Into the Wild Final Discussion

Jon Krakauer's book Into the Wild tells the tragedy of Chris McCandless and his "Great Alaskan Odyssey". Chris was a young man with great ambition and persistence who's ideals ultimately got him killed. His journey into the wilderness of Alaska was one that people were calling suicidal and even saying that Chris himself was mentally ill doing it. I don't think its fair to make those accusations without properly understanding the circumstances. For example, Chris and his sister were born due to his father's infidelity with his prior wife, this making Chris and his sister 'bastard children'. After finding this out, Chris was forever changed. He couldn't understand why people were so mean to each other and trying to find the answer to this question, Chris took it to the extreme and cut his family off, changed his name, and journeyed half way across the nation meeting new people while having a profound effect on each of them.
Do I think Chris was suicidal? No. He was a very stubborn, arrogant, and lucky man but he didn't want to kill himself. He wanted to go to Alaska not to die, but try to live life to the fullest with extreme simplicity. I believe that Chris did this to gain a greater perspective on society and the world he lives in. He did this by creating bonds with people, and traveling around hitchhiking while having a lot of time to think about life.
Was Chris mentally ill? Once again, no. Chris's Odyssey was very extreme to the average person and was pretty much based off of his extreme idealism. This however does not make him crazy. The only think that he did that was mentally ill was the way he prepared himself for the Alaskan tundra, not having nearly enough food for the length in which he wanted to stay, an outdated map, poor planning on shelter (but ended up being very lucky he found the bus), not a big enough gun, and not enough experience in the harsh conditions of Alaska it's crazy because he did it on purpose. Simplicity.
I believe if Chris and his father had a better more open relationship, we wouldn't have this story but instead a man that would still be alive today and would probably be successful. Chris had good intentions with his Odyssey but too much overconfidence and stubbornness got him killed, he never wanted to die nor was he insane. He was a man who had a dream and went after it.