Preview

Into The Wild Transcendentalism

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
333 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Into The Wild Transcendentalism
“Nature holds the key to our aesthetic, intellectual, cognitive and even spiritual satisfaction”
(E. O. Wilson). In the novel, Into the Wild author Jon Krakauer not only examines Chris McCandless’ life and his actions but also shares his own past actions and how they relate to Chris, bringing light to why Chris did what he did. Every person needs to find their own key to satisfaction, McCandless’s happened to be the transcendentalist beliefs of nature being the only substance required for happiness. Jon Krakauer supports the dependence upon nature by explaining why someone would take radical actions, like McCandless, to experience the life written about by some of the world’s most famous transcendentalist writers. As Krakauer shares in the

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    "Transcendentalism Today" is an excellently written essay by Summer Nassar. She twists and constructs her words in such a way that the reader gets informed from all angles. She built her paragraph structures according to guidelines and had a concise thesis. She began her introductory paragraph with a spicy paraphrased topic sentence; which she provided citations. She intwines a nice gist of background infomation for the average person who may or may not have knowledge on the topic at hand.…

    • 272 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    I like your connection between the movie Wall-E and transcendentalism. Now thinking about it, Disney has created a lot of movies that get to do with Transcendentalism. For example, another movie from Disney that supports the view of transcendentalism is Avatar. In this movie, nature energy flows through all living thing which link with the transcendentalist belief that nature is a source of instruction, nourishment, and enchantment for the soul. Emerson’s quote “The happiest man is the one who learns from nature the lesson of worship. In Avatar, the Omaticaya can communicate with their god through the Tree of voices.…

    • 100 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    “If you want something in this life, reach out and grab it.” This was a quotation by Chris McCandless, the main character of the book, Into the Wild. Chris McCandless always followed his dreams and desires; similarly to Timothy Treadwell, the man whose journey in Alaska was documented in the movie The Grizzly Man. After reading about Chris McCandlessand watching the documentary of Timothy Treadwell, it was obvious to notice that these two ambitious and passionate men shared many similarities and differences.…

    • 665 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The meaning of life is undefined, no one truly understands the beauty of life until it is experienced. In the novel, Into the Wild, written by Jon Krakauer, follows Chris McCandless journey to find some sort of enlightenment .Nevertheless, McCandless needed to discover who he was without influence from his parents and society. McCandless told the world to experience life and embrace the beauty that surrounds. Thus, Christopher McCandless had two motivations, first, to pursue a life of adventure, and second, to strive away from social norms.…

    • 87 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The first reason why Chris McCandless fled to the wild was due to his literary influences. McCandless was influenced by many talented authors but some of his favorites were Jack London, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Henry Thoreau among many others. In a passage from To Build a Fire by Jack London he wrote, “‘ You were right , old hoss; you were right’... Then the man drowsed off into what seemed to him the most comfortable and satisfying sleep he had ever known” (12). The main protagonist from the story, acts a lot like Chris McCandless. They both ignored advice from wise people who were familiar with the area and what it had to offer. If they had just listened and…

    • 791 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Everyone is caught up with the idea of having to live a certain way and follow certain life steps. Many people forget to recall that it is acceptable to be overwhelmed with life and wanting to leave everything and everyone behind. In his book Into The Wild Jon Krakauer is trying to discover one of the many who left everything behind, Chris McCandless motive on why he went on this journey. Krakauer wanted the reader to know that McCandless represents the adventure, independence, and weakness of every human being.…

    • 662 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The novel, Into The Wild, written by Jon Krakauer, provides a professional insight into Chris McCandless’s one-hundred-thirteen day rogue dissonance from society, meaning, abandoning his possessions, car, money, and even his well-to-do family. Many consider McCandless’s voyage as intriguing or inspiring. However, I believe McCandless’s actions are egotistically and ideologically driven for the same reasons Krakauer wrote the novel, for the benefit of their own self-interest. Krakauer provides the reader a disservice while writing McCandless’s adventure because the author's writing illuminates an ethically complex bias, which ultimately turned McCandless into a product and a tourist phenomenon. Consequently, Krakauer made a substantial profit, and allowed the wilderness, a place McCandless was attempting to preserve, to become extinct.…

    • 467 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Chris Mccandless Journey

    • 1123 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Chris McCandless was an exceptional young man who lived life by the beat of his own drum but all that changed when his young life was cut short. Though his life ended, his story lives on forever. Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild is Chris McCandless’ living legacy; the book examines McCandless’ life as well as revealing his struggles with his parents, his adventures with the people he meets, and the hardships he faces in Alaska. Chris McCandless lived life as a modern day nomad; he would hitch hike all around the country to escape from the mundane. Some would consider his controversial lifestyle as naïve and stupid while others admire his idealism and passion for life. Chris’ life was ultimately a success. Even though…

    • 1123 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    During their journeys against the wilderness, Henry David Thoreau and Jon Krakauer challenged the demands and territories between the humans’ safe haven and Mother Earth’s true land. Both Walden and Into The Wild share themes that both authors address.…

    • 393 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    First off, Chris McCandless is a celebrity in the transcendentalist community because of his search for the meaning of life independently. Jon Krakauer respects McCandless because no one prompted him to go out into the Alaskan wilderness, since most people need a push to do something. However some people believe McCandless is a fool and should be forgotten about and that he was spoiled rotten and was just wanting attention. The truth that most people do not know is, McCandless’s parents used to fight and the mom would call out for the kids to come see what the dad was doing to her. McCandless was a strong character and had gone through a lot. McCandless looked up to all of the major transcendentalists including his favorite Henry…

    • 782 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Similar to other characteristics, greatness is not something easily defined or subjectively interpreted. As Transcendentalism was a style of belief revolving around nature and independence, Transcendentalist author Ralph Waldo Emerson documented a standard for greatness in his essay, “Self- Reliance”. According to Emerson, it is easy to assimilate and conform when surrounded by societal interferences, and it is easy to be independent when alone. The challenge, that shows true greatness, is being able to stay genuine and truthful to one’s self even with social hindrance. By these standards, Chris McCandless, the controversial main character of Into the Wild, is “great”. At first glance, McCandless appears to be a young man with his head stuck…

    • 227 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Into the Wild, the 1996 book written by Jon Krakauer expands on the true story of Christopher J. McCandless, a well-educated young man who chased after his dreams and ambitions. While venturing to several places during his journey, he also met a myriad of people along the way.…

    • 1281 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Some of the songs on the CD aren’t exactly clear on their transcendentalist properties, so I decided to just be Thoreau (yes that is a pun) and go through and define the songs’ transcendentalist properties.…

    • 964 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Transcendentalism sets the foundation of writing today. The overall message inspires individuals to gain a better understanding of their true identity and knowledge. On the other hand, Romanticism does not fully reveal an individual’s personality. The true story, Into the Wild incorporates aspects of transcendentalism throughout Chris McCandless's journey. A young man explores the wild by himself. He leaves his family, friends, and his belongings behind to enter a door of opportunities. He steps foot on a path where he can express himself. He takes on many risks throughout the book but he tried to fight his problems himself. Chris McCandless adventures in Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer is a prime example of transcendentalism because it embodies…

    • 642 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Transcendence

    • 1477 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Joseph Campbell's The Hero with a Thousand Faces depicts how a hero transcends and transforms from ordinary to extraordinary. In the book, The Hero with a Thousand Faces discusses his theory of the journey of the archetypal hero found in world of mythologies. In relation, a hero's journey is depicted in the story Inanna, the queen of heaven and earth. The story follows through as her descent to the underworld, with challenges before and after achieving her "Hero" status. Moreover, Campbell's The Hero's Journey is associated with the story of Inanna and lays out the basics of transcendence of a so called mythical "Hero" whereas the three stages, departure, initiation, and return is followed through.…

    • 1477 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Powerful Essays