The definition of a hero is a person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities. To me that is what Chris McCandless was because he had all these qualities and more. Chris McCandless was a man that came from a wealthy family, but he wasn’t happy. So he set out on a journey to find himself and he wasn’t letting anyone get in the way of that. All he wanted to do was find happiness and prove to people that he could live out in the wild by himself. He didn’t want to see any civilization; to find true happiness in the wild. I think that Chris McCandless is a hero in the eyes of many because he is an inspiration to follow their dreams and try to find your true happiness; he is kind, friendly, and he achieved things many people could never do.
Chris McCandless was very kind and friendly. Along the way he made friends with everyone he met. He got close enough to people that they worried about him every second he was gone. “…Burres makes it clear that he was no recluse: ‘He had a good time when he was around people, a real good time. At the swap meet he’d talk and talk and talk to everybody who came by. He must have met six or seven people in Niland, and he was friendly with every one of them” (Krakauer 44). He was generous too. He donated all his money for college to OXFAM. Even though it was his parents’ money, he gave the money to a good cause. Chris McCandless was a great person and people should try to be as friendly and generous as him.
He achieved what many could never do. He walked to Alaska and survived in the wild for more than 100 days. While he was there he had to find food. He ate edible plants and animals that he hunted himself. When he made the mistake of eating the moldy seeds, he endured living with his illness for a long time. It was a hard time for Chris and he still got through it for as long as he could. He did well in whatever he tried. “Chris was good at almost everything he ever tried,” Walt reflects, "which made him supremely over confident. If you attempted to talk him out of something, he wouldn’t argue. He’d just nod politely and then do exactly what he wanted” (119). Chris’s achievements made him a hero.
Chris McCandless is an inspiration to many people. He lets them know it is okay to follow their dreams, whatever they may be. Chris followed his dreams to set out on an adventure to find himself and to enjoy the wild and the beauty of it. He wanted to show others that he was able to be out in the wild without anyone’s help. Chris told Stuckly, “…he didn’t want to see a single person no airplanes, no sign of civilization. He wanted to prove to himself that he could make it on his own, without anybody else’s help” (159). He knew that the situation was risky but he did it anyway. He was an inspiration to many people and that is what made him a hero. Some might say Chris McCandless was a fool but to me and to many others he was a tragic hero. Some Alaskans think he is stupid and unprepared, but they are wrong. One resident said, “Personally I see nothing positive at all about Chris McCandless’s lifestyle or wilderness doctrine. Entering the wilderness purposely ill-prepared, and surviving a near-death experience does not make you a better human, it makes you damn lucky” (71). According to this person, Chris survived off the wild with luck, but Chris didn’t need luck because he was smart enough to live out in the wild. He was able to live off the land for more than 100 days. He found wild edible plants to eat by only reading books. He even found some of his own. He never ate anything that wasn’t able to be eaten. The only thing that went wrong was that he ate the toxic mold, which was not his fault. Chris was prepared for whatever came his way. When he needed something, he would get a job and earn the money to buy it. He only got rid of the things that he didn’t find necessary. This person is wrong; Chris was prepared and very skilled.
Chris McCandless is a hero in the eyes of many. He is an inspiration for them to follow their dreams. He achieved things that others would never think of doing. He was kind and friendly, which was the reason he made so many friends on his journey. You should try to be like Chris McCandless because he was a nice guy who everyone liked. He followed his dream and when he did, he was a better person. If you follow Chris’s example, you could end up happier. Chris went on his adventure to find his happiness and that is what he did. If you follow his example you could do the same. He found the true meaning of life and he was realized some things while he was there too. I hope that you will follow Chris’s example and that after reading this article you will think more of Chris than you did before. I hope that you, my readers, think is a hero just like I do.
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