Sergi 1

Gabriela Sergi

Mrs. DiSomma

ERWC Period 5

18 November 2016

Detached and Alone

The story of Chris McCandless is one to interpret. Who is he? Chris is more than just a

dead body found in the Alaskan wilderness. One might think a man who chose to live in the wild

and fend for himself surely must have issues. His choice to go into the wild may seem odd for

those on the outside. But, for him, it made complete sense. Chris was not crazy, he was not just

some fool that stumbled upon a great travel. Chris McCandless was an outcast.

Chris was an outcast because of his pursuit for adventure. As he left his privileged life,

McCandless tramped around for the next 2 months, spellbound by the power of the landscape

(29). Chris love for personal adventure caused him to leave the normalcy of human society.

Unlike many, he found joy in the world and not in material things. Chris was fearless even when

he was little going on huge hikes and pushing himself beyond limits. He was simply different

from others. He loved everything except living a normal life. Chris parents may not have, but

his sister Carine understood how important it was for him to see how independent he could be

(125). People thrive from human touch, on others emotions, but not Chris. He enjoyed being

independent, all alone with himself, discovering things others do not care about. Very few

choose to do what Chris did, but he went into the wilderness not primarily to ponder nature

but rather to explore the inner country of his soul (183). Chris found no depth in the regular

world and was pushed to pursue feeling in the wild. His mind and heart marched to a different

drum (107). His passion for adventure cost his his identity as no longer would he answer to
 Sergi 2

Chris McCandless; he was now Alexander Supertramp, master of his own destiny (23). Chris,

also known as Alex, was creating his identity as an outcast for himself. He was estranged from

family, friends, and the majority of normal civilization (18). Being an outcast was the end game

of his love for adventure.

Chris McCandless was an outcast due to his detachment from society. During his hiatus

from the world, he had to make ends meet, and when he first starting working he was homeless

and hed show up to work smelling bad (41). Chris did not have a home, living on the land

away from people and their toxicity. His fellow employees thought very little of him and knew

he was not normal like them. McCandless left his family and normal life behind, no longer to

be poisoned by the civilization he [fled], and walk[ed] alone upon the land to become lost in the

wild (163). Chris took almost everything into account, but not including his insane hubris (72).

He thought society had nothing on him. As long as he had himself nothing was impossibly.

Sadly that was his downfall. The abuse Chris witnessed in his home caused Chris to seek out

happiness through the wilderness (Return). Seeing someone he loved get beat on and yelled at

created an environment that stifled his need for other people and society. Once Chris saw how

cruel the human world could be, he decided to leave and venture out into the wild. Since he was

a child, Chris had been an outcast, never feeling at peace being a part of society.

Chris McCandless was obsessed with one big thing; himself. That monomania ensured

an outlet for adventure, for challenges, and his disconnect from society (120). He enjoyed not

being a spoiled child. He loved that he could live a life his parents had no control of, and he

loved knowing that he no longer had an obligation towards them or anyone else. Chris was an

outcast living the life only he deemed right for himself.