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Analysis Of Moonface By Jack London

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In the short story, “Moonface” by Jack London, an unnamed neighbor (narrator) of John Claverhouse has a deep hatred for him that grows to the point of John’s death. The narrator describes John as a happy, moon faced man with a “Gargantuan laugh” that was haunting. The narrator, not being able to stand John’s happiness, kills his dog and sets his barn on fire in an attempt to anger him. When his actions don’t seem to faze John, he decides there is nothing to do but kill him. He begins piecing together an elaborate plan involving a dog, Bellona, that he trains to fetch and return sticks. After training her, he offers Bellona to John, in hopes that he will take her, John, being John, accepts her and later takes her down by a lake to do illegal fishing. This was all part of the narrators plan, watching a John throws an explosive into the water. Bellona immediately jumps into the lake to retrieve the “stick”. As she gets out of the water with the explosive in her mouth, John realizes his danger and starts running, Bellona following right behind. The narrator watches in enjoyment as Bellona catches up to him and the explosive blows up, killing John and Bellona. His misery needed to have company and this was his way of getting it. In the short story, “Moonface” by Jack London, the changes from a hateful man to a sick-minded killer. Right as the story begins, we start to get a glimpse of how mean spirited the narrator is when s/he thinks, “...at the first moment of meeting, we say: ‘I do not like that man’... We have taken a dislike, that is all. And so I with John Claverhouse” (para 2). This quote displays that the narrator is quick to judge, being that the text never states a prior relationship between them. He has it set in his mind that he hates him so, that will probably never change. John’s personality starts to make the narrator hostile when, “Then I set fire to his haystacks and his barn. But the next morning, being Sunday, he went forth blithe and cheerful” (para 7). This shows that the narrator is truly seeking John’s sadness. As he realizes that it is impossible to make him show that he is mad, the narrator says, “...when I resolved to kill John Claverhouse I had it in mind to do so in a fashion that I

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