I have posted a long comment on Layla's blog which I have written spontaneously and it was very strong and harsh but it was good and long enough to be an independent post as it carries my deep thoughts about McCandless' story and I was thinking that I should post it here on my blog so it becomes easy to find. So, here's Layla's post followed by my comment:

"Everyone searches for life answers, searches for meaning and purpose and we all do it in different manners, different times of our lives. The fact that some people have chosen to make McCandless a mythic folk hero is a curious side product of that. I personally don't think that he was what Krakauer had in mind. Of course, we all see what we want to see at times. To some, he might have been a folk hero to others he really was just plain crazy and quite possibly a total idiot. He certainly did have an idealistic outlook on life that was hard to understand. It's all a matter of perspective. I think that Chris is not a hero by any length. What he did was have courage and the drive to test himself in the world without questioning death. There are so many people who never truly live, take chances, and don’t worry to much about making mistakes and trying to be so perfect. Chris was a kind and giving person, I found that he only a person who was setting out to find the "meaning of life". Someone who wanted to communicate with nature".

My comment(caution! It might sound a little bit strong):

"Raed AlJabri said...

I totally agree with the people who said that McCandless was a plain crazy and a total idiot. I just hate people like him for no obvious reason.
As for the other people who said that he's a hero I ask them why is he a hero? what did he do for humanity ? All what he has done is that he burnt his money dumped his car, scare his parents to death and went to freaze to death in Alaska! He didn't introduce a new idea nor did he invented something useful, He looked at the human civilization as an evil entity and preferred to live like an animal in the wilderness! Stories like this shouldn't be introduced to the public; instead, stories of the people who work restlessly day and night to save the human race from their evil deeds. People like scientists, politicians should be known about instead of people who chose to run away".

Handicap zone !!

I was hardly walking even with a pair of crutches when I visited "Bobby" the Chinese doctor in his remote house outside of Jakarta, Indonesia. I was pretty desperate as I have tried every way possible to walk properly again; and when some of the locals in Indonesia insisted to volunteer and take me to "Bobby" as they call him, I couldn't refuse or say no. I was almost dragged to that place. I was first to be treated that morning so I was put on a table and "Bobby" was standing on it by my legs. He, then, grabbed my legs and started twisting them and hitting them. It was really painful. After he finally finished, he asked me to stand up on my own, so I did and I was surprised !! I don't need my crutches anymore! After two years, I finally could walk again! It was really a good trip that summer since I started hiking the next day without any help from anyone. But on the downside, I don't to get to park my car in the handicap zone anymore and I have to look for a far away spot !!

Second Life !!

I knew about Second life from its beginnings. And I knew what it was about and it seemed interesting enough for me to try and live it but somehow I didn't. A few months ago, while I was surfing the web, an ad popped up and it was advertising houses in Second Life. Then, I thought about trying living there, so I went to their webpage www.secondlife.com and opened an account. Unfortunately, I didn't get to choose my own name so I went by the name they gave me which is Ray Daylight. At the beginning, I landed on the Welcoming Island where I learned how to walk, fly, teleport and socialize. After I've finished my training I was there on my own homeless, friendless and penniless. I didn't know where to go, so I went to a mosque in virtual Miami, Florida (Which is my virtual birth island) and I stayed there, with some other avatars like me, for a while living on other people charity until a nice lady felt sorry for me and offered me a job at her new mall as a cinema manager so I took the job for LD 200 a week, which is pretty decent at that time; she also gave me a new skin and bone structure . That's when my real virtual life began when I used my savings to buy a beautiful house and to start my own shop. Here is a screenshot of me standing behind the mall owner:

Chris's Symbols

When looking closely at Chris McCandless' story two main symbols can be noticed. The first symbol is him burning the money. This probably indicates his desire of getting rid of his previous luxurious life and starting a new life with a new name and a new way of life. Or it might simply mean that he's gone mad like his spiritual mentor "Tolstoy"!

The other important symbol is the element of nature. It is obvious that McCandless has been affected greatly by London's Writings even though London has never been to Alaska. But unfortunately, nature has been more cruel than McCandless' fantasies!

Weird Characters

One thing can be noticed when reading the book which is there is no villain in McCandless' story but himself. Every person that he have encountered in his journey were a friend; never a foe. The German couple, Jan Burres, Ronald Franz and many others. The have provided aid help and shelter for him. I can't seem to remember that I've came across any character that wasn't nice to him. They may have liked him or his personality and charisma, or maybe he was a good listener because people always talk to him in the book, or even they might feel sorry for him because of what he's going through at the time. Is life really this beautiful? Who knows?

My Impressions...

After reading the book I felt a little depressed. I will recommend such a book only for people who love sadness and self punishment. This might sound a little bit strong but that's what I feel. I loath anti-materialism, which McCandless and feel pity for those who embrace it as a way of life; and that's for two important reasons. The first one is that most of anti-materialists choose look to the world from outside with black looks and choose pessimism to control their judgement. The second reason might sound the strongest opinion I've ever expressed, so if you believe you are an anti-materialist and you may feel offended please stop reading here. What I think is that anti-materialism is no way for a human to think or to live by, because materialism is what separates the human from other life forms. On the other hand, I am not a pure material person who doesn't have a place for spirituals in his heart, I believe in balance in everything. A person should enjoy as much as possible while maintaining contact with his or one's spiritual self.

When reading "Into the Wild", although it's a biography of Chris McCandless, you'll feel somewhat distanced; and the pieces from his diaries the writer used from time to time, strengthen this feeling. Although the book was about McCandless, the focus was on the people, environment, elements and ideas surrounding him. Furthermore, the use of the third person and the alter ego "Alex" Make the reader more distanced from McCandless. However, this feeling might change a bit towards the End of Chris McCandless' journey, because he wrote using the first person and also he signed what he has written with his real name. This might have been caused by McCandless' feeling that his journey has came to an end and his death became inevitable.