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Symbols
Hunger and starvation are reoccurring symbols throughout Into the Wild. McCandless becomes a champion against widespread starvation by donating $24,000 to OXFAM, an organization dedicated to fighting hunger. Yet McCandless himself is often plagued by hunger. He wanders in the desert with little food or water, subsists on rice, and eats hungrily whenever he’s offered a free meal. Ironically, McCandless dies of starvation, as a result of his foraging for edible wild plants in the Alaskan bush. Yet McCandless does not just hunger for food, but craves, what Krakauer calls, a “raw, transcendent experience.” In this way, McCandless’s journey is driven by a deep yearning, or hunger to explore the world, nature, and himself.
Hunger and Starvation Quotes in Into the Wild
The Into the Wild quotes below all refer to the symbol of Hunger and Starvation. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 4 Quotes
Can this be the same Alex that set out in July 1990? Malnutrition and the road have taken their toll on his body. Over 25 pounds lost. But his spirit is soaring.
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By this time, Chris has lost or abandoned almost all of his worldly possessions, and he is wandering from place to place even more than before. Here, he writes in the third person in his own journal, as if he is viewing his own path from a distanced perspective. Chris refers to himself as "Alex," the new identity that he has taken on – this new identity, along with the way Chris describes his feelings, suggests that he is delighted that he has, in fact, been able to start anew by running away from his life and from his past.Another Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum.
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Hunger and Starvation Symbol Timeline in Into the Wild
The timeline below shows where the symbol Hunger and Starvation appears in Into the Wild. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1 - The Alaska Interior
...that “Alex” will be all right, figuring that he will turn back once he gets hungry.
(full context)
Chapter 2 - The Stampede Trail
...decomposed remains, it is difficult to determine the cause of death, but its thinness indicates starvation.
(full context)
Chapter 3 – Carthage
...to Carthage, South Dakota. Krakauer imagines what Chris would have looked like to Wayne—vulnerable and “hungry.” Westerberg remembers that, at the time of their meeting, McCandless had not eaten for days...
(full context)
Chapter 9 - Davis Gulch
Ruess and McCandless’ lives, deaths and “hunger of the spirit,” remind Krakauer of the papar, ancient Irish monks who sailed to a...
(full context)
Chapter 18 - The Stampede Trail
...effect that stops the body from being able to absorb energy from food, leading to starvation.
(full context)
