My first impression is that he is an adventurer. He lives solely for the thrill of nature-- the "heat of the hunt." He also seems somewhat stupid. He thought life is an adventure and the more dangerous, the better. While he may be book smart, he lacks simple common sense; like the fact that you need more food than five pounds of rice to survive for any extended period of time. At times he also seems a little mentally unstable. He left his house, didn't tell his family where he went, and started living like a tramp, hitchhiking to get to where he needed to go. He started out with his car, but then abandoned it after the motor wouldn't start. On the other hand, he seems like a nice guy. He's polite and doesn't seem to talk bad about anyone but his parents. He doesn't seem to mind physical pain, either. "[he] worked hard, doing dirty, tedious jobs nobody else wanted to tackle." (page 62) He was very strongheaded. Once he set his mind to something, he didn't change it. "No, you don't get it. I'm going to San Diego." (page 52) I think that he had many desirable qualities, such as, being a good listener as well as a good talker, being a hard worker, and being determined. Some of his more undesiralbe qualities included, how headstrong he is, overconfidence, absent mindedness, and pride. He let his pride get in the way of his family relationship and stopped him from accepting money and clothing/ gear that could have saved his life in Alaska. Overall I think Chris/ Alex McCandless is a complex character, full of good and bad qualities, just as we all are. (262 words)
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AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
June 2012
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