, leaving many people impressed by the young boy. Through his character, I learned how much intelligence can truly add to one's personality. Chris is subconsciously phenomenal at speaking with new people due to his wide range of knowledge.
When Chris wasn't treading in the wild, risking his life, he was busy leaving an unintentional and lasting mark on the people that he met without even knowing. At a lone bar in Carthage,
Some would say “Life on the road is suited for everyone”, others such as for myself, would disagree. Life on the road is not suited for everyone, because not everyone can throw away their normal life and go on the road or the wilderness and survive like Chris McCandless. Some would think, Chris McCandless, was on a suicide mission but he was only following his dreams and he actually did, unlike many people. Chris McCandless inspired so many people to move out, leave their old lives, and have a fresh start at their life. Chris McCandless was a independent person and he was trying to get away from civilization because he felt like he never fit into it.
"I think that Chris McCandless was bright and ignorant at the same time. He had no common sense, and he had no business going to Alaska with his Romantic silliness. He made a lot of mistakes based on ignorance. I don’t admire him at all for his courage nor his noble ideas. Really, I think he was just plain crazy."
Taking a journey into an unknown state can cause many problems, but with no map or proper equipment, more problems arise. In the book Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, Chris wanted to escape reality/society but he went into the adventure blindsided and unprepared. He did many things and didn’t think of his family and friends back home. When Chris left his whole life behind, he did some questionable things that made him a reckless and arrogant person by not being prepared, throwing his life away, and made arrogant errors that caused his death that could have been prevented.
At the end of Chapter 3, Krakauer says, “Driving out west of Atlanta, [Chris McCandless] intended to invent an utterly new life for himself... He was now Alexander Supertramp, master of his own destiny” (Krakauer 23). These assertions are believable as McCandless cut off his past by creating a new identity for himself and ceasing communication with his family. McCandless introduced himself as Alex to all of the people he met on his odyssey and he rarely spoke about his past before hitchhiking. McCandless introduced himself as “Just Alex” (Krakauer 4) to Gallien and as Alex when he worked for Wayne Westerberg in Carthage, South Dakota.
In the words of John Krakauer “So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservation, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future.” If asked to describe Chris Mcandless in Into The Wild one could say that he is simply foolish. Chris could have lived a longer life if he would have stayed in the comfort of his own hometown. Chris’ common sense was obliterated by his time in the wilderness. Not only did he throw common sense to the wind, he also went into the wild leaving behind many people who loved and cared deeply about him.
“If you are always trying to be normal, you will never know how amazing you can be.” ―Maya Angelou. Jon Krakauer’s true story titled Into the Wild is about a man who decides to throw away his old life and escape the rules of conventional society. Twenty-two-year-old Chris McCandless came from a well-to-do family in Virginia and, without warning, abandons everything. He changes his name, loses contact with his family, gives away his car and all his money, and begins a two-year long journey hitchhiking to Alaska where he eventually dies of starvation.
In the beginning, McCandless starts his adventure by cutting himself off from all the human connections he had. He severs all ties from his family, including his sister which whom he was previously very close to. He burns his social security card, changes his name, and decides to travel across the country. Throughout his journey, Christopher often accounts for his parent’s wrongdoings for the reasons why he wanted to run away to Alaska. He subsists with a minimalist lifestyle and is disappointed in his parents’ behaviors and their materialism.
Chris McCandless went on a journey that eventually lead him to Alaska where he met his demised. He took on the name Alexander Supertramp. In the book Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer it states, “What Walt, Billie, and Carine didn’t know when they flew down to Atlanta to
Because he is not prepared, McCandless dies in a bus he finds. Chris had every intention of coming back to civilization, but sadly eats something poisonous and is unable to get it out of his system. Prior to eating the poisonous food, Chris tries to cross the river that he had easily traveled through in the spring. Since it is now winter, he is unable to do so and is forced to retreat back to the bus. Though the book focuses on McCandless, it tells brief stories of other men who have gone into nature and passed away as well.