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Into the Wild Afterword and Additional Materials
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02/12/2025 12:37 am
After reading all the additional materials, it helped me understand way more about Chris McCandless and that he's not some idiot who went in the wilderness unprepared. I feel that others who have read this may have a similar opinion, based off of the information that was provided. These additional materials didn't just make it seem like McCandless cause of death was just starvation, but it was because of poison from eating wild potatoe seeds. After all the research Mr. Krakauer has done, provides reliable research to figure out the true cause behind McCandless death. I believe that from all this research many people have had a different view on McCandless, but now feel more for him.
Although I still have my beliefs on what I think were dumb ideas made by McCandless, reading these articles has definitely complicated my opinions. After reading that Mr. Krakauer believes McCandless most likely wouldve survived if he hadn't ate the wild potatoes seeds makes me have a whole new outlook on this. Maybe McCandless wasn't unprepared as much as I thought and he was doing fine out in the wilderness. I wonder what could of happened differently if he never ate the seeds. I've said in a previous forum post that, "This makes me think about how Chris McCandless might've felt trying to look for food and if he was trying to look for a way back to people like Krakauer did." This now makes me think even more and wonder if all he could actually find was just the potatoes seeds and nothing else.
02/12/2025 6:43 pm
I like seeing that your opinion changed for the better and you don't view McCandless as incompetent anymore. By acknowledging that you misjudged him, and now that you have more information, changing your stance is a very refreshing viewpoint compared to what the rest of the unit has been and what I've read from other people's posts. I've been saying since my very first forum post that people should be looking at the bigger picture. I understand a lot of people had not read the book before and known McCandless's story the way I already did, but I wonder if there was more of a precursor to the unit if less people would've assumed he was unprepared. If it was common knowledge that he was poisoned and not just "that he died".
I still do wonder how some people can still blame him though. How can people say "He should've been sure before eating the potato seeds," or "This is why you never eat things haphazardly." At the end of the day, McCandless was human and we all make mistakes. Given that in his entire journey this was the only really substantial mistake he made, I think he was a lot more prepared than people give him credit for.
05/12/2025 11:26 pm
I really liked how you discussed how these materials complicated your ideas but didn't change them. I feel that often times when we are presented evidence in an opposing opinion from ours, we tend to sway and reason with that side. So, you're stating that even though these materials make a strong argument and allow you to reconsider your preconceived opinions towards McCandless, you still stick to your beliefs. Discussing this makes your point stronger and is nice to see in your writing.
When reading your response, I agree with you on how McCandless, throughout most of the novel, was a stupid kid who seemed unprepared to most, but when reading your response, you helped me escape that mindset when you discussed the other side of him. When most people first read about his death, they most likely believed that it was probably an idiotic mistake that could've been prevented if he had been prepared and informed about what he was getting himself into. But you discussed that moldy potato seeds most likely were the cause, proving that this could've happened to anyone and that to some, he might not be that dumb kid we first read about.
In broader context, McCandless was lucky enough that Krakauer did all this research and dived deeper into McCandless's death. Krakauer's commitment to bring justice to McCandless was the motivation that proved that moldy seeds could have most likely caused his death. If Krakauer didn't invest himself in this story of a boy who died in the Alaskan woods, we wouldn't know the background and death of Christopher McCandless.
You had discussed how the articles didn't change your opinions, but they made them more complex and made you think more about your pre-existing opinion. My question for you is, would any other sort of materials or evidence change your opinions towards McCandless? If so, what exactly would change your mind and steer you away from your opinion towards McCandless and how he had lived the last of his life?
This post was modified 3 months ago by kmoran26
06/12/2025 9:30 am
I agree with you, after reading all the extra materials, McCandless doesn’t seem nearly as careless as he’s often made out to be. The whole thing about the wild potato seeds really changed my perspective too. It makes his death feel less like “he didn’t prepare” and more like a tragic accident he couldn’t have predicted.
I also think you’re right that these new details make people feel more sympathy for him. Knowing he might’ve survived if not for the poisoning does make me wonder how things could’ve turned out differently. Your point about him maybe not having any other food options is a good one, it makes his decisions seem a lot more understandable.
