Characterization Traits of Christopher McCandelss

Direct and Indirect Characterization Notes on Christopher McCandless

(Alex Supertramp)

Chapter and page #	Description/quote from novel	What impression you get about Chris with this character trait or description?
Chapter 1, page 4 Chapter 1, page 5	“Five feet seven or eight with a wiry build, he claimed to be 24 years old and said he was from South Dakota.  He explained that he wanted a ride as far as the edge of Denali National Park, where he intended to walk deep into the bush and ‘live off the land for a few month.” “He had no ax, no bug dope, no snowshoes, no compass. The only navigation aid in his possession was a tattered state road map he’d scrounged at a gas station.”	Chris is not physically fit for walking into such a dangerous environment.  He seems a little crazy. He doesn’t have enough equipment to make it in the wild
Chapter 2, page 13 Chapter 2, page 10	“Chris McCandless had been dead for two and a half weeks” “These days it isn’t unusual for six or seven months to pass without the bus seeing a human visitor, but in early September 1992, six people in three separate parties happened to visit the remove vehicle on the same afternoon”	He died.
Chapter 3, page 16 Chapter 3, page 16	“McCandless was smallish with the hard, stringy physique of an itinerant laborer.” “There was something arresting about the yougster’s eyes. Dark and emotive, they suggested a trace of exotic blood in his heritage-greek, marybe, or Chippewa- and conveyed a vulnerability that made Westerberg want to take the kid under his wing.”	He was small  and probably wasn’t fit to go out into the wild.
Chapter 4, page 27 Chapter 4 page 27	“Ignoring posted warning that off road driving is strictly forbidden, McCandless steered the Datsun off the pavement where it crossed a broad, sandy wash” “I kind of wondered why nobody ever showed up to reclaim it.”	It shows that he didn’t care about the rules and that he didn’t think he would ever come back, or get out alive. Chris was dead so he couldn’t reclaim it.
Chapter 5, page 39 Chapter 5 Page 41	“On the face of it, bullhead city doesn’t seem like the kind of place that would appeal to an adherent of Thoreau and Tolstoy” “McCandless had tried to disguise the fact that he was a drifter living out of a backpack”	They never thought that chis would be able to live there. He didn’t want people to know that he was homeless.
Chapter 6, page 55 Chapter 6, Page 51	“Wearing jeans and a wool sweater, McCandless looks tan, strong.” “he was confined that he was building his time until spring, when he intended to go to Alaska and embark on an ultimate adventure.”	He looked tan and strong. He didn’t tell anybody where he was going.
Chapter 7, page 63	“Alex wasn’t a total space cadet or anything, don’t get me wrong. But there were gaps in his thinking”	Westerburg said he was off beat but smart.
Chapter 10, page 99 Chapter 10, page 99	“When he died, McCandless was wearing a blue sweatshirt printed with the logo of a santa Barbara towing company; when contacted, the wrecking outfit professed to know nothing about him or how he’d acquired the shirt.” “Because McCandless had told Gallien he was from South Dakota, the troopers immediately shifted their search therefor the hikers next of kin”	He wasn’t wearing clothes suitable for what conditions he was living under.
Chapter 11, page 107 Chapter 11, page  107	" He could be alone without being lonely" "Chris was fearless, even when he was little."	He was self-sufficient. He never ever really listened to anyone and was always fearless, just like he is today.
Chapter 12 page 125 Chapter 12, page 124	“ We were all worried when we didn’t hear from  him” “Chris seldom contacted his parents that year, and because he had no phone, they couldn’t easily contact him.”	They were worried and probably figured he died. He didn’t like to talk to his parents and he didn’t have a way to.
Chapter 13 page 128 Chapter 13 page 129	"Chris didn't think twice about risking his own life, but he never would have put Buckley in any kind of danger." “Chris and Carine were uncommonly close.”	He wouldn’t have risked the dog, Bucley’s life.
Chapter 16 page 158 Chapter 16 page 162	“Alex was clean-shaven and had short hair, and I could tell by the language he used that he was a real sharp fella. He wasn’t what you’d call a typical hitchhiker.” “The heaviest item in McCandless’s half-full backpack was his library: nine or ten paperbound books, most of which had been given to him by Jan Burres in Niland.”	Chris McCandless kept himself up. He took care of himself. He also liked to read a lot.
Chapter 17 page 173 Chapter 17 page 174	“Unlike McCandless however, I have in my backpack a topographical map" “Because he had no topographic map he had no way of seeing that salvation was close at hand.- in 1992 however there were no more blank spots on the map. But Chris came up with an elegant solution to the idea, get rid of the map.”	It showed that he wasn’t prepared really because he didn’t bring something as basic as a map.
Chapter 18 page 198 Chapter 18 page 199	"Chris would never, ever, intentionally burn down a forest, not even to save his life. Anybody who would suggest otherwise doesn't understand the first thing about my brother.” “I have had a happy life and thank the Lord. Goodbye and may God bless all”	Even if it meant he had to die, he wouldn’t hurt the wilderness or anything else. Chris was happy with his life, even when things were rough. He was very thankful.