Into the Wild Comprehension Questions

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS for

INTO THE WILD by Jon Krakauer

“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.�

- Henry David Thoreau, Walden, 1854

This work was created for educational purposes only as a comprehension companion guide for Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild

This EnglishCaddy™ Document was created by Gregg Robert Salters and is available for free through ENGLISHCADDY PUBLICATIONS Strasbourg, France 2015

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer by Gregg R. Salters is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. . To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/.

To obtain copies of this document visit www.EnglishCaddy.org

The 1997 First Anchor Books Edition Into the Wild (ISBN: 978-0-385-48680-4) was used as reference in the creation of this comprehension companion and can be purchased at www.knopfdoubleday.com or at most major booksellers.

A JOURNEY OF SELF DISCOVERY After a nation-wide best-seller and a major motion picture, the story of Christopher McCandless (a.k.a.

Alexander Supertramp) continues to resonate in thread of popular culture 20 years after his death. Why do we find his adventures so intriguing? The simple answer is, we admire his bravery, his willingness to spit in the face of structured society and lead a good life contrary to the definition of what we were conditioned of what a good life should be.

The answer, however is from simple, if it were, his story's allure would not continue in the hearts and minds of culture today. There is something in his life and message that speaks to each of us on an individual basis.

There is something in his story, even just a piece or a small part, that we each seem to identify with. When we discover what that is, we discover something about ourselves, and for this reason his adventures continue to live to this very day.

Why study Chris's Story?

Self-discovery. Simply investigating his life and the events within, leads to a deeper understanding of ourselves, our needs and the society we live in. By trying to understand Chris's view of the world, reading what he read, identifying his principles and beliefs, (whether we accept or reject them) we see our own world a little more clearly. Chris's view of things is not new, and it's obvious where his influences lie. This is visible simply by looking at his “reading list”. Within the books that he painstakingly carried with him on his Alaskan Odyssey can be found those of Henry David Thoreau, Jack London et al. who were known as American Transcendentalists. Was this the philosophy that compelled him to make the life choices he made?

Could exploring this way of thinking help us understand his motivations better? Could it help us, as it did Chris, understand ourselves better? The is answer is quite possibly, yes. After all as Socrates said in his trial that would lead to his suicide, “an unexamined life if not worth living.”

How to proceed: Simply read each chapter in the book for as thorough an understanding as possible (paying special attention to vocabulary, expressions, slang and grammar. along the way.) Then once you’ve completed the chapter answer the corresponding questions in the book. Answering the questions should be easy, but if you find questions that are difficult, simply go back to that chapter and reread wherever necessary so that you can easily respond to the question. All answers are in the book.

You may write your responses in this booklet, or you may want to create your own Into the Wild Reading Journal. There are many blank writing journals available for sale ranging from simple to fancy.

The most important!

The most important thing is to enjoy what you read. If you are intrigued by the story and legacy of Christopher McCandless you can use this as a starting point to discover what Christopher discovered.

Other books about Christopher McCandless: The Wild Truth, by Carine McCandless Back to the Wild, by Christopher McCandless

For more information visit www.englishcaddy.org/walkintothewild.htm

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer

Table of Contents Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Epilogue

The Alaska Interior The Stampede Trail Carthage Detrital Wash Bullhead City Anza-Borrego Carthage Alaska Davis Gulch Fairbanks Chesapeake Beach Annandale Virginia Beach The Stikine Ice Cap The Stikine Ice Cap The Alaska Interior The Stampede Trail The Stampede Trail

1 2 3 3 5 6 7 8 9 9 10 11 12 12 13 13 15 16 17

List of Main Characters: Christopher McCandless Alexander Supertramp Carine McCandless Mother Father Jim Gallien Wayne Westerberg Jan Burres Bob Ronald Franz a.k.a. Russel Fritz

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer

Chapter 1 – The Alaska Interior 1. Who does the hitchhiker introduce himself as? (pp. 1-2)

2. What was the hitchhiker carrying? (p. 2)

3. Describe the hitchhiker. (p. 3)

4. Where does he ask to be taken?

5. According to Gallien, how do outsiders view Alaska?

6. What did Gallien try to do?

7. When did the hitchhiker last speak to his family?

8. What did Gallien consider doing after he dropped off the hitchhiker?

Vocabulary: To drift (p.1)

Onlooker (p.1)

1

To ease (p.3)

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer

Chapter 2 – The Stampede Trail 1. What was the name of the trail Alex took? When was it blazed? (p.10)

2. What does the number 142 signify? Explain.(p. 10)

3. Describe the situation Samuel and Thompson encountered when they arrived at the bus. (p.12)

4. How long had Christopher McCandless been dead when he was discovered? (p.13)

5. Why does Krakauer state that authorities didn't know who the person found in the bus was? (p.14)

Vocabulary: Blaze (p.10)

Antinomy (p.10) Contumacious (p.11)

Chapter 3 – Carthage 1. According to Wayne, what did Alex used to drink? (p.16)

2. How did Wayne meet Alex McCandless? (p.16)

3. How does Wayne describe Alex?? (pp.16-18)

2

Wither (p.14)

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer 4. What did Wayne sense about Alex and his family? (p.18)

5. Why did Alex leave Carthage on October 23, 1990? (p.19)

6. Describe Chris's origins. (p.19-20)

7. What did Chris give to OXFAM? (p.20)

8. What did Chris complain about in his letter to Carine? (p.21)

9. Approximately when did Chris head west? (p.22)

10. What did he tell his family? (p.22)

Vocabulary: Stringy (p.16) Estranged (p.18)

“Black box” (p.19) Grade-point average (p.20) Misread s.o. (p.20)

Chapter 4 – Detrital Wash 1. At the beginning of the chapter what did the ranger find? (p.26)

3

Stifle (p.22) Throb (p.22)

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer 2. Where did he find it?

3. According to the book's author why was it there? (pp.27-29)

4. What text was Christopher inspired by? (p.28)

5. How does the author know of these events at Lake Meade? (p.29)

6. Who did he meet in Arcata, California? (p.30)

7. Who is Peter Kalitka? (p.31)

8. What did Chris buy in Arizona? (p.32)

9. Why was Alexander “jubilant�? (p. 34)

10. Why couldn't Alex get to the ocean by canoe? How does he eventually get there? (p. 35)

11. Why didn't Alexander like Los Angeles? (p.37)

4

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer Vocabulary: Tarp (p. 26) VIN (p.27) Mileage (p.27)

Veer (p.29) Mounds (p.30) Unheeded (p.31)

Burble (p.32) Spillway (p.34) Slammer (p.36)

Chapter 5 – Bullhead City 1. Why don't we know much about the events of Chris's life after he left Las Vegas? (p.38)

2. How long did Chris stay in Bullhead City? (p.39)

3. What was uncharacteristic of his stay there? (pp.39-40)

4. Why did Chris “need soap”? (pp.40-41)

5. Where did Chris stay while in Bullhead City? (p.41)

6. Why didn't Jan and Bob end up going to visit Chris in Bullhead City? (pp.42-43)

7. What are the “Slabs”? (p.43)

8. How did Jack London die? (p.44) 5

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer 9. How did Jan discover that Chris was from the Washington D.C. area? (p.46)

Vocabulary: Lumpen (p.39)

Commute (p.39) Frail (p.42)

Chapter 6 – Anza-Borrego 1. Where was Alex staying when he met Ronald Franz? (pp.49-50)

2. What happened to Mr. Franz's family? (p.50)

3. What did Alex recover at San Jacinto Peak? (p.51)

4. Alex tried to persuade Mr. Franz to do what? (p.51)

5. What did Mr. Franz teach Alex to make? (pp.51-52)

6. When Alex says; “I'm a hobo now!” What does that mean? (p.53)

7. What request does Mr. Franz make of Alex? (p.55)

6

“Punching a clock” (p.43) Swap meet (p.43)

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer 8. How does Alex react?

9. Where did Alex write Mr. Franz from? (p.56)

10. What did Alex tell Mr. Franz he should do (be doing)? (p.57)

11. What did Mr. Franz actually do after receiving Alex's letter? (p.58)

12. How did Mr. Franz learn of Chris's death? (p.60)

13. Why did Mr. Franz become an atheist? (p.60)

Vocabulary: Hegira (p.48) Unabated (p.49)

Fulminate (p.52) Schlepp (p.52) Missions (p.53)

Chapter 7 – Carthage 1. Where did Alex want to be by April? (p.62)

7

“To ride the rails” (p.53) Footage (p.55) Undermine (p.55)

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer 2. What kind of stuff did Alex talk to Borah about? (p.63)

3. What caused the polarization between Chris and his father? (p.64)

4. In Chris's letter to his sister, who was divorcing whom? (p. 64)

5. How did Chris feel about sex and sexual relations? (pp.65-66)

6. What did Chris's crying signal to Borah? (p.68)

Vocabulary: Muffled (p.62) Snarly (p.62)

To see the forest for the trees (p.63) Latter (p.64) Shorthanded (p.67)

Bothered (p.67) To bear (p.69) Mound (p.42)

Chapter 8 – Alaska 1. In general, how did the Alaskans feel about Christopher's death? (pp.71-72)

2. What do Rosellini, Waterman, and McCunn have in common? (pp.72-85)

8

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer 3. How do the stories of the individuals above relate to the story of Christopher McCandless? (pp.72-85)

Vocabulary: Drizzle (p.73) Hardship (p.74) Likelihood (p.75)

Enroll (p.76) Exhaust (p.77) Underscore (p.78) Plummet (p.80)

Recall (p.80) Silly (p.82) Downtime (p.83) Pus (p.84)

Chapter 9 – Davis Gulch 1. Who is Everett Ruess? (pp.89-90)

2. Based on the information given by the author, how many parallels can you list between McCandless and Reuss? (pp.91-96)

3. When is Reuss believed to have died? (p.95) 4. What do they think happened to him? (pp.95-96)

Vocabulary: Sheer (p.88)

Overwrought (p.89) Withdrawal (p.95)

Stain (p.95) Drown (p.97)

Chapter 10 – Fairbanks 1. What was the problem the Alaska State Troopers were having? (pp.98-99)

2. How did Wayne Westerberg discover the news of Christopher's death? (p100) 9

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer 3. What happened when Wayne called the Alaska State Troopers the first time? (p.100)

4. Who identified Christopher McCandless? (pp.101-102)

Vocabulary:

State troopers (p.98) To shift (p.99)

Broadcast (p.100) Household (p.101)

Chapter 11 – Chesapeake Beach 1. What is Walt's job? (pp.104-105)

2. Who was Sam's mother? (p.106)

3. Why did Chris have to do “extra school work”? (pp. 106-107)

4. In Chris's extended family, who was the most like him? Give the reasons for your choice. (pp. 107-109)

5. Briefly describe Chris's relationship with Carine. (p.110)

6. What were the reasons Chris enjoyed running? (pp.111-112) 10

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer 7. Explain the “weirdest” Friday in Eric's life. (pp.113-114)

8. Name some of Chris's business ventures. (pp.115-116)

Vocabulary: Undercurrent (figurative) (p.105) Fussy (p.106)

Shutter (p.107) “Money is tight”(p.107) Wanderlust (p.108)

Gap (p.111) To beat (p.111) “Keggers” (p.113)

Chapter 12 – Annandale 1. What did Chris tell his father before he left on his summer trip? (p.118)

2. Describe Chris's condition when he returned back from his road trip (p.118)

3. What did Chris discover during his summer road trip? (p.121)

4. Where did Chris go for the first time in 1989? (p.124)

5. After Chris stopped communicating with his family, what would Billie do each time she left the house? (p.125) 11

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer

Vocabulary: Baffle (p.120)

Beget (p.121) Lenity (p.122)

Outrage (p.123) Hue (p.124)

Chapter 13 – Virginia Beach 1. Name the differences in Chris and Carine's personalities. (pp.128-129)

2. How did Carine find out about Chris's death? (p.130)

3. What did Carine bring back from Anchorage? (p.131)

Vocabulary: Frilly (p.127)

Hobble (p.128) Blur (p.130)

To sift through (p.132)

Chapter 14 – The Stinkine Ice Cap

1. What is the author's suspicion? (p.134)

2. What is this in opposition with? (pp.133-134) 12

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer

3. How does the author support his suspicion? (pp.133-134)

Vocabulary: Blade-like (p.135) Condominium (p.135) Pier (p.137)

Overload (p.138) Span (p.139) Whine (p.141)

Catwalk (p.141) “Let your guard down” (p.142) Awkward (p.143)

Chapter 15 – The Stinkine Ice Cap 1. What common characteristics does the author try to establish between himself and Christopher? (pp.145-146)

Vocabulary: Cramped (p.146) Clench (p.148)

Fumble (p.149) Featureless (p.151) Squall (p.152)

Stretch (p.153) To fiddle (p.154) Lofty (p.155)

Chapter 16 – The Alaska Interior 1. What did Chris do in Liard River? (p.158)

2. What did Alex convince Stuckey to do? (pp.158-159)

3. What preparations did Chris make in Fairbanks? (pp.160-161)

13

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer 4. List what took up the most space in Chris's backpack. Be specific. (p.162)

5. What did Chris discover on May 1st?? (p.163)

6. What did Chris have difficulty doing in the wilderness? (p.164)

7. What did Chris do between May 5th and May 19th? (pp.164-165)

8. Why was the bus not considered to be in the wilderness? (p.165)

9. What is the best way to preserve meat according to Alaskans? (p.166)

10. What caused Chris to change his views on food consumption? (pp.167-168)

11. How did Chris now feel?

14

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer 12. What were the events and the conclusion of July 5th 1992? (pp.169-171)

Vocabulary: Doleful (p.158) Hoosier (p.158) “Champing at the bit” (p.160) Rifle shells (p.161) Laconic (p.162) Jagged (p.162)

Crest (p.163) Plywood (p.163) To hunt game (p.164) Porcupine (p.164) Thaw (p.165) Folly (p.165) Unbeknownst (p.165)

Rictus (p.166) Toil (p.166) Maggots (p.167) Rebuke (p.168) Gaunt (p.169) Steep (p.169) Whitewater (p.170)

Chapter 17 – The Stampede Trail 1. Where is the author going and who is he with? (p.173)

2. Why is he going there? (p.174)

3. What confirms Chris's incompetence according seasoned adventurers? (pp.177-178, 180)

4. What items of Chris's does the author list? (pp.178-179)

5. According to the author, why does Chris go into the wilderness? (p.183)

Vocabulary: Gauging Station (p.173) To yield (p.174)

Outcrop (p.175) Sticky (p.176) Stale (p.178) 15

Eerie (p.179) To utter (p.181) To be green (p.182)

Reckless (p.182) Loopy (p.184)

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer Wrested (p.184) Lag (p.186)

Chapter 18 – The Stampede Trail 1. What does the author cite as evidence that Chris had changed from wanting solitude? (p.189)

2. How does the author believe Chris died? (pp.192-195)

3. Name the theories presented in relation to the “trashed” cabins near the bus. (pp.196-197)

4. Why is it suggested that Chris didn't light a signal fire? (p.198)

5. What was Chris's final action? (p.199)

Vocabulary: Stymied (p.188) Bide (p.188)

Seedpod (p.193) Moldy (p.195) Vandalize (p.196)

16

To hit a blank (p.197)

Comprehension Questions for Into the Wild

By Jon Krakauer

Epilogue 1. What tributes do Walt and Billie leave at the bus? (p.202)

Vocabulary:

To come to terms with (p.201)

17

Silverware (p.202) Slightly (p.203)

Good job!

You have successfully completed all of the questions. Connecting to the story of this book is important, so take some time and write down your initial feelings after having finished the book.