Into the Wild-final discussion

                Do you feel that McCandless was either mentally ill or suicidal? What a biased question I must say. After reading Jon Krakauer's  Into the Wild, I for one, didn't (still don't) believe there is any factual evidence in his narrative let alone McCandless's journal entries for one to label him as mentally ill or simply a suicidal human being. Chris came from a family with secrets and double lives; as one becomes older they’re very much influenced by their family and the habits/mistakes they go through. Having said this, Chris could have been exposed to much worse than his father’s infidelity but why is it he decided to go into the wild? McCandless enjoyed a life full of adventure and love, but in no way was he mentally unstable or suicidal.

                Chris embarked on his Alaskan journey so he could live in solitude from the rest of society and more importantly leave his family and all the problems that came along with them. If McCandless was feeling suicidal why did he not talk with Carine, his beloved sister who he had the closest relationship with in his entire family? This raises a very important question of who he truly cared about before going on his journey. As stated before if Chris was truly suicidal I believe he would have talked with Carine before heading into the woods and not run off and starve to death over the course of two months. Coming from a family with high expectations and great wealth, when he graduated from Emory University Chris became aware that it was all about the money. His parents wanted to buy him a new car but McCandless refused replying with "the Datsun works just fine”. Being in college can be very stressful, I for one shouldn’t be speaking, but even in high school it is crucial to get good enough grades to please your parents. Grades weren’t a problem for McCandless but if he had felt so overwhelmed with everything wouldn’t it have crossed his mind to kill himself, if he was suicidal, in college? Think about it; one is so caught up with everything and learning about say your father’s infidelity for two years at this point in one’s life can really push someone to take risks. This being said I highly doubt Chris was suicidal because he would have done it sooner than wait around for two months while starving to death facing harsh conditions.

                In The San Francisco Examiner, Patricia Ryan explains how different programs have helped to catch mental illnesses earlier than ever. In a research study Ryan states how “children with unaddressed mental health problems are much more likely to drop out of school, go to jail as adults and suffer other negative outcomes”. As many would argue Chris McCandless was indeed mentally unstable, I disagree. If Chris had a condition it would have most likely have been brought up in Krakauer’s narrative. After all, he did talk to Carine and Billie McCandless regarding Chris’ life; so why wouldn’t a mother give away this information to set the facts straight? Much to Ryan’s statement, if Chris was mentally ill he would have dropped out of school before even attending Emory. One might conclude that many of his decisions were caused by a mental instability, but Chris was above all a man living by his beliefs and morals in order to experience the nomadic lifestyle without parental intrusion. McCandless’s death was tragic and ultimately much unexpected, but in my opinion was due to a lack of knowledge and preparation rather than a mental illness or suicidal thoughts.