Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer Book Analysis

In the novel Into the Wild by John Krakauer, Chris McCandless’ journey allows the reader to understand that people are known to overestimate their abilities in the unforgiving environment of the wilderness.

Food is well known to be one of the most essential survival tools available, but there are those who are notorious for miscalculating the amount of nutrients required to sustain them for the rigor of the wild. Chris happened to be one of those people. He underestimated the amount of food and energy the wild would suck out of him, and had been spending every last drop of energy on hunting.“After subsisting three months on an exceedingly marginal diet, McCandless had run up a sizeable caloric deficit” (Krakauer, 188). Chris was highly unprepared for the demanding greediness of the natural world, and remained starved for the rest of his time in Alaska. A similar but less fatal situation arose with Tommy Hendricks and Matthew Smith in November of 2016. As they were hiking up a mountain, a terrible snow storm arrived. They luckily survived the night, but to their fault, the two were unequipped for the harshness of the mountains. “They were without food and getting increasingly soaked with cold water by the step” (Grunge.com); soon facing hypothermia and malnutrition, which rendered them more helpless by the minute. Just as the boys had lost all hope to survive, a chopper arrived in time to save them from the deadly fate that Chris McCandless once faced. Had they been stranded any longer, both could have perished slowly and painfully just as Chris had. Both Into the Wild and the Grunge article clearly depict the struggle that individuals face regarding food in the wild, and the challenges created because of their body’s lack of nutrients. 

Having outside help or a partner along for the adventure is very necessary for a successful outing in the natural world, otherwise unsolvable issues could occur. Chris was not one to accept help from others, and his mother wanted to make certain that no one would make the same mistakes as he did. While examining the bus that Chris had passed away in, she left a “suitcase stocked with a first-aid kit, canned food, other survival supplies, [and] a note urging whoever happens to read it to ‘call your parents as soon as possible’” (Krakauer, 202). The ruthless wilderness was not so lenient with her son, and it seems as though Billie wanted to stop the chain of reckless people who underestimated the dangers of the wild and refused help, which resulted in them harming themselves to the point of no return. Doug Scott was one of many extreme explorers who came very close to death. “On the way down from The Ogre”, he “slammed into the cliffside and broke both his legs” (Grunge.com). This was highly unfortunate as he needed the lower half of his body to climb to safety. Though luckily, and unlike McCandless, he was accompanied by someone else, but their ignorance to the riskiness of climbing such a dangerous mountain did not go unpunished, because the two were forced to survive on their own for nearly 10 days before being rescued. If Doug did not have a partner to venture into the wilderness to aid him in his nearly fatal setback, he would have been done for good. In both Into the Wild and the Grunge article, it is clear to understand the importance of having outside help when facing the wild; to not only have while actively adventuring but also as a backup when things take a dangerous and uncontrollable turn. 

An individual’s health and well-being are incredibly fragile while living strictly in the wild, one misjudgment can impair oneself for the rest of their life. This idea can be seen most clearly in McCandless as he was unable to realize this until it was far too late. He dealt with a great deal mentally; his mind constantly played tricks on him as he “distrusted the value of things that came easily” (Krakauer, 184). Chris felt as though he did not deserve anything that did not come with intensive and consistent work. Some described this as an insecurity for him, one that in Chris’ mind could only be fixed by the means of extreme physical challenges in the wild that wrecked one’s body and mind. Chris took these challenges to the extreme, and “demanded much of himself—more, in the end, than he could deliver” (184). In addition to mental health, his physical health struggled as well. He started to regret his decision to live off of the Alaskan land only one week into his expedition. Chris quickly realized that he was having difficulty hunting for food with enough nutritional value to sustain him properly. This can be understood in his journal entries where words such as “‘Weakness,’ ‘Snowed in’ and ‘Disaster’” (Krakauer, 122) are written. McCandless was clearly distressed by the situation he was in and only recognized the dangers of the wild as he experienced it; previously never taking even a moment to truly understand what he would be putting his body through. His health was slowly declining, and there was nothing he could do about it. Another unfortunate situation arose in 1985 when Joe Simpson and Simon Yates were climbing up the Siula Grande peak of the Peruvian Andes. As they were climbing, Simpson had fallen “and destroyed his leg just before an unexpected, blinding snowstorm hit” (Grunge.com). The two were unprepared for the injury caused by the environment, and both ended up getting hurt when Simon attempted to rescue Joe. Their bodies’ health was heavily impacted due to their lack of knowledge, yet somehow they ended up luckier than Chris because they survived. The reality of the situation is: there was a great chance they would not have made it out alive due to their unpreparedness and lack of acknowledgement to the dangers of nature and the impact it may have on their well-being. In both examples from Into the Wild and the Grunge article, it is evident that people are known to have unrealistic expectations of what their mind and bodies are capable of handling in the unforgiving environment of the wild, and therefore end up diminishing their health to an extreme degree of no return.

All of these examples are important contributions in understanding the ways in which people misjudge the harshness of the natural world. Food, outside help and health seemed to be completely thrown out the window for Chris, as he only focused on the present without taking into account the very real dangers of the wild. Moreover, the tales of the men who barely survived the dangers of nature may be deemed as luck. McCandless’ story can be used as a lesson to research and fully understand your environment before taking on extreme adventures by yourself. For if you do not, the dire consequences of the merciless wild may transpire.