Afterword and Additional - My piece

Initially, the materials help to further advance the overall understanding of McCandless’s death and just how it happened. The previous narrative was that through a tragic error, McCandless ended up consuming a look-alike of a potato plant that is toxic, thereby poisoning himself. Making him seem like a foolish and unknowing kid who was unprepared and careless. Krakauer’s article identifies the presence of a toxin found in the seeds he was eating and suggests that the slow-acting poison made him starve to death. This new sight doesn’t completely make him look any better than before, but it changes the narrative from deadly stupidity to a tragic accident of a rare and deadly natural occurrence. 

In a way, this outcome both favors and slightly discredits my original idea of who McCandless is and what situation he got himself into. I sort of vary in my opinion of McCandless throughout the book, and often am undecided on whether I feel one side or the other about it, often leaning toward somewhere in the middle, as I can see both ends of his situation and goals. As stated through chapters 1-9 of the book, I say, “I also see McCandless’s situation in a broader, more dangerous sense. McCandless is bold and took a huge leap of faith, but did it in a way that makes him seem unintelligent and unprepared.” (areardon26 1-9). In this section, I state how McCandless is bold, but in a super dangerous situation, and at first glance, he seems unprepared and lacks the correct knowledge going into this. Krakauer’s analysis of how McCandless died supports this by saying he was unknowing and there was nothing he could do given the situation, but it also mentions how McCandless struggled mentally and with his life, which discredits my first-ever idea that he was an idiotic kid with absolutely no idea what he was doing. He knew what he was getting into, as unprepared and irrational of a decision as it may have been.