Thoreau/Krakauer Paper

Amelia Schuler

CAP English

Red Group

12/16/18
 Henry David Thoreau’s views regarding possessions, autonomy, and wealth, as reflected

in ​Walden​, are mirrored through the actions of Chris McCandless as portrayed in Jon Krakauer's

Into the Wild.​ Thoreau is a 19th century writer who famously lived by himself in a cabin near

Walden Pond, Massachusetts. The events of his expedition appear in his book ​Walden​. ​Into the

Wild​ is a book by Jon Krakauer, an American writer whose most famous work is a nonfiction

story about a young man named Chris McCandless who goes out to live off the land in Alaska in

the 1990s and then dies. Although they lived at different times and in different places, Thoreau

and McCandless are similar through their actions and in their beliefs.

Thoreau’s opinion on possessions is illustrated when McCandless rejects unnecessary

possessions. Thoreau writes that “young men… whose misfortune it is to have inherited farms,

houses, barns, cattle, and farming equipment; for these are more easily acquired than got rid of…

made them serfs of the soil” (8). Thoreau is saying that possessions are easy to get but hard to get

rid of. He believes that they tie a person down and force them to labor unnecessarily. He also

writes that “Men have become the tools of their tools”(33). Here Thoreau is saying that people

have become so dependent on their tools and possessions that they let them dictate what they do.

To combat this Thoreau follows a minimalist lifestyle so he can have full reign over his choices.

He believes that this would ensure he does not depend on anything that could influence his life.

In ​Into the Wild​ Krakauer writes that McCandless “unbraided Walt and Billie for expressing their

desire to buy him a new car… he already had a perfectly good car… slightly dented but

mechanically sound”(20-21). Krakauer shows that McCandless, like Thoreau, is averse to

unnecessary possessions. McCandless already has a car that is working well so he sees no need

to get a new one. He feels that it would be wasteful. Thoreau is against a multitude of
possessions and similarly McCandless is against extravagant lifestyles because of their

impracticality. McCandless leaves behind all of his things in order to pursue a life of simplicity.

He moves around from place to place, never staying long. He thinks others should live this way

so they can also experience the wonders of the world. Krakauer writes that McCandless says to a

friend “put a little camper on the back of your pickup, and start seeing some of the great work

that God has done… no motels, and do your own cooking”(58). Krakauer portrays McCandless

as a man who believes that the fewer items one owns, the more meaningful his life will be.

Krakauer characterize McCandless as a man who believes possessions tie a person down and

make them unhappy because of how he describes him getting rid of unnecessary items. Both

Thoreau and McCandless, as he is portrayed by Krakauer, believe that possessions and tools can

control one’s life and that it is best to live with only what one needs.

Henry David Thoreau’s beliefs about autonomy are portrayed when Chris McCandless

leaves his home and family to live in the wilderness. Thoreau talks about how one should not

rely on the advice of the elderly, saying that “the old have no very important advice to give the

young, their own experience has been so partial”(11). Thoreau believes that a person cannot

learn from other people and that a person needs to learn from his or her own experiences. For

this reason, he uses the elderly as an example. The old are seen to be knowledgeable and wise,

but Thoreau says the old have their own experiences that are exclusive to them and so will not

be useful to the younger generation. When describing his time at Walden Pond, Thoreau writes

that “I lived alone, in the woods, a mile from any neighbor, in a house which I had built

myself, on the shore of Walden Pond, in Concord, Massachusetts, and earned my living by the

labor of my hands only”(7). Thoreau shows his desire for independence because he goes to live
away from society. He does everything by himself, even building his house without the aid of

another person. Thoreau depends only on himself when living at Walden pond, and he enjoys

that way of living. Krakauer writes that McCandless’ father said that “if you attempted to talk

him [Chris] out of something, he wouldn’t argue. He’d just nod politely and then do exactly

what he wanted”(119). Chris McCandless leaves his home and disregards others telling him

how to do things. He relies on himself to get what he wants. McCandless’ independent nature

is repeated when his school friend, Hathaway, says “ Chris just didn’t like being told what to

do. I think he would have been unhappy with any parents; he had trouble with the whole idea

of parents.”(115). McCandless’ distaste for rules and restrictions that were imposed by

authority figures was so prevalent even his friends noticed. McCandless does what he wants to,

not caring about what others think. In this regard he is like Thoreau. Both men believe that it is

best to rely only on oneself to get what one wants.

Thoreau’s view on nature in ​Walden i​ s portrayed by McCandless when he goes off into

the Alaskan wilderness to live off the land. Thoreau shows his admiration for nature when

saying “to anticipate, not the sunrise and the dawn merely, but, if possible, Nature herself!... So

many autumn, ay, and winter days, spent outside the town, trying to hear what was in the wind,

to hear and carry it express!”(18). Thoreau’s vivid description of rising early to go out and

listen to the wind and watch the sunrise show his devotion and respect for nature.. In his book

Walden​, Thoreau writes that “In a pond hole… as long as I stayed there, or more than a quarter

of an hour… I heard a stray goose groping about over the pond and cackling as if lost, or like

the spirit of the fog.”(36). Here Thoreau again describes what he sees in nature. He takes time

out of his day to watch and listen to the wildlife near the pond, showing his enjoyment for the
outdoors. A person who does not appreciate nature will not willingly sit outside for long

periods of time or isolate himself from society to go and live in it. In Krakauer's ​Into the Wild,

McCandless writes that “Two years he walks the earth...ultimate freedom...walks alone upon

the land to become lost in the wild”(179). When Chris finds himself in the Alaskan wilderness

he does not feel scared but rather freed. McCandless would rather be in nature than in polite

society. In this way he differs from most people in his extreme appreciation of nature.

Krakauer writes that “McCandless may have been tempted by the succor offered by women,

but it paled beside the prospect of rough congress with nature, with the cosmos itself. And thus

was he drawn north, to Alaska”(66). The comparison between the lust for a woman and the lust

for nature shows the extent to which McCandless is drawn to the wild. This is different from

many who are more often drawn to more fleeting things. Chris, like Thoreau prefers to focuses

on the beauty of the environment instead of transitory things. The common appreciation of

nature between Thoreau and McCandless is shown through Thoreau’s lifestyle and language in

Walden​ and Chris McCandless’ actions in ​Into the Wild​.

Thoreau’s views about possessions, autonomy, and nature are reflected through Chris

McCandless’ actions as he is portrayed through Jon Krakauer's book ​Into the Wild. ​Thoreau

believes that possessions controll a person’s life and McCandless supports this by getting rid of

​ horeau removes himself from society, and so does

all unnecessary items. In ​Walden T

McCandless, showing their shared beliefs on self reliance. Both Thoreau and McCandless

venture out to live in nature. This shows that they have a common respect for nature. Thoreau

and McCandless’ shared beliefs stem from the feeling that society pulls one down and masks

one’s true identity.

 WORKS CITED

- Thoreau, Henry David. ​Walden​. New York, Barnes and Noble Classics, 2003.

- Krakauer, Jon. ​Into The Wild.​ New York, Anchor Books Editions, 1997.