Into the Wild

This week we started talking about college culture and how it is represented both in the media and in society (see post below for examples), however as we discussed in class the picture we are presented often isn’t the reality.

Chris McCandless aka Alex Supertramp was a 21 year old Emory grad who seems to rail against every portrayal we’ve been presented of college students thus far. McCandless’s story inspired reporter Jon Krakauer to write the article “Death of Innocent,” then the book Into the Wild about McCandless, which last year inspired a film of the same name.

Read the handout “Death of an Innocent,” the original piece Krakauer wrote about McCandless for Outside magazine and in essay form respond on your blog to one of the following questions:

• Is McCandless’s story so sensational/controversial because it doesn’t match the stereotype we usually see for college students?

• Do McCandless’s beliefs or actions represent on a small scale some of the ideas and beliefs that are on college campuses?

• Could a character like McCandless exist today or has society changed so much in the past 15 years that our primary goals are economic?


Use specific examples from the article to support your arguments. Please follow the directions carefully and review the Blogging 101 handout for guidelines. Please remember blogs that don’t meet the guidelines receive a grade of 0. Blogs are due by 11am 1/28/08