This post is based on “Death of an Innocent” by Jon Krakauer

Death of an Innocent by John Krakauer is about Chris McCandless, a young man who wanted to live off the land for a few months in an Alaskan park in late April 1992. He survived for almost 16 weeks, and if not for a few unfortunate mistakes, he would have walked out of Denali National Park alive.

This article caught my attention because of my personal interest in the outdoors and nature. Throughout Chris’s journey, he was reluctant to kill large animals and wouldn’t start a fire in the forest, even to save his own life. The author told this story with minimal judgement, and simply re-told what had happened. I found this refreshing because articles like this often have criticism on the events that have occurred. Jon Krakauer painted a picture of life in the wild, and how a few mistakes in the wild can ruin your chance of survival. As readers, we gain insight into the reasons behind McCandless’s journey; Chris strongly believed that doing well at anything was all mental, by pushing past the wall of evil, you could do anything. This concept sounds positive in theory; however, when out into reality, this can lead to disaster. The message that is conveyed suggests that we are too reliant on our material things.