Direct and Indirect Characterization of Chris McCandless

1. Direct characterization is when the author uses direct statements to tell the reader what the character is like.

2. Indirect characterization is when the author lets you draw your own conclusions about the character based on what they do or say.

Direct:

1. Chris looked younger then he was. "He didn't appear to be very old; eighteen, maybe nineteen at the most." (3)
2. He seemed friendly. "A rifle protruded from the young man's backpack, but he seemed friendly enough." (4)
3. He is around 5 feet 7 inches. "Five feet seven or eight..." (4)
4. He has a thin frame. "...with a wiry build" (4)
5. He wears glasses. "He was nearsighted and wore steel-rimmed glasses" (17)
6. Appeared intelligent. "He read a lot. Used a lot of big words." (18)
7. Contemplative. "I think that maybe a part of what got him into trouble was that he did too much thinking.: (18)
8. He was a hard worker. "He was the hardest worker I've ever seen" (18)
9. Determined. "He was determined. Real gung-ho."
10.He had 'dark and emotive' eyes. "There was something arresting about the youngster's eyes. Dark and emotive..." (16)

Indirect:

1. Chris seems to underestimate things. "His gear seemed exceedingly minimal for the harsh conditions of the interior..." (5)
2. Unyielding "There was no talking the guy out of it." (6)
3. He was from an affluent family. "His father, Walt, is an eminent aerospace engineer..." (19)
4. Mysterious "Chris has instructed the post office to hold them (the letters) until August 1st, apparently so we wouldn't know something was up." (22) "I'm going to disappear for a while" (21)
5. Against modern society. "... he would no longer give or accept gifts" "Chris had only recently upbraided Walt and Billie for expressing their desire to buy him a new car..."(20)
6. A wanderer. "In the years since, he'd been in the habit of taking it on extended road trips." (21)
Thrill seeker, adventurous, "He was determined. Real gung-ho. The word that comes to mind is excited" (6)
7. Non-materialistic. "Chris had lived off campus in a monkish room with little more then a thin mattress on the floor, milk crates, and a table." (22)
8. Unconventional. "He was offered a membership in Phi Beta Kappa but declined, insisting that titles and honors were irrelevant" (20)
9. Book smart. "Chris graduated from Emory University... with a 3.72 grade-point average." (20)
10. Quirky. "Although the tone of the journal - written in the third person in a stilted, self-consciousness voice..." (29)

Image from: http://www.flickr.com/photos/chriso2000/2100030576/