INTO THE WILD : Outlining Chunks – Summarizing & Identifying Main Ideas

1. INTO THE WILD: Outlining Chunks – Summarizing & Identifying Main Ideas Mr. Koppel Comp-World Lit. Per. 1 & 2

2. Identifying Main Idea: Main Idea: Chunk 1 (Chapters 1-2) – “Big Picture Info.” • Krakauer begins the book Into the Wild by establishing the mystery surrounding Chris McCandless's life and death. b. In the two opening chapters of Into the Wild, John Krakauer shows that Chris abandoned his family and went to live alone in the Alaskan wild. c. The book Into the Wild begins by demonstrating that Chris had a tremendous impact on everyone he met as he traveled. d. John Krakauer'sInto the Wild opens with two chapters in which the author reveals Chris McCandless's desire to live outside social norms

3. Summarizing Main Ideas Writing Summaries: • *identify and focus ONLY on the main idea (topic) • *concise‐‐most important info only. Sample Summaries of To Kill A Mockingbird Which summary is better? Why? 1. To Kill a Mockingbird is about a young girl's process of maturing as she observes the racial tensions in her town. In the book, an innocent black man is tried for a crime he did not commit. As Scout watches her father defend Tom Robinson in court, she learns how to show empathy and demonstrate courage in the face of injustice. 2. To Kill a Mockingbird is about Scout, Jem, and Atticus. In the book, Scout and Jem try to lure Boo Radley out of the house. Meanwhile, they observe the racial tensions in their town as an innocent black man is tried for a crime he did not commit. Finally, Scout learns to be empathetic after Boo rescues them from Bob Ewell's attack.

4. Vocabulary Summary Which word BEST describes Chris in this "chunk?“ (Ch. 1-2) Ascetic Transcendent Unencumbered Enigmatic Mercurial Hubristic Fatuous Zealous Idiosyncratic Nomadic Melodramatic In the first chunk of Into the Wild, Chris McCandless exhibits hubris in his decisions while traveling to the Stampede Trail. (claim) In chapter 1, Jim Gallien offers to drive Chris to Anchorage to buy him some proper equipment and clothing before he sets out on his adventure. (context) Alex declined saying “I’ll be fine with what I got" (6). (evidence/direct quote) Krakauer includes this detail to demonstrate Chris’s over ‐ confidence as he dismisses the suggestions and wisdom of people who are more experienced than him. (commentary) .

5. Author’s Purpose Summary: Author's Purpose Paragraph: *Identify a key important quote *Look at the author's word choice *Tone‐‐emotional impact of a word What's the tone? Locate important Quote: (Ch. 1-2) “Virtually no subcutaneous fat remained on the body, and the muscles had withered significantly in the days or weeks prior to death. At the time of the autopsy, McCandless's remains weighed sixty‐seven pounds. Starvation was posited as the most probably cause of death.” (14) NO EMOTION – SCIENTIFIC DESCRIPTORS: “subcutaneous fat”, “body”, “muscles”, “death” DETACHED – IMPERSONAL TERMS: “withered significantly”, “remains”, “Starvation was posited”

6. Author’s Purpose Paragraph Sample Format for Purpose Paragraph: Krakauer's purpose in telling the reader ____in chapters ___ is to ______. He wants/doesn't want to_________. In this way, the reader ______. The reader, therefore, understands from this section that ____. Sample Author's Purpose Paragraph: Krakauer's purpose in using scientific language in the first chunk of Into the Wild is to avoid being dramatic or graphic in the beginning of the book. (Claim) He does not want to intensify the appearance of Chris McCandless‘ body. Words and phrases like "subcutaneous fat," "probable cause of death," and "posited," convey objectivity (14). (Evidence) In this way, Krakauer introduces Chris' story to readers in an unbiased way. He wants the reader to refrain from judging Chris before learning the whole story. (Commentary)