Tuesday, May 17, 2016

In the book Into the Wild, Chris's death created much discussion. Which persona, Chris or Alex, did he die as?

Chris McCandless.  He died as Chris McCandless.  He did not die as Alex, Supertramp, McCandless.  The best possible proof that I can offer you is the note that McCandless left on the outside of the bus that he died inside of in the Alaskan interior.  



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?



The note, written by McCandless, clearly identifies himself as Chris.  He is scared, hurt, and starving to death.  McCandless is a long way away from being the brash and overconfident "Alex" that he likes to envision himself as.  He knows that unless he gets help, quickly, he is going to die.  He no longer has the energy or the confidence to maintain the "I can do anything and forget the world" persona of Alex.  In his dying days, McCandless reverts to his given name, Chris, because he knows that Alex died several days earlier.  

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