Christopher McCandless aka Alexander Supertramp in Modern-Day Hitchhikers

Chris McCandless QuotesThe following quotes by Chris McCandless are attributed to him by Jon Krakauer in Into the Wild book, through letters and postcards to friends, and excerpted from Chris McCandless' journal entries.

"I read somewhere... how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong... but to feel strong."— Read more about this reference by Chris McCandless from ashort story called Bear Meat by Primo Levi

Two years he walks the earth.No phone, no pool, no pets, no cigarettes. Ultimate freedom. An extremist. An aesthetic voyager whose home is the road. Escaped from Atlanta. Thou shalt not return, 'cause "the West is the best." And now after two rambling years comes the final and greatest adventure. The climactic battle to kill the false being within and victoriously conclude the spiritual pilgrimage. Ten days and nights of freight trains and hitchhiking bring him to the Great White North. No longer to be poisoned by civilization he flees, and walks alone upon the land to become lost in the wild.— Alexander Supertramp May 1992

"So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more dangerous to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man's living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun."— Chris McCandless

"Surely all Americans have the right to give their money only to those causes which they support. But what kind of society has this created? A society where the ignorant reign. A society where enlightened must hold their tongues. A nation whose politicians must profess half-hearted devotion to an ancient fable or face the disastrous consequences of speaking their true mind."Chris McCandless writing on religious fanaticism in The Emory Wheel student newspaper, October 1987

"Some people feel like they don't deserve love. They walk away quietly into empty spaces, trying to close the gaps of the past."— Chris McCandless

"The core of mans' spirit comes from new experiences."— Chris McCandless

"If we admit that human life can be ruled by reason, then all possibility of life is destroyed."— Chris McCandless

"Rather than love, than money, than faith, than fame, than fairness... give me truth."— Chris expanded on the original quote by Henry David Thoreau

"Mr. Franz I think careers are a 20th century invention and I don't want one."— Chris McCandless in Into the Wild movie, speaking to Ronald Franz.

"Greetings from Fairbanks!This is the last you shall hear from me Wayne. Arrived here 2 days ago. It was very difficult to catch rides in the Yukon Territory. But I finally got here. Please return all mail I receive to the sender.It might be a very long time before I return South. If this adventure proves fatal and you don't ever hear from me again, I want you to know your a great man. I now walk into the wild. Might be a very long time before I return South...I now walk into the wild."— Chris McCandless, in postcard sent to Wayne Westerberg in Carthage, South Dakota, from Alaska

"...henceforth will learn to accept my errors, however great they be..."— Chris McCandless' journal from Alaska, written weeks before he died

"I have had a happy life and thank the Lord. Goodbye and may God bless all!" — Chris McCandless' journal from Alaska

Quotes associated with Into the Wild movie and/or read by Christopher McCandless

"There is pleasure in the pathless woods,There is rapture on the lonely shore,There is society where none intrudes,By the deep sea and the music in its roar;I love not man the less, but Nature more."— Lord Byron

"Rather than Love, than Money, than Fame, give me Truth."— Henry David Thoreau

"It should not be denied... that being footloose has always exhilarated us. It is associated in our minds with escape from history and oppression and law and irksome obligations, with absolute freedom, and the road has always led West."— Wallace Stegner

"I want to go up to them and say Stop,don't do it— she's the wrong woman,he's the wrong man, you are going to do thingsyou cannot imagine you would ever do."— Sharon Olds, May 1937

(In the movie, Chris reads this to his sister, Carine, outside the restaurant)

"If we admit that human life can be ruled by reason, the possibility of life is destroyed."Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace

"I have lived through much and now I think I have found what is needed for happiness. A quiet, secluded life in the country with the possibility of being useful to people..."— Leo Tolstoy

"...the sea's only gifts are harsh blows and, occasionally, the chance to feel strong. Now, I don't know much about the sea, but I do know that that's the way it is here. And I also know how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong but to feel strong, to measure yourself at least once, to find yourself at least once in the most ancient of human conditions, facing blind, deaf stone alone, with nothing to help you but your own hands and your own head..."— Bear Meat by Primo Levi(thanks to K. Hill for the book reference!)

Death's a fierce meadowlark: but to die having made Something more equal to the centuries Than muscle and bone, is mostly to shed weakness— From "Wise Men in Their Bad Hours" by poet Robinson Jeffers (As quoted by Louis L'Amour in his memoir, Education of A Wandering Man, a book Chris had with him in Alaska)

Christopher McCandless: I read somewhere... how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong... but to feel strong.

Christopher McCandless: I'm going to paraphrase Thoreau here... rather than love, than money, than faith, than fame, than fairness... give me truth.

Christopher McCandless: Some people feel like they don't deserve love. They walk away quietly into empty spaces, trying to close the gaps of the past.

Christopher McCandless: I'm supertramp. [looks at apple] Christopher McCandless: and you're super apple!

Christopher McCandless: If we admit that human life can be ruled by reason, then all possibility of life is destroyed.

Christopher McCandless: The core of mans' spirit comes from new experiences.

Christopher McCandless: What if I were smiling and running into your arms? Would you see then what I see now?

Rainey: You're an industrious little fucker aren't cha?

Ranger Steve Koehler: Next available is May 17, 2003. Christopher McCandless: 12 years? Twelve years - to paddle down a river?

Ron Franz: I'm going to miss you when you go. Christopher McCandless: I will miss you too, but you are wrong if you think that the joy of life comes principally from the joy of human relationships. God's place is all around us, it is in everything and in anything we can experience. People just need to change the way they look at things. Ron Franz: Yeah. I am going to take stock of that. You know I am. I want to tell you something. From bits and pieces of what you have told me about your family, your mother and your dad... And I know you have problems with the church too... But there is some kind of bigger thing that we can all appreciate and it sounds to me you don't mind calling it God. But when you forgive, you love. And when you love, God's light shines through you. Christopher McCandless: Holy shit!

Christopher McCandless: Mr. Franz I think careers are a 20th century invention and I don't want one.

Christopher McCandless: When you want something in life, you just gotta reach out and grab it.

Christopher McCandless: If I wanted to paddle down the river, where's the best place to launch out of? Ranger Steve Koehler: To *launch* out of?

Christopher McCandless: [written into book] Happiness only real when shared.

Christopher McCandless: You are the apple of my eye.

Wayne Westerberg: Outdoorsman. What's your fascination with all that stuff? Christopher McCandless: I'm going to Alaska. Wayne Westerberg: Alaska, Alaska? Or city Alaska? Because they do have markets in Alaska. The city of Alaska. Not in Alaska. In the city of Alaska, they have markets. Christopher McCandless: No, man. Alaska, Alaska. I'm gonna be all the way out there, all the way fucking out there. Just on my own. You know, no fucking watch, no map, no axe, no nothing. No nothing. Just be out there. Just be out there in it. You know, big mountains, rivers, sky, game. Just be out there in it, you know? In the wild. Wayne Westerberg: In the wild. Christopher McCandless: Just wild! Wayne Westerberg: Yeah. What are you doing when we're there? Now you're in the wild, what are we doing? Christopher McCandless: You're just living, man. You're just there, in that moment, in that special place and time. Maybe when I get back, I can write a book about my travels. Wayne Westerberg: Yeah. Why not? Christopher McCandless: You know, about getting out of this sick society. Society! Wayne Westerberg: [coughs] Society! Society! Christopher McCandless: Society, man! You know, society! Cause, you know what I don't understand? I don't understand why people, why every fucking person is so bad to each other so fucking often. It doesn't make sense to me. Judgment. Control. All that, the whole spectrum. Well, it just... Wayne Westerberg: What "people" we talking about? Christopher McCandless: You know, parents, hypocrites, politicians, pricks. Wayne Westerberg: [taps Chris' head] This is a mistake. It's a mistake to get too deep into all that kind of stuff. Alex, you're a hell of a young guy, a hell of a young guy. But I promise you this. You're a young guy! Can't be juggling blood and fire all the time! [laughs]

Christopher McCandless: You don't need human relationships to be happy, God has placed it all around us.

Christopher McCandless: Two years he walks the earth. No phone, no pool, no pets, no cigarettes. Ultimate freedom. An extremist. An aesthetic voyager whose home is the road. Escaped from Atlanta. Thou shalt not return, 'cause "the West is the best." And now after two rambling years comes the final and greatest adventure. The climactic battle to kill the false being within and victoriously conclude the spiritual pilgrimage. Ten days and nights of freight trains and hitchhiking bring him to the Great White North. No longer to be poisoned by civilization he flees, and walks alone upon the land to become lost in the wild. - Alexander Supertramp May 1992

Christopher McCandless: The sea's only gifts are harsh blows, and occasionally the chance to feel strong. Now I don't know much about the sea, but I do know that that's the way it is here. And I

also know how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong but to feel strong. To measure yourself at least once. To find yourself at least once in the most ancient of human conditions. Facing the blind death stone alone, with nothing to help you but your hands and your own head.

Christopher McCandless: The freedom and simple beauty is too good to pass up...

[first title card] Title Card: There is a pleasure in the pathless woods; / There is a rapture on the lonely shore; / There is society, where none intrudes, / By the deep sea, and music in its roar; / I love not man the less, but Nature more... / - Lord Byron

[first lines] Christopher McCandless: Mom! Mom! Help me.

[last lines] Christopher McCandless: What if I were smiling and running into your arms? Would you see then what I see now?

[last title cards] Title Card: In memory / Christopher Johnson McCandless / February 12, 1968 - August 18, 1992 Title Card: Two weeks after Chris's death, moose hunters discovered his body in the bus. [This self-portrait was found undeveloped in his camera] Title Card: On September 19, 1992, Carine McCandless flew with her brother's ashes from Alaska to the eastern seaboard. She carried them with her on the plane... in her backpack. Title Card: The filmmakers thank Jon Krakauer for his guidance and gratefully acknowledge Walt, Billie, Carine and the entire McCandless family for their brave support in the making of this film.

Ron Franz: What does the "N" stand for? Christopher McCandless: North. Ron Franz: [sounding surprised and frustrated] Alaska?

Rainey: That poor girl's just about ready to vault herself onto your fencepost.

Christopher McCandless: It should not be denied that being footloose has always exhilarated us. It is associated in our minds with escape from history and oppression and law and irksome obligations. Absolute freedom. And the road has always led west.

Christopher McCandless: You are really good. I mean, you're like, a hundred thousand times better than like any apple I've ever had. I'm not Superman, I'm Supertramp and you're super apple. You're so tasty, you're so organic, so natural. You are the apple of my eye, ha!