Jack London Research Paper

When the man was trying desperately to re-light the fire he removed his gloves and lost all feeling in his hands. If he had remained calm and thought about his situation he might have had a chance to survive. Nature showed no mercy when the man attempted to re-light the fire using only his palms, and he failed. "He was losing his battle with the frost. It was creeping into his body from all sides."(1754) The man's unfortunate mistakes cost him his life and nature felt no sympathy for him. He was just another man who failed to defeat nature for one more day. If the man had brought along a companion for the journey like the old man in the town had suggested he would still be alive. However, his stubbornness would not submit to that. "The old-timer on Sulfur Creek was right, he thought in the moment of controlled despair that ensued: after fifty below, a man should travel with a partner."(1752). Instead the man brought a wolf dog with him to keep him company. The only thing that the dog was good for was as an outlet for the man's jealously when he realized all the mistakes he had made. The man envied how the dog could just sit in the snow and his warm fur would protect him from the elements. The mistakes that the man made reflect everyday life by showing how just one accident or miscalculation can cost you your life. Naturalism utilized the environment to show how fierce and apathetic the world can be. In the opening scene of "To Build a Fire" London used a bleak

Dogs and man have been coexisting for centuries in many different settings, both welcoming and harsh. To Build a Fire, written by Jack London, shows the thoughts of man while trying to survive in the bleak Alaskan cold. In the Call of the Wild, London embraces the instincts of sled dogs in a masterful depiction of the Alaskan wilderness. To Build a Fire and the Call of the Wild have many similarities in design but they do also have prominent differences.

Jay Gurian comments in his article, “The Romantic Necessity in Literary Naturalism: Jack London”, about how London, and other naturalist writers deal with the forces of nature:

Naturalism is a very intense style of literature that an author can use. With naturalism, the author is trying to convey knowledge acquired through the senses and experiences they them selves have been through. In the novel of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, he portrays elements of naturalism through his very own sights and experiences. During the depression John Steinbeck got a first hand dose of what it meant to deal with sordid aspects of life. Just like his book, he portrays his accounts using highly realistic settings, and brutal characters with foul mouths that deal with depressing issues of life. In the real world things happen, but in the world of Mice and Men, nothing ever seems to happen the way the characters hope.

14. What is meant by the term “naturalism”? Describe the use of “naturalism” in literature. “Naturalism” can be thought of as a form of realism, or as an alternate to it. In literature “Naturalism”, unlike the realists for whom human beings distinct themselves within familiar settings, wrote about human life as it was formed by forces beyond human control (Baym

Jack London conveyed many useful and deep messages in his story To Build a Fire. Instincts can hold stronger than knowledge in a variety of situations. Everyone knows the Yukon is an extremely cold area, but not like the instinct of a dog. No one truly knows the extent of the cold wilderness, until put into the harsh weather. Ignorance and pride can cost someone their life in extreme situations. The themes of Jack London’s To Build a Fire are pride, instinct against intelligence, and humans’ inability to overcome nature.

To Build a Fire Jack London expresses the unforgiving conditions of nature by writing of a man who is roaming through the Yukon, with no company but a dog, and how in the end his stubbornness and Mother Nature’s brute weather conditions and nature’s inability to care for the man ultimately lead to his demise.

I would choose legalism because it's meant just for rules. If we never had rules, everyday life would be Cayos. Rules can always keep us safe from any kind of danger. Also if we have rules little kids can have fun, go outside and not ever worry about anything dangerous or scary. That's why I think we should have Legalism, Strict rules.

Jack London grasped the idea of naturalism when he wrote “To Build a Fire” and he used naturalism to illustrate the brutal unrelenting beast that is nature. London also uses naturalism to stress nature’s dangerous and unpredictable qualities. Basically London is saying that we must be accountable for our decisions and cannot depend on anything but our own will to live and survive. " To Build a Fire" is a short story that incorporates the idea of naturalism and how, if we are not deliberate, nature will win the duel and we will perish. There is no doubt when beginning to read this story that the readers notice the main character is in a dangerous situation with the weather.

In Jack London’s story, To Build a Fire, there is a definite theme of the relationship between man and nature, knowledge and instinct. The man in the story sets off on a trek through the Yukon territory which is known for it’s insanely sub-freezing temperatures. London portrays naturalism in his themes. He describes nature as a brutal force that has no feeling toward humanity’s well being, happiness, or even existence. He also shows how the dog that accompanied the man throughout his trek uses his instincts to survive, while the man used his knowledge.

Many people say that man’s best friend is the dog. The dog is the domesticated version of its wild ancestor - the wolf. Jack London enjoyed writing about wolves and nature, and two of his more famous novels - White Fang and The Call of the Wild - involve these howling carnivores. Jack London shows the lives of wolves and their instinct and will to survive in White Fang and The Call of the Wild; underlying all of this literal meaning though is his figurative interpretation toward life and survival.

“The proper function of a man is to live, not exist. I shall not waste my days trying to prolong them. I shall use my time,” Jack London. This means that you shouldn’t just sit around and do nothing with your life, you need to try and achieve things. This relates to extreme sports because instead of playing life safe and not doing anything risky, it is good to take risks because if you dont, yes you might live longer, but you are wasting useful time. I agree with London’s quote, taking risks is necessary in certain situations because it helps you connect with nature, you feel a sense of freedom, and you accomplish your life goals and do what you love.

However, the Dog knew; all its ancestry knew and it had acquired that learning (London). Here we see London's situation as a naturalist coming to fruition in his

Matthew O’Connor College Writing 03 Mr. Murphy 22 October 2015 Don’t Be Hardheaded Jack London’s short story titled To Build a Fire is about a hardheaded man whose stubbornness would ultimately result in his death. Throughout the story a handful of topics come up, the main one being the power of mother nature in its superiority and uniqueness as well as it astonishing ability of beautification and destruction and the mans failure to acknowledge it. The main character in To Build a Fire took it upon himself to challenge the majestic power of nature with complete confidence that nothing could get in his path and stop him, not even the relentless elements. The main downfall of the man in To Build a Fire is his pride and ego.

Naturalism was a literary movement that took place from the 1880s until the 1940s. It used realism as a mechanism to suggest that social conditions, heredity, and environment had a monumental impact in changing or defining human character. Naturalism exposes the dark areas of life and how they affected people, such as sex, violence, disease, prejudice, abandonment, disease, and even death. Naturalism, in short, is a need to return to the earth. (Williams, 571) A prime example of this literary theory