What is your definition of a home? In today’s society, some people would say a home is a place where you experience happiness. In the novel, Into the Wild, by Jon Krakauer, 24-yearold adventurer Chris McCandless decides to leave his family and travel to Alaska in order to experience happiness, however, he dies at the end due to the harsh Alaskan weather. Before Chris died, he was trying to search for his true self and look for a home, but, Chris struggled and never found a home in his life because he never experienced happiness.
My definition of home is when you experience happiness somewhere and when you feel comfortable physically and mentally. Home is a stronghold for where you live and a place where you have your freedom to do whatsoever you like so you can enjoy your happiness. The word home has many different definitions to different people. Some would say that their home is where they were born or where their home country is. However most people confuse the word house with home, when a home is a way of organizing and understanding the space within ourselves and the way the world is constructed around us.
While a house is more used for a place of where someone lives. An example would be if someone were to move out and they get homesick then that’s when they begin to understand the true meaning of “home” because they don’t feel comfortable being there and they don’t have the feeling of being at home. Lee 2 Before Chris left his family and traveled to Alaska, he showed signs that he was never happy with his family. For example, when Chris’s dad offer him a brand new car, Chris got upset and complained in a letter to his sister, “I can’t believe they’d try and buy me a car” (p. 21 ).
Chris didn’t understand why his dad got him a new car, even though he already has one. The tone of Chris’s voice shows how angry Chris is. They also tend to not get along very well because Chris and his dad had differences over the years. Furthermore, Chris had gotten into an argument with his parents before. ” “This quote shows how Chris never got along with his family and how he struggled to stay with them and he never considered it to be a home to him. All in all, McCandless never experienced happiness with his family and consider them his home due to the struggles and arguments.
Chris McCandless cut off all ties from his family and friends in der to escape the struggles and depression and traveled to Alaska in pursuit of a new home, however, during the process, he made the situation even worse. For example, during Chris’ journey at Alaska, he wrote a message pleading for help,” S. O. S. I NEED YOUR HELP. I AM INJURED, NEAR DEATH, AND TOO WEAK TO HIKE OUT OF HERE I AM ALL ALONE, THIS IS NO JOKE. IN THE NAME OF GOD, PLEASE REMAIN TO SAVE ME. I AM OUT COLLECTING BERRIES CLOSE BY AND SHALL RETURN THIS EVENING. THANK YOU, CHRIS MCCANDLESS. AUGUST? “.
From Chris’s tone it shows how desperate Chris was for help. Chris didn’t prepare well enough for this journey, so he required assistance. Another example was while traveling to Alaska, Chris left behind tracks, which caused his parents to panic. Chris didn’t want to contact his parents after he left because he was scared of Lee 3 his parents not agreeing with Chris’s ideas. The unpaid ticket appeared in Walt and Billie’s mailbox at the end of August.
Walt and Billie, terribly concerned over Chris’s vanishing act, had by that time already contacted the Annandale police, who had been of no help. “When the ticket arrived from California, they became frantic”. Chris was so into leaving that he didn’t bother to tell his parents. Chris was doing what he wanted to do and not for what other people had told him to do. Though it may seem selfish of Chris to not care about how his parents would feel after he left, Chris just wanted to do what he wanted to do that would make him happy and because of this it caused various problems.
To summarize, Chris’ pursuit of a home caused various problems. Therefore, Chris McCandless never had a home because he never experienced happiness. He got into fights with his parents and caused even more problems by going to Alaska without letting his parents know. In the end Chris had achieved what he wanted and it was to find his true self however, he was challenged to his limits in Alaska and he had found out what they were resulting in his death.
