ABSTRACT
Pamungkas, Andreas Candra Yoga. 2008. A Study of Chris’s Motivations in Living off the Land in Alaska as Seen in Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild. Yogyakarta: English Language Education Study Program. Department of Language and Arts Education. Faculty of Teachers Training and Education. Sanata Dharma University. Yogyakarta.
This thesis analyzes Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild. It is about Christopher Johnson McCandless, the major character of the novel. He is a young man who hitchhikes to Alaska, walks alone, and lives off the land into the wilderness in the north of Mount McKinley. The aim of this thesis is to find out Christopher’s reasons to live in the wilderness. In order to do so, this study explores how Christopher is depicted in the novel and his motivations in conducting his actions.
This thesis is a library study. It employs psychological approach and several theories that are related to the study. The primary source is the novel itself, while the secondary sources are the movie based on the novel, some books on literature and psychology, as well as the related articles from the internet.
Based on the analysis, it can be concluded that Christopher Johnson McCandless is smart, brave, stubborn, and musical. He is also generous, friendly, and obsessed with social issues. Not only does he love his sister, but also he cares for the nature and wildlife.
Based on the human needs, his motivations can be categorized as intrinsic and extrinsic ones. His interpersonal conflicts with his parents, for example, can be categorized as one of his extrinsic motivations. His intrinsic motivations include sharing his love to the nature, having new experiences, and realizing his dream about wildlife.
Finally, this thesis suggests that further researchers examine the novel by focusing on Chris’s interpersonal conflicts due to his relation with his parents. As for English teachers, they are recommended to make use of the novel to teach Extensive Reading II.
ABSTRAK
Pamungkas, Andreas Candra Yoga. 2008. A Study of Chris’s Motivations in Living off the Land in Alaska as Seen in Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild. Yogyakarta: Program Studi Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris. Jurusan Pendidikan Bahasa dan Seni. Fakultas Keguruan dan Ilmu Kependidikan. Universitas Sanata Dharma. Yogyakarta.
Skripsi ini menganalisa novel Into the Wild yang ditulis oleh Jon Krakauer. Novel ini berkisah tentang Christopher Johnson McCandless, tokoh utama, seorang anak muda yang menumpang ke Alaska, berjalan sendiri, dan hidup dari alam di hutan belantara di sebelah utara Gunung McKinley. Skripsi ini bertujuan untuk menemukan alasan-alasan Christopher untuk hidup di dalam hutan belantara. Untuk menemukannya, skripsi ini akan menyelidiki Christopher digambarkan dalam novel dan motivasi-motivasinya dalam melakukan tindakan-tindakannya.
Skripsi ini adalah studi pustaka. Studi pustaka yang dilakukan adalah dengan menggunakan pendekatan psikologi dan beberapa teori yang berhubungan dengan studi ini. Sumber primernya adalah novel itu sendiri, sedangkan sumber-sumber sekundernya adalah film yang berdasarkan novel tersebut, beberapa buku tentang psikologi dan kesusastraan, dan juga beberapa artikel dari internet.
Berdasarkan analisis yang dibuat, dapat disimpulkan bahwa Chris pintar, pemberani, keras kepala, dan memiliki bakat musik. Dia juga dermawan, ramah, dan terobsesi oleh persoalan-persoalan sosial. Chris tak hanya mencintai adik perempuannya, tetapi dia juga mencintai alam dan kehidupan margasatwa.
Berdasarkan apa yang dinamakan dengan kebutuhan-kebutuhan manusia, motivasi-motivasi Chris adalah motivasi yang muncul dari dalam dirinya dan dari luar dirinya. Memiliki konflik interpersonal dengan orang tuanya sebagai contoh, dapat digolongkan sebagai salah satu motivasi yang muncul dari luar dirinya. Motivasi dari dalam dirinya yakni termasuk berbagi cintanya pada alam dan sesama, memiliki pengalaman-pengalaman baru, dan mewujudkan mimpinya akan kehidupan marga satwa.
Akhirnya, novel ini menyertakan saran-saran bagi peneliti lain yang hendak mempelajari novel ini lebih jauh dengan mengacu pada konflik interpersonal Chris dalam hubungannya dengan orang tuanya. Selain itu bagi pengajar bahasa Inggris, mereka juga disarankan untuk memanfaatkan novel ini sebagai bahan mata kuliah Extensive Reading II.
A STUDY OF CHRIS’S MOTIVATIONS IN LIVING OFF THE LAND IN ALASKA AS SEEN IN JON KRAKAUER’S INTO THE WILD
A THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree
in English Language Education
By
Andreas Candra Yoga Pamungkas Student Number: 031214130
ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY YOGYAKARTA
A STUDY OF CHRIS’S MOTIVATIONS IN LIVING OFF THE LAND IN ALASKA AS SEEN IN JON KRAKAUER’S INTO THE WILD
A THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree
In English Language Education
By
Andreas Candra Yoga Pamungkas Student Number:
031214130
ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY YOGYAKARTA
2008
HAPPINESS
ONLY REAL
WHEN SHARED
(
Christopher Johnson McCandless
)
Dedicated with love and gratitude to:
my Dad up heaven there and my super beautiful Mom,
who have introduced me to the beauty of life
STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY
I honestly declare that the thesis, which I wrote, does not contain the works or parts of the works of ther people, except those cited in the quotations and the references, as a scientific paper should.
Yogyakarta, 8 November 2008 The Writer,
Andreas Candra Yoga Pamungkas 031214130
LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN
PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH UNTUK KEPENTINGAN AKADEMIS
Yang bertandatangan di bawah ini, saya mahasiswa Universitas Sanata Dharma: Nama : Andreas Candra Yoga Pamungkas
Nomor Mahasiswa : 031214130
Demi pengembangan ilmu pengetahuan, saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan Uiversitas Sanata Dharma karya ilmiah saya yang berjudul:
A STUDY OF CHRIS’S MOTIVATIONS IN LIVING OFF THE LAND IN ALASKA AS SEEN IN JON KRAKAUER’S INTO THE WILD
Beserta perangkat yang diperlukan (bila ada). Dengan demikian saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan Universitas Sanata Dharma hak untuk menyimpan, mengalihkan dalam bentuk media lain, mengelolanya dalam bentuk pangkalan data, mendistribusikan secara terbatas, dan mempublikasikannya di internet atau media lain untuk kepentingan akademis tanpa perlu meminta ijin dari saya maupun memberikan royalti kepada saya selama tetap mencantumkan nama saya sebagai penulis.
Demikian pernyataan ini saya buat dengan sebenarnya. Dibuat di Yogyakarta
Pada tanggal: 28 November 2008
Yang menyatakan,
Andreas Candra Yoga Pamungkas
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all, I would like to praise and thank my beloved Jesus Christ and Mother Mary for the wonderful grace, blessings, and for giving me the strength so that I could complete my thesis.
My deepest gratitude also goes to my major sponsor, Drs. A. Herujiyanto, M.A., Ph.D. who always read, re-read my thesis, and supported me with his beneficial suggestions. I do believe that without his guidance, I could never have accomplished my thesis. From the bottom of my heart, I would like to thank him for his sincere guidance, patience, and time. I also give thank Mbak Dani and Mbak Tari for helping me with the administrative matters and to all Sanata Dharma University staff.
My sincere gratitude goes to my beloved parents F. Sumpeno Yudonugroho and Rosalia Budi M. who always give me supports encouragement, and prayer. I also thank to my sister Mbak Ika and my brothers Mas Irvan and Mas Candra for being patient to me.
I truthfully would like to thank my best friends: 6 CHE 2003, Inu, Yudo, Edwin, Eong, Kuda, Si Po, etc. for the time they spent with me. I would also like to thank Ajeng, Melon, Timur, Babi, Dudung, Grace, Cherly and my friends at Sanata Dharma University for encouraging me to complete my thesis. I would like to thank Mitra Perpustakaan for the cooperation during this time. I hope our friendship will never end. Finally, I thank those whose names cannot be mentioned one by one, who have helped and supported me. MAY GOD BLESS THEM ALL.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
TITLE PAGE………..………i
APPROVAL PAGE………..………...ii
DEDICATION PAGE………...iii
STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY………...…………iv
LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI……….……….……v
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS..……….………...…………vi
TABLE OF CONTENTS………...….………vii
LIST OF APPENDICES...………..………...x
ABSTRACT……….…………..xi
ABSTRAK……….…..……….…...…xii
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the Study………...1
1.2 Objectives of the Study………...3
1.3 Problem Formulation...………...………....………3
1.4 Benefits of the Study………...………..……….4
1.5 Definition of Terms……….………..………….4
CHAPTER II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE 2.1 Review of Related Theories……..…….………6
2.1.1 Character………..6
2.1.2 Characterization………...8
2.1.3 Approaches………...………...10
2.1.4 Motivations………..………..12
2.2 Criticism…………...………....15
2.3 Theoretical Framework…….………17
CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY 3.1 Subject Matter………...………18
3.2 Approach………..……….………...19
3.3 Procedure….………...……..20
CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS 4.1 The Description of Chris McCandless………..22
4.2 Chris McCandless’s Motivations in Living of the Land in Alaska……….……….35
4.2.1 Having Interpersonal Conflict with His Parents……...…….35
4.2.2 Sharing His Love to the Nature and Others……….………..37
4.2.3 Showing His Ability as a Good Adventurer...………...……39
4.2.4 Having New Experiences………..………41
4.2.5 Realizing His Dream of Wildlife………..……...…………..41
CHAPTER V CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS
5.1 Conclusions………...………...44 5.2 Suggestions………..……….47 5.2.1 Suggestion for Future Researchers………..…………..47 5.2.2 Suggestion for Teaching-Learning Activities…………..…..48
REFERENCES………..………...50 APPENDICES………...52
LIST OF APPENDICES
Page
Appendix 1: Summary of Into The Wild………...53
Appendix 2: The Biography of Jon Krakauer………56
Appendix 3: Map of Alaska………...58
Appendix 4: Lesson Plan of Teaching Extensive Reading II ………...……59
Appendix 5: Material………...………..60
ABSTRACT
Pamungkas, Andreas Candra Yoga. 2008. A Study of Chris’s Motivations in Living off the Land in Alaska as Seen in Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild. Yogyakarta: English Language Education Study Program. Department of Language and Arts Education. Faculty of Teachers Training and Education. Sanata Dharma University. Yogyakarta.
This thesis analyzes Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild. It is about Christopher Johnson McCandless, the major character of the novel. He is a young man who hitchhikes to Alaska, walks alone, and lives off the land into the wilderness in the north of Mount McKinley. The aim of this thesis is to find out Christopher’s reasons to live in the wilderness. In order to do so, this study explores how Christopher is depicted in the novel and his motivations in conducting his actions.
This thesis is a library study. It employs psychological approach and several theories that are related to the study. The primary source is the novel itself, while the secondary sources are the movie based on the novel, some books on literature and psychology, as well as the related articles from the internet.
Based on the analysis, it can be concluded that Christopher Johnson McCandless is smart, brave, stubborn, and musical. He is also generous, friendly, and obsessed with social issues. Not only does he love his sister, but also he cares for the nature and wildlife.
Based on the human needs, his motivations can be categorized as intrinsic and extrinsic ones. His interpersonal conflicts with his parents, for example, can be categorized as one of his extrinsic motivations. His intrinsic motivations include sharing his love to the nature, having new experiences, and realizing his dream about wildlife.
Finally, this thesis suggests that further researchers examine the novel by focusing on Chris’s interpersonal conflicts due to his relation with his parents. As for English teachers, they are recommended to make use of the novel to teach Extensive Reading II.
ABSTRAK
Pamungkas, Andreas Candra Yoga. 2008. A Study of Chris’s Motivations in Living off the Land in Alaska as Seen in Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild. Yogyakarta: Program Studi Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris. Jurusan Pendidikan Bahasa dan Seni. Fakultas Keguruan dan Ilmu Kependidikan. Universitas Sanata Dharma. Yogyakarta.
Skripsi ini menganalisa novel Into the Wild yang ditulis oleh Jon Krakauer. Novel ini berkisah tentang Christopher Johnson McCandless, tokoh utama, seorang anak muda yang menumpang ke Alaska, berjalan sendiri, dan hidup dari alam di hutan belantara di sebelah utara Gunung McKinley. Skripsi ini bertujuan untuk menemukan alasan-alasan Christopher untuk hidup di dalam hutan belantara. Untuk menemukannya, skripsi ini akan menyelidiki Christopher digambarkan dalam novel dan motivasi-motivasinya dalam melakukan tindakan-tindakannya.
Skripsi ini adalah studi pustaka. Studi pustaka yang dilakukan adalah dengan menggunakan pendekatan psikologi dan beberapa teori yang berhubungan dengan studi ini. Sumber primernya adalah novel itu sendiri, sedangkan sumber-sumber sekundernya adalah film yang berdasarkan novel tersebut, beberapa buku tentang psikologi dan kesusastraan, dan juga beberapa artikel dari internet.
Berdasarkan analisis yang dibuat, dapat disimpulkan bahwa Chris pintar, pemberani, keras kepala, dan memiliki bakat musik. Dia juga dermawan, ramah, dan terobsesi oleh persoalan-persoalan sosial. Chris tak hanya mencintai adik perempuannya, tetapi dia juga mencintai alam dan kehidupan margasatwa.
Berdasarkan apa yang dinamakan dengan kebutuhan-kebutuhan manusia, motivasi-motivasi Chris adalah motivasi yang muncul dari dalam dirinya dan dari luar dirinya. Memiliki konflik interpersonal dengan orang tuanya sebagai contoh, dapat digolongkan sebagai salah satu motivasi yang muncul dari luar dirinya. Motivasi dari dalam dirinya yakni termasuk berbagi cintanya pada alam dan sesama, memiliki pengalaman-pengalaman baru, dan mewujudkan mimpinya akan kehidupan marga satwa.
Akhirnya, novel ini menyertakan saran-saran bagi peneliti lain yang hendak mempelajari novel ini lebih jauh dengan mengacu pada konflik interpersonal Chris dalam hubungannya dengan orang tuanya. Selain itu bagi pengajar bahasa Inggris, mereka juga disarankan untuk memanfaatkan novel ini sebagai bahan mata kuliah Extensive Reading II.
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
Chapter one consists of five parts. They are background of the study, objectives of the study, problem formulation, benefits of the study, and definition of terms. The background of the study explains some reasons underlying the basis for writing on the topic. The second section talks about the objectives of the study to answer the problem formulation. The third one is problem formulation, which gives general description of the problem that will be analyzed in this study. The fourth part is the benefits of the study. Finally, description of terms explains meaning of some important terms related to the study.
1.1 Background of the Study
Human beings have many needs to be pursued, for example they need food, water, house to live in. If people can fulfill their basis needs, they move to the higher level of needs. It is common when people do actions to fulfill the needs, difficulties emerge. To be successful in passing difficulties, someone must have a strong willingness to do actions. The strong willingness underlying the actions is called motivations.
A literary work such as a novel reflects the reality of life. Lynch and Warner say that novels offer a detail and general representation of everyday life. The story of novel more or less illustrates the reality of life. Motivation is a phenomenon which is realistic and deals with life situations and off course, it can be presented in a novel because a novel presents the reality of life. Therefore, it can be said that
a novel can represent motivation because motivation is real in daily life. Moreover, the novel used in this study is based on true story.
One of the novels represents someone’s motivation is the novel Into The Wild. The novel tells the story of a young man who has strong motivations to go
to Alaska. The major character, Christopher Johnson McCandless, has some motivations in order to be persistent in living off the land in Alaska. According to Abrams, character’s motivation is portrayed from their speech and actions and presented through their temperament, desires, and the moral nature.
I was interested in reading the novel after watching “Oprah Winfrey Show” on the television. Chris’s parents and sister came to this show to tell much about Chris’s life. When I read the novel Into The Wild, I was interested in Chris McCandless’s experiences of having motivations to live off the land in Alaska. It
was because Chris donated his college fund to OXFAM America, which was dedicated for fighting hunger and then went to Alaska to live off the land there whereas in fact he has a rich family. I was interested in this novel also because I loved nature and did some adventures as Chris did. Then I decided to analyze
Chris McCandless’s motivations in living off the land in Alaska.
car stuck because of flashflood, being caught when he hops in the train, and losing his canoe because of the strong wind. His great willingness to live off the land made Chris keep on struggling to go to Alaska and living off the land there.
This study, then, focuses on Chris McCandless’s motivations in living off the land in Alaska. It is interesting to discuss motivations since it always happens in daily life. People might experience motivations when they want to fulfill their needs in life.
1.2 Objectives of the Study
The aim of this study is to find out what one’s reasons to live off in the wilderness as seen in Chris, the major character of Jon Krakauer’s Into The Wild. In order to find the reasons, this study will explore what the possible motivations of the major character in doing his actions are. In addition, this study tries to assure the readers that sometimes people do something different from others from what they feel and what they want that results from certain motivations they have.
1.3 Problem Formulation
In this section, there are two problems that arise into discussion. They are formulated as follows:
1. How is Chris described in Into The Wild?
1.4 Benefits of the Study
There are some advantages of this study. First, analyzing this novel gives me more information about literature and motivations. I know more about one’s persistence and struggles in reaching the dream.
The second benefit is for those who are interested in literary works. This study can help them to understand the major character’s motivations, how the author characterizes the character, and the author’s message.
The third benefit is for the readers of English Language Education Study Program of Sanata Dharma University. They can use this study as a reference in analyzing a literary work.
1.5 Definition of Terms
This section deals with the important terms used in this study. The terms are described as follows:
1. Character
with someone’s interests, desires, emotions, and moral principles. It creates a distinctive type of person or, character refers to someone’s trait.
2. Motivations
CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
This chapter discusses the theories that are used to analyze the topic of this study. This chapter consists of three sections, namely review of related theories, criticism, and theoretical framework. Review of related theories consists of theory of character, theory of characterization, theory of approaches, and theory of motivations. Criticism contains some criticism on Jon Krakauer’s Into The Wild. Theoretical framework explains how the theories are employed to answer the questions in the problem formulation.
2.1 Review of Related Theories 2.1.1 Character
Character can not be separated from a novel. According to Abrams, characters are “the persons presented in a narrative or dramatic work, who are interpreted by the reader as being endowed with moral, dispositional, and emotional, and emotional qualities that are expected in what they say in the dialogue and what they do in action” (23). It means that character is the person who is presented in a literary work, such as novel. Characters in a novel have their own characteristics or in another word, each character in a novel has different characteristics.
Character can be determined into two terms. There are major and minor characters. According to Milligan, a major character is the most important character in the literary work. He plays a very important role because he becomes
the content of the story. He plays from the beginning until the end of the story and influences the whole story, so his appearance is more often than the other characters. From his action, the idea of the story is conveyed. While minor characters are characters who plays less important role than major characters. Their appearance supports the major character to develop the story so that they appear only in certain setting (155).
A major character is the centre of the story since he endures problems, conflict, happiness and sorrow. From his actions, the readers know the author’s messages of the story. A minor character does not play big roles in the story because they do not play significant roles in the story as the major character does.
recognize a round character because this character can change his personality into some one that we do not expect before.
2.1.2 Characterization
a. Definition of Characterization
In order to know Chris’s characterization in the novel, I use the theory that is related to characterization. Rohrberger and Woods say that characterization is a process by which an author creates a character (20). Characterization is an important element in a novel. Meanwhile, Murphy states that characterization is “the technique used by the author to make the qualities of the character from his likes and dislikes, how he lives, and what he does” (52). It means that characterization is the way that is used by the author in his literary work to make the readers able to recognize the character and to find out the ideas which are conveyed by the character. This statement is supported by Holman and Harmon. They say that the term characterization is “the creation of the imaginary persons so that they exist for the readers as lifelike” (81). In short, characterization is the way the author shows and tries to make his characters alive and understandable for the readers as realistic ones in his literary work.
b. Methods of Characterization
1) Personal description
To describe the character, the author explains physical appearances of the character, such as face, skin, body, clothes and hair cut.
2) Character as seen by another
Instead of describing, the author can directly describe the character through the opinion from another. Others characters will give explanation about what the character is like. Others’ thoughts about a certain character can be a significant factor to build understanding of him.
3) Speech
The author can give us insight into the thought through what the character says.
4) Past life
By learning a person’s past life, the author can give the readers a clue that has helped to shape a person’s character. The character’s past life is always closely connected to his present life.
5) Conversation with others
6) Reaction
The author also gives the readers a clue by letting us know how the character reacts toward various situations and events, as a way to describe the character.
7) Direct comment
The author gives a straightforward comment or description to the readers about the character directly.
8) Thought
The author gives a clue about a character’s characteristics through the character’s thought.
9) Mannerism
The author may describe a person’s mannerism that may also represent the character.
2.1.3 Approaches
According to Rohrberger and Woods, there are five approaches which can be used in analyzing a literary work. They are formalist approach, the biographical approach, the sociocultural-historical approach, the mythopoeic approach, and the psychological approach (3-15). Those five approaches are explained as follows:
a. The Formalist Approach
involvement of all parts to the whole, and it concerns with the point out how meaning is derived from structures and how matters of technique determine structure (6-7).
b. The Biographical Approach
The biographical approach takes us to the necessity for an appreciation of the ideas and the personality of the author to an understanding of the literary object. This approach derives the literary works as the reflection of someone’s personality. By reading it the readers may understand and get the author’s point of view, ideas, and consciousness (8).
c. The Sociocultural – Historical Approach
The sociocultural – historical approach is considered from the social, cultural, and historical events where the literary work is produced. The subject matter is the definition of the civilization of attitudes and actions. Civilization is defined as the attitudes and actions of a specific group of people. It is necessary to investigate the social milieu, the cultural and the historical background in which a novel is created (9).
d. The Mythopoeic Approach
e. The Psychological Approach
The psychological approach involves the effort to locate and demonstrate certain recurrent patterns. It uses various theories of psychology to explain the characters, motivation, and behaviour pattern (13).
In this study, I apply the psychological approach. I focus on the motivations which become one of psychological issues of someone. The psychological approach leads us to analyze the character from the psychological point of view. The psychological approach helps me to understand the character’s personality and behaviour pattern better because it is from the psychological point of view which is related to the motivations.
2.1.4 Motivations
For the reason that this is the study of the major character’s motivations in living of the land in Alaska, I need to know some theories motivations. This part is about the theory of motivations which consists of the definition of motivations, the kinds of motivations, and the causes of motivations.
a. The Definition of Motivations
b. The Kinds of Motivations
Worchel and Shebilske (1988: 408) divide motivations into two kinds. They are extrinsic motivation and intrinsic motivation. Extrinsic motivation comes from the external factors of an individual. The external factors might be come from their desires to pay, status, grades, promotion and the similar types of rewards. The other kind of motivations is the intrinsic motivation. When people do actions which are derived from the enjoyment and satisfaction, it is called intrinsic motivation. In addition, Worchel and Shebilske state that intrinsic motivation has two basis, they are: the people should control their behaviour and they should have feeling as a capable and a competent person. Basically, the difference between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation is on the activation of the action. The extrinsic motivation is activated by some rewards while intrinsic motivation is activated by enjoyment of the performance rather than an expectation of reward. c. The Causes of Motivations
According to Maslow, motivation is classified into the needs hierarchy (35-46). He classifies a hierarchy of human basic needs which is classifying human motivation. The hierarchy starts from the physiological needs, the safety and security needs, the love and belongingness needs, the self esteem needs, the self actualization needs. Maslow says that the higher level can not be activated until the lower level at least partially satisfied.
Maslow in Braun’s book adds that a person who is extremely hungry and thirsty would not even think of the social acceptance and security. He or she would become more creative to achieve the needs (35).
When the physiological needs are satisfied, the safety and security needs come out. People needs to feel safe and they also need the stability, dependency, protection, freedom from fear, from anxiety and chaos, need for structure, order, law, limits, strength in protection. The safety needs come out when people feel threats by others in the sense of law, order, and the sense of authority (39).
The needs of love, affection, and belongingness will emerge when the safety and security needs are satisfied. When someone feels left by other people, this kind of needs emerge (43).
The next is the self-esteem needs. Maslow divides the self-esteem needs into two categories. The first one includes the desires of strength, achievement, adequacy, mastery and competence, confidence, and the independence and freedom. The second category consists of desires of reputation and prestige, status, fame, glory, dominance, recognition, dignity or appreciation. Maslow states that the satisfaction of the self-esteem needs leads to feelings of self confidence, worth, strength, capability, and adequacy of being useful and necessary in the world (45).
others. Being their own and doing what they can do is the example of self actualization. The lack of the self-actualization needs satisfaction needs might cause bad feelings, inferior and powerlessness (46).
Motivation is caused by human needs which classify into hierarchy. Maslow states that the higher level of needs can not be activated until the lower level of needs at least partially satisfied.
2.2 Criticism
Jon Krakauer’s Into The Wild is a new novel. The criticism on Jon Krakauer and his literary works comes from many sources. The criticism is used for helping the reader to understand the author’s work deeper. Jon Krakauer is the author of Eiger Dreams, Into The Wild, and Into Thin Air and is editor of the Modern Library Exploration series. He is good in writing adventure stories. Many people like to read Into The Wild because this novel is based on true story and meaningful. Some life values in the novel such as Chris’s motivations attract the readers to read the novel. Nevertheless, some people have different opinions. Therefore some comments of some people will be presented in this section.
purpose?" and “What has lasting value and meaning in life?". He said that it is a great book. Other positive opinion is from Nick Farago, a reader from New York. He states that Into The Wild is an essential item on the shelf of every non-fiction enthusiast. It is a story of Chris McCandless, his life, and his tragic death at the hands of the Alaskan wilderness. The author, Jon Krakauer, uses every possible technique to give light to an epic tale of adventure, risk, and peril. He recommends this book on the basis of Krakauer’s brilliant style and dedication, and a story that will leave the reader in a retrospective trance. For every person who has immersed themselves in nature or plans on doing so must have insight into the life of Chris McCandless. A fascinating story involving an even more compelling subject makes Into The Wild a frustratingly hard book to put down. The story gives insight into the psychology of McCandless’s life and the adventure that took it from him.
http://www.bookbrowse.com/reader_reviews/index.cfm?book_number=191&start _id=13&order=dt&view=long, accessed on Sunday, May 11, 2008 at 11.00 p.m.
2.3 Theoretical Framework
This study is set to find out the motivations of Christopher Johnson McCandless, the major character of Jon Krakauer’s Into The Wild, in living of the land in Alaska. In analyzing the novel, some theories are applied. The theories are theory of character, theory of characterization, theory of critical approach, and theory of motivation.
In order to analyze the first problem in this study, theory of character is applied. The theory is used to help me to understand what kind of character Chris is. Theories of major and minor characters are used to understand the character of Chris.
The theory of characterization is used to analyze the characteristics of Chris. The characteristics of Chris can be identified from his personal description, he as seen by other characters, his speech, his reactions, his thoughts, and his manner.
CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY
This chapter is divided into three sections. The first section is subject matter which explains the content of Jon Krakauer’s Into The Wild. The second section is approach which explains the approach that I use in this study. The third is procedures which contain series of steps in conducting this study.
3.1 Subject Matter
In this study, I analyze the novel Into The Wild written by Jon Krakauer. The novel was first published in USA in 1998 in New York by Villard Books, a division of Random House, Inc., New York. This edition was published in 2007 by Pan Books, an imprint of Pan Macmillan, Ltd., London. It consists of 205 pages and 18 chapters.
The novel was already filmed by Paramount Vantage. The novel Into The Wild tells about the story of Chris McCandless who comes from a rich and well educated family. He grows without spending much time with his parents since his parents are so busy with their jobs. His parents also often get quarreling and threatening to divorce each other. It makes him feels lack of love from his parents.
Chris is always interested in the nature and the wildlife. It is because he admires his grandfather who lives near to the nature. Chris loves having road trips and going for camping. Finally, after graduating from his university, he decides to go to Alaska to live off the land. He finds many troubles during his two-year-trips to Alaska. Nevertheless, he can be in Alaska with his struggles. Finally, after
living off the land for 113 days in Alaska, he finds his death after consuming poisoning root which is not explained in the book he brings whether it is poisoning or not. This error brings him to his death.
The novel represents many aspects of human life. One of them is about the human motivations. The novel tells how Chris keeps his motivations in living off the land in Alaska. He has to build his motivations in living off the land in Alaska although he finds difficulties during the trips to Alaska and when living off the land in Alaska.
3.2 Approach
In conducting the study, the psychological approach is applied. It is because this study focuses on the major character’s motivations, which are a part of psychological aspects. Thus, the psychological approach is applied.
This psychological approach leads us to analyze the character from the psychological point of view. The character’s behaviour, mind, and appearance must be noticed. By using the psychological approach, we can analyze the details of character’s behaviours, mind, and appearance. The psychological approach helps me to understand the character’s personality better and the character’s characterizations which are closely related to his motivations in doing actions.
3.3 Procedure
The procedure of this study consists of some steps in analyzing Jon Krakauer’s Into The Wild. First of all, I read the novel several times to get better understanding. Then, I watched the Into The Wild movie. After that, I read it again and I focused on the Chris’s characterizations in the novel and his motivations in living off the land in Alaska.
On the second step, I formulated the problem formulations. In this case, the problem formulations were related to how the major character is described in the novel and the major character’s motivations in living off the land in Alaska.
The third step was looking for information related to the Jon Krakauer, the novel, Into The Wild, and also the topic which would be analyzed such as character and motivation. The information was gathered from some literature books and psychology books, especially which were related to character and motivation. I also gathered the data from some sources in the internet. They were important as the guidance and direction to answer the questions in problem formulation.
CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS
This analysis is to find the answers in the problem formulation. The novel Into the Wild serves as the main resource and the theories in the chapter two are implemented as the supporting theories.
This chapter is divided into two sections. The first analysis concerns with the description of Chris in the novel. The second analysis concerns with Chris’s motivations to live off the land. The purpose of analyzing the character is to understand the motivations of the major character to live off the land as described in Into the Wild.
4.1 The Description of Chris McCandless
In the novel, a character plays an important role in building a story. According to Barnet, a character is a figure of a literary work (7). It can be stated that Chris is the character in the novel.
According to Milligan, in his theory of character, there are two kinds of character, namely major character and the minor character. Major character is the most important character in a literary work. He plays very important role since he becomes the focus of the story. He plays his role from the beginning until the end of the story and influences the whole story, so his appearance is more often than the other character. Through his action, the idea of the story is conveyed (155). In
this novel, Chris is the major character. He appears from the beginning to the end of the story.
In order to understand a character fully, Murphy (1972: 161-168) states nine methods of characterization, namely personal description, characters as seen by another, speech, past life, conversation of others, direct comment, reaction, thoughts, and mannerism. Nevertheless, there are only some methods that will be implemented to understand the major character.
In this part, the character will be analyzed in details. Quotations from the novel will be used to support the character’s characterizations. Characterization is an important part to present the characters in a novel. It can make the novel interesting for the readers because the story represents the human lives. What happened in the novel can be what happened in our daily lives.
Chris is the major character of the novel. Chris is the son of Samuel Walter McCandless, NASA’s project manager with his wife from the second marriage whose name is Billie. By 1965, Chris’s father’s marriage is in trouble. Walt and his wife, Marcia, separate. Walt started dating a secretary at Hughes named Wilhelmina Johnson or called Billie. They fall in love and move in together. Billie gets pregnant. On February 12, 1968, Billie gives birth of son (106).
their office working. They make good money, but they fail to provide much time for their children (107).
Chris has a younger sister who is three years old younger. Her name is Carine. Chris loves his sister very much. Both Walt and Billie are tightly wound and emotional, loath to give ground. Chris and Carine often see their parents get quarrels and blaming each other. Therefore, Chris and Carine are so close to each other. They count on each other when their parents are not getting along (107).
According to the theory of characterization which is suggested by Murphy in his book, Chris characterization can be seen through his personal description, he as seen by other characters, his speech, his reactions, his thoughts, and his manner.
4.1.1 Smart
Chris is a smart boy. He is good at almost everything that interests him. He does not get many difficulties in learning something that he likes. He brings home good grades. He puts some high values of life according to what he thinks ideal to him.
“He seemed extremely intelligent,” Franz states in an exotic brogue that sounds like a blend of Scottish, Pennsylania Dutch, and Carolina drawl. (52) …
Franz grew increasingly fond of Mcandless. “God, he was a smart kid.” (53) …
Chris does not get into trouble. He is a high achiever. He does what he is supposed to. His parents do not really have grounds to complain. But they gets on his case about going to college; and whatever they say to him it must have worked. Because he ends up going to Emory, even though he thinks it is pointless, a waste of time and money.
His new friends he gets during the road trip to Alaska also think in the same way. They see Chris as a smart and intelligent boy. He can figure out how to paddle a canoe down to Mexico, how to hop freight trains, and how to score a bed at inner-city missions. That is why Burres, one of Chris’s new friends he gats during the trip think that he also will be successful in Alaska.
According to Murphy about characterization from characters as seen by another as represented in the analysis above, we can conclude that Chris is a smart boy, especially at what he is interested in. He rarely gets difficulties while doing the activities or subjects that he likes, but he doesn’t like to do something under someone’s order.
4.1.2 Brave
Chris is brave. He dares to get alone without getting lonely. He does not get afraid even though he is outside in the darkness alone. Chris is fearless even when he is a kid.
… at a prominent notch called the Keyhole, Walt decided to turn around. He was tired and feeling the altitude. The route above looked slabby, exposed dangerous. “I’d had it, OK,” Walt explains, “but Chris wanted to keep on going to the top. I told him no way. He was only twelve then, so all he could do was complain… (109)
When he is a kid, he does not have any trouble with being afraid in the darkness. When he is a little kid, he ever gets up in the middle of the night, finds his way outside without waking up his parents, and enters a house down the street to plunder a neighbor’s candy drawer. When he is a teenage, he often comes to the places in which many people do not want to be there. He often parks down on Fourteenth Street, which his friend thinks is a real bad part of the town. He spends for hours hanging out in creepy places, talking with pimps and hookers and low life. His friend, Eric feels scared when he accompanies Chris there (114).
Based on the statements above we can see Krakauer tries to highlight that Chris lives with the bravery to get what he likes and ideal. He ignores any fear which may block him to achieve his goals. He is brave to defend his thoughts and to do what attracts his mind.
4.1.3 Musical
makes in college, he can be heard belting out “Summer by the sea/Sailboats in Capri” with impressive panache, crooning like a professional lounge singer (110).
Their musical rivalry seems not to have damaged their relationship between Chris and Carine, however. They’d been best friends from an early age, spending hours together building forts out of cushions and blankets in their Annandale living room. “He was very nice to me,” says Carine. (110)
Chris has his musical aptitude since he was a kid. He does not want to be left behind from his sister. He quits from high school band not only because he does not want to be told by the band leader about what to do, but also because his sister gets the first chair in the senior band when Chris is his senior.
Chris still loves to play music until he makes his trip to Alaska. It can be seen from the old guitar that he brings in his beloved car. The guitar is bought by Walt when Billie gives birth of Chris. Walt buys Billie a Gianini guitar on which she strummed lullabies to soothe the fussy newborn. Twenty two years later, the park rangers from the National Park Service finds the same guitar on the backseat of a yellow Datsun abandoned near the shore of Lake Mead where Chris gets flashflood on his road trip to Alaska (106).
4.1.4 Generous and Obsessed with Social Issues
with his friend and talk about life, the state of the world, serious things. They try to figure out why people make such a big deal about race. Chris talks to his friend about that kind of thing (113).
He is obsessed with social issues, especially when his senior year at Woodson, racial oppression in South Africa attracts his attention. He takes life inequities to heart. Even he would like to go to Africa to struggle to end apartheid. He argues with one of his friend, Eric about this problem. Chris does not like going through channels, working within the system, waiting his turn. He would say if he can raise enough money, he wants them to go to South Africa to fight the racism. Nevertheless, his friend thinks that he is just kidding at that time. Then Chris will say that his friend is not seriously dealing with this problem. His friend says that they are a couple of kids, that they couldn’t possibly make a difference. Nevertheless, he can not argue with him. Chris comes back the statement that his friend does not really care about what is right or wrong.
The social issues often make Chris to do some favors for others. He spends his money for helping the poor, buying some meals for homeless people, or chatting with prostitutes. It represents that he is a nice person who cares about the others. He wants to help people without differentiating who they are, where they come from, or what race they are.
“Chris didn’t understand how people could possibly be allowed to go hungry, especially in this country,” says Billie. “He would rave about that kind of thing for hours. (113)
Chris always loves helping people. He does it in a lot of times. He even brings a homeless man to his house. On one occasion Chris picks up a homeless man from the streets of D.C., brings him home to leafy, affluent Annandale, and secretly set the guy up in the Airstream trailer beside the garage. Walt and Billie never know he is hosting a vagrant. On another occasion, he drives his car with Hathaway, one of his friends and says to him that he will go downtown. At first, he thinks they will go to Georgetown to party. Instead, Chris parks down on Fourteenth Street, which at the time was a real bad part of town. Then Chris says that they can read about this stuff, but they can not understand until they live it. They spent the next few hours hanging out in creepy places, talking with pimps and hookers and lowlife (113-114).
4.1.5 Stubborn and Persistent
Chris is also quite stubborn. He does not like to do something that makes him bored and uncomfortable. He does not want to do something under pressure or to be told about what to do by someone else. If he likes to do something, he wants to do it by his own way. He has his own ways which can make him feel comfortable when doing something. He puts high standards for himself to achieve. Sometimes he pushes himself to achieve his goals.
senior band, and there was no way he was going to sit behind his damn sister.” (110)
“Chris had so much natural talent,” Walt continues, “but if you tried to coach him, to polish his skill, to bring out that ten percent, a wall went up. (111)
He puts high standards for himself to achieve. Sometimes he pushes himself to achieve his goals. On his trip to Alaska, weary of paddling, he hauls the canoe far up the beach, climbs a sandstone bluff, and sets up camp on the edge of a desolate plateau. He stays there for ten days, until high winds force him to seek refuge in a cave midway up the precipitous face of the bluff, where he remains for another ten days. He greets the new year by observing the full moon as it rose over the Gran Desierto–the Great Desert which is seventeen hundred square miles of shifting dunes, the largest expanse of pure sand desert in North America. A day later he continues paddling down the barren shore (36). It proves that Chris is stubborn and persistent in achieving his wants.
4.1.6 Loves the Nature and His Sister
Chris loves the nature since he was a kid. He likes playing with his dog which supposedly his sister’s dog, named Buckley. Chris loves playing around with Buck. He likes gets some running with Buck.
… When Chris was twelve, Walt and Billie bought Carine a puppy, a Shetland sheepdog named Buckley, and Chris fell into the habit taking the pet with him on his daily training runs. “Buckley was supposedly my dog,” says Carine “but he and Chris inseparable. (111)
Chris always gets excited when his family having outdoor camping or any kinds of outdoor activities. Everything about wildlife always attracts him and brings him closer to the nature. When Chris is eight years old, Walt takes him on his first overnight backpacking trip, a three-day hike in the Shenandoah to climb Old Rag. They make the Summit. He carries his own pack the whole way. Hiking up the mountain becomes a father-son tradition (109).
Chris tells Stuckey about his intent to spend the summer alone, in the bush, living off the land. He says it is something he wants to do since he was little. He does not want to see a single person, no airplanes, no sign of civilization. He wants to prove to himself that he could make it on his own, without anybody else’s help (158).
He admires his grandfather whose name is Loren Johnson. He was always raising wildlife. Loren lives near to the nature and loves animals. That is the reason why sometimes he gets intrapersonal conflict when he hurts animals.
Loren Johnson is proud and stubborn and dreamy, a woodsman, a self-taught musician, a writer of poetry. Around Iron Mountain his rapport with creatures of the forest is legendary. He is always raising wildlife. If he finds some animal in trap, take it home, amputate the injured limb, heal it, and then let it go again. One day, Loren hits a mother deer with his truck, making an orphan of its fawn. He is crushed. But he brings the baby deer home and raised it inside the house, behind the woodstove, just like it is one of his kids (108).
Since Chris admires his grandfather so much, Chris also likes doing outdoor activities and everything about wildlife as Loren. Sometimes, Loren has to kill wild animals when he works as a hunt guide which makes him unhappy so much. He does it in order to support his family. Chris and Loren share almost the same ideas and feelings about wildlife. Chris also cries when he kills the big animal as his grandfather does.
… He opened a stable and sold horse rides for tourists. Much of the food he put on the table from hunting-despite the fact that he was uncomfortable killing animals. “My dad cried every time he shot a deer,” Billie says, “but we had to eat, so he did it.” … (108)
… He would guarantee them a buck before they left, but most of them were lousy shots and drank so much that they couldn’t hit anything, so he’d usually had to shoot the deer for them. God he hated that.” (108)
Chris is a good brother and best friend for his sister. It is because they spend much time together since they were kids. Chris is a protective brother for Carine. They are so close each other because they have the same point of view about their parents who often quarrel and blame each other.
room. “He was always really nice to me,” Carine says “and extremely protective. (110)
He is not anti social. He always has friends, and everybody likes them, but he can go off and entertain himself for hours. He does not seem to need toys or friends. He could be alone without being lonely. (107)
Chris is friendly and was not anti social. He has some close friends. He just does not quite fit with the word ‘society’. Society which is meant by Chris is the society includes politicians, bureaucrats, and people who do not care about people who need to be helped such as the poor and vagrants. In this case, Chris and his grandfather also have the same opinion about the society.
“Billie’s dad didn’t quite fit into society,” Walt explains. “In many ways he and Chris were a lot alike. (108)
During his trip to Alaska, Chris introduces himself to his new friends as Alexander Supertramp or Alex, not as Christopher Johnson McCandless. He does this in order to avoid being traced by his family. Chris also gets a lot of friends during his way to Alaska. Chris’s new friends have deep impression about Chris. It is seen from the way his new friends react and feel when Chris leaves them or when they hear information about Chris.
Alex took a ride from us up to Orick Beach, where we were staying, and camped with us for a week. He was a really good kid. We thought the world of him. When he left, we never expected to hear from him again, but he made a point of staying in touch. (31)
Chris usually tells his friends about his new friends and also what happens after he leaves them in the letters that he sends them. Not few of them receive mails from Chris more than once. It represents that Chris is a good friend even for new friends he gets.
… A week later Westerberg received a terse card with a Montana postmark:
APRIL 18. Arrive in White fish this morning on a freight train. I am making a good time. Today I will jump the border and turn north to Alaska. Give my regards to everyone.
TAKE CARE, ALEX (69-70)
The postcard Chris sends to his new friends above is one of the letters Chris sends to his friends as the regards for them. It proves that Chris is a good friend because he still cares about his friends who do favors for Chris during his trip. In late November, Chris sends a postcard to Jan Burres in care of a post-office box in California’s Imperial Valley. That card they in Niland is the first letter from him in a long time that has a return address on it. Then, she immediately writes back and says they will come see him the next weekend in Bullhead, which is not that far from where they are at that time (43). It shows that Chris still cares about his new friends he gets during the trip and vice versa.
4.2 Chris McCandless’s Motivations in Living off the Land in Alaska
The novel Into the Wild tells about Chris McCandless’s struggles to live off the land in Alaska. To be persistent in living off the land in Alaska, Chris has some motivations. His motivations to be persistent in living off the land in Alaska are influenced by his needs. According to Maslow, human motivations are classified into hierarchy of human needs (35-46). It starts from the physiological needs, the safety needs, the love and belongingness needs, the esteem needs, and the self actualization needs. The lower level of needs should be at-least-partially satisfied before going to the higher level of human needs. There are two kinds of motivations. Worchel and Shebilske mention the two kinds of motivations, intrinsic motivations and extrinsic motivations (408). In this novel, Chris experiences both intrinsic and extrinsic motivations. Someone’s motivation might be influenced by the environment. Here are Christopher Johnson McCandless’s motivations to live off the land in Alaska.
4.2.1 Having Interpersonal Conflict with His Parents
entities, such as: individual, groups, or larger organizations, which arise from incompatibility of actual or desired responses (qtd. in Worchel and Cooper 460).
Chris and his parents often get conflicts. It is because he often sees his father and mother are quarreling, blaming each other and threatening to get divorce. This horrible situation triggers him to go out from his house to have adventures that he loves. Both Chris’s parents are tightly wound, emotional, loath to give ground. Now and then the tension erupts in verbal sparring. In moments of anger, one or the other often threatens divorce (107).
It’s somewhat surprising that Chris ceded to pressure from Walt and Billie about attending college when he refuse to listen to them about so many other things. (114)
Chris hates facing the situation when his parents are quarreling. The conflicts among Chris and his parents make Chris’s safety and security needs come out. He is unable to feel stability in his house which triggers him to leave his house. Besides, Chris gets different belief or thinking with his father. He doesn’t like to be seen as a rich or high profile person. This conflict happens when his father buys Chris a new car.
… He already had a perfectly good car; he insisted: a beloved 1982 Datsun B210, slightly dented but mechanically sound, with 128,000 miles on the odometer. “I can’t believe they’d try and buy me a car,” he later complained in a letter to Carine … (20-21)
4.2.2 Sharing His Love to the Nature and Others
Chris is motivated to live off the land in Alaska because of his love and belongingness needs. He loves the nature and gets excited to the wildlife. Therefore, he often chooses to spend his holidays on going out to have road trips for camping. He loves having some road trips and finds new friends during the trip. He feels comfortable and excited getting new friends. In addition, it makes him feel alive. He is disappointed with his parents who often quarreling each other and do not provide enough time for the family because they are so busy with their jobs.
“Mom and Dad put in incredibly hours. When Chris and I woke up in the morning to go to school, they’d be in the office working. When we came home in the afternoon, they’d be in the office working. When we went to bed in the night, they’d be in the office working. They ran a real good business together and eventually started making bunches of money, but they worked all the time.” (107)
Chris is a generous person. He is very eager to help people. Worchel and Shebilske say that the behaviour which is done by one’s eagerness is called intrinsic motivation (408). He is motivated to help people because he feels being meaningful for others if he can do something to them. Before going to Alaska, Chris donates all his money in his college fund to OXFAM America. He wants to share happiness to others. It represents that Chris loves sharing his love for others.The final years of his college education has been paid for with forty-thousand-dollar bequest left by a friend of the family’s; more than twenty four thousand dollars remains at the time of Chris’s graduation, money that his parents thought he intended to use for law school. What Walt, Billie, and Carine does not know when they fly down to Atlanta to attend Chris’s commencement–what nobody knows–was that he would shortly donate all the money in his college fund to OXFAM America, a charity dedicated to fighting hunger (20).
4.2.3 Showing His Ability as a Good Adventurer
Chris wants to live off the land because he wants to show his ability to stay in the wildlife by his own. He wants to prove that he could get through pass it without being alone in Alaska. He wants to have the long trip and adventure to Alaska.
… “He used to sit here at the end of the bar and tell us these amazing stories of his travels. He could talk for hours. A lot of folks here in town got pretty attached to old Alex. … (16)
His confidence can also be seen from the leather belt that he made which tells his trip to Alaska. An accomplished leatherworker, Franz teaches Alex the secrets of his craft; for his project McCandless produces a tooled leather belt, on which he creates an artful pictorial record of his wanderings. ALEX is inscribed at the belt left end; then the initials C.J.M (for Christopher Johnson McCandless) frame a skull and crossbones. Across the strip of cowhide one sees a rendering of a two-lane blacktop, a NO-TURN sign, a thunderstorm producing a flashflood that engulf a car, a hitchhiker’s thumb, an eagle the Sierra Nevada, salmon cavorting in the Pacific Ocean, the Pacific Coast Highway from Oregon to Washington, the Rocky Mountains, Montana wheat fields, a South Dakota rattle snake, Westerberg’s house in Carthage, the Colorado River, gale in the Gulf of California, a canoe beached beside a tent, Las Vegas, the initials T.C.D., Morro Bay, Astoria, and at the buckle end, finally, the letter N (presumably representing north). Executed with remarkable skill and creativity, this belt astonishing as any artifact Chris McCandless left behind (53).
4.2.4 Having New Experiences
In the new places, Chris can show that he is able to do many kinds of tasks and works. He works hard for Westerberg, carves leather with Franz, and works at McDonald. He wants to do something useful for others in new places with new people. The new places make him eager to know the surroundings and experience new things.
… Alex struck me as much older than twenty four. Everything I said, he’d demand to know more about what I meant, about why I thought this way or that. He was hungry to learn about things. (68)
He feels excited and challenged to live off the land in Alaska. Since he was a kid he often goes to new places for him. Chris comes to Alaska to live off the land. Instead, he gets many experiences and friends during his trip as well. That is why he ever gets lost in the Mojave Desert. He has planned to live alone in Alaska since he is young. He is influenced by the books he read about nature and its wildlife. His hunger of adventuring new places makes him persistent in keeping living off the land in Alaska.
4.2.5 Realizing His Dream of Wildlife
doing anything in Alaska. It is because he does not like being told by someone else.
Since he is a kid, Chris is always interested in anything related to the nature and wildlife. He reads many books related to it. Thus, the books influence him much to live in the wilderness of the nature and form what his destination or goal.
Mesmerized with London’s turgid portrayal of life in Alaska and the Yukon, McCandless read and reread The Call of the Wild, White Fang, “To Build a Fire,” “An Odyssey of the North,” “The Wit of Porportuk.” (45)
He also admires his grandparents who lives attached to the nature and wildlife. Chris loves to go out for camping or having road trips. Alaska is the most valuable place for many adventurers. Many books Chris reads and rereads tells about the story of adventures in Alaska. In Alaska, there is also Mount McKinley, which becomes an icon place of American wilderness. Therefore, Chris is very motivated to live there.
McCandless was candid by Stuckey about his intent to spend the summer alone, in the bush, living off the land. “He said it was something he’d wanted to do since he was little,” says Stuckey. (158)
Chris is also motivated by his self actualization needs. Living off the land in Alaska is the great satisfaction for an adventurer and hitchhiker like Chris, thus he extremely wants to live off the land in Alaska. Maslow says, “What man can be. He must be. He must be true to his own nature (46).” It is synchronous with Chris’s interests and behaviours as an adventurer or hitchhiker. He does living near the wilderness of the nature well and he chooses to do it.
CHAPTER V
CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS
This chapter consists of two sections, namely conclusions and suggestions. The conclusions concern the answers of the questions stated in the problem formulation. The suggestions contain suggestions for future researchers and recommendation for English teaching and learning processes through the novel Into the Wild.
5.1 Conclusions
There are two main points that can be concluded from the analysis. They are how Chris is described in the novel and Chris’s motivations in living off the land in Alaska. Based on the analysis, it can be said that Christopher Johnson McCandless or Chris is the major character in the story. He becomes the focus of the story. It can be seen from his role in the story. Chris plays significant role in the novel since this based on true story novel tells about Chris’s trips to Alaska. Chris appears from the beginning until the end of this novel. Therefore, it can be concluded that Chris is the major character of the story.
Chris is also a round character. It is difficult to describe him in a single phrase or word. He has his own way of thinking which is different from common people and has his own way to see world from his point of view.
Chris is a young man who is attracted by the nature and wildlife so much. He often sees his parents quarreling and threatening to get divorce each other. He
is smart, brave, having musical aptitude, generous and obsessed with social issues, stubborn, being a nature and wildlife lover, and also a good brother and friend.
Chris likes reading many books related to the nature and wildlife. He gets home good grades; even he gets the Cum Laude. It shows that he is smart. Chris is brave enough to be in the darkness and to live near the wildlife alone without being lonely. He often spends solo road trips in the summer holidays alone. He has musical aptitude since his early age. He plays French horn and piano. He gets some musical rivalry with his sister but it does not damage their relationship.
Chris loves helping people. He tries to figure out why some people have problems with race. He often spends his weekends down the streets, buying the poor meals, chatting with pimps and hookers, and bringing home vagrants without differentiating who they are. This fact shows that Chris is generous and obsessed with social issues.
He is also a stubborn boy. He does not like to do something that makes him bored and uncomfortable. He does not want to do something under pressure or to be told about what to do by someone else. If he likes to do something, he wants to do it by his own way. He loves everything about nature and wildlife. He admires his grandfather who lives near the wildlife and nature so much. Chris reads and rereads many books related to wildlife and nature. He likes doing road trips and living off the lands. It represents that he is a nature and wildlife lover.
impression to his new friends and Chris still keeps in touch with them. It proves that Chris is also a good brother and friend.
Other conclusions to draw related to the second problem, are his motivations. Chris experiences both extrinsic and intrinsic motivations. His motivations are based on his needs. Since Chris comes from rich family, he does not get much trouble in fulfilling his basic needs that is physiological needs. He can get abundant food and drinks using his money. Since he can not feel stability in his house because of his parents’ often get quarreling, his safety and security needs emerge. He tries to find the place where he thinks he can find the stability. Thus, he needs to satisfy his safety and security needs. Then, he needs to fulfill higher needs after he can satisfy his safety and security needs. The higher needs Chris tries to fulfill are the love and belongingness needs, the esteem needs and the self actualization needs.
hitchhiker. He is always successful in doing his previous trips before going to Alaska. Furthermore, he can tell about his road trips to new friends he meets.
By doing the road trips to Alaska, Chris can come to new places, meets new friends, and learns more about wildlife. He feels excited experiencing new things. It means that he wants to have new experiences by having road trips and living off the land in Alaska which is also influenced by his self-esteem needs.
Chris is always attracted by the nature and wildlife. He dreams to live off the land in Alaska. His self actualization need influences Chris to live off the land in Alaska. By doing road trips and living of the land in Alaska, he can do what he can do and he can avoid having bad feelings, inferior and powerlessness. He wants to attain his dream and obsession by living off the land in Alaska. Living off the land in Alaska is his success as an adventurer and hitchhiker.
5.2 Suggestions
This section consists of two parts. The first is suggestion for future researchers. The second is suggestion for teaching-learning activities using Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild.
5.2.1 Suggestion for Future Researchers
