Into the Wild - Critical Review of the Novel About the Journey of Christopher McCandless

Jon Krakauer's novel Into the Wild explores the mystery surrounding the character of Christopher McCandless, a 24-year-old man who disappeared into the Alaskan wilderness in April of 1992 and never returned. McCandless' body was found, deathly thin and partially decomposed, about three weeks after his death.

Many readers may have seen the film version of Into the Wild, which chronicled the highlights of McCandless' journey. But as one might expect, the film, however beautifully crafted and magnificently executed, does not capture the full essence of McCandless' story.

A bit about the character:
Christopher McCandless was born into an upper class family who lived in a Virginia suburb for most of his life. He graduated from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1990, majoring in history and anthropology.

McCandless had a very complicated relationship with his parents, which strongly factored in to the roots and foundations of his character. McCandless' father had had an affair that spawned another child, which he kept hidden from the family for a very long time, and the revelation of this news devastated Christopher.

His relationship with his parents from that point on was never the same. His relationship with his sister, Carine, however, had always been strong, and only grew stronger as the parental relationships grew more distant. McCandless seemed to be a writer at heart. He studied Thoreau, London, Tolstoy, and W.H. Davies, and his choice to wander off and live in solitude reflected aspects of his favorite writer's lives, namely Thoreau.

Krakauer captures McCandless' story with unbelievable finesse and empathy. He is able to present to the world a character, once a stranger, who, after reading the novel, we now feel as though we know personally. And while Krakaeur is empathetic towards McCandless, he ultimately lets the reader make up their mind in regards to their true feelings towards him. Into the Wild shows that McCandless was very clearly a strong man with some fatal flaws, and the author points every character trait out in full detail.

What makes this biography so special is the author's emotional connection to his subject, his expertise in the field, and his willingness to go outside McCandless' story to draw in parallels that the reader can compare and contrast McCandless to. About three-fourths through the book, Krakaeur interrupts McCandless' story to tell a few stories similar to Mcandless', including a personal count of a near-death experience.

Krakaeur admits that he once shared McCandless' traits and ideals, but makes it clear where he and his subject differ, yet he presents the material as-is, without painting anything in a positive or negative light.

Into the Wild is the best kind of biography. Whether you end up feeling empathetic towards McCandless, or finding him rather selfish and irritating, which is dependent on how much you connect with him, it's difficult to deny the validity and heart the author put into his subject. Krakauer has done his homework, and then some. He takes an almost fully unbiased approach when telling his story, and yet when he does present his biased empathy towards the character, he has full knowledge, and lets the reader know.

Krakauer captures the story, soul, and testimony of a man who might have been a modern Thoreau, if it weren't for his final tragic mistakes. This is a unique biography of the highest caliber, an adventure of the most honest in nature, and a testimonial requiem to a passionate, lost soul.

EXCERPT:
"I am reborn. This is my Dawn. Real life has just begun. Deliberate Living: Conscious attention to the basics of life, and a constant attention to your immediate environment and its concerns, example-> A job, a task, a book; anything requiring eficient concentration (Circumstance has no value. It is how one relates to a situation that has value. All true meaning resides in the personal relationship to a phenomenon, what it means to you)."
-Written in one Christopher McCandless' journals found at the site of his body. Krakauer, pg. 168.

INTO THE WILD - KRAKAUER - 10 out of 10