The Power Of Mother Nature In Jack London's To Build A Fire

Many people do not think that dogs can be smarter than humans because humans can comprehend things. Maybe dogs can not tell the temperature, time, or understand how humans think, but dogs are very smart animals. The story “To Build A Fire” by Jack London is about a man that goes on a hike very unprepared. In the beginning of the story the man is very confident and thinks he knows more than the old man that warns him how dangerous this hike is. The middle of the story is fast paced because there is a lot of action. The action is based on the man finds out how unprepared he really was for this hike. In the end, the man dies and the dog moves along without the man. The point of the story is to never underestimate an animal and never overestimate yourself.

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

Mankind’s ignorance of nature is seen through lack of preparation for nature’s unforgiving essence. In “To Build a Fire,” the narrator accounts the man’s initial thoughts of entering the deadly Yukon Territory alone: “Fifty degrees below zero was to him just precisely fifty degrees below zero.” Through implication, it is observed that the traveler undoubtedly underestimated the temperature of the wilderness, thus urging him to pack lighter than what he should have. The ignorance of mankind is also highlighted in the traveler’s assumption that “Any man who was a man could travel alone.” People who travel together in nature have a better chance for survival. Nevertheless, the traveler’s ignorant assertion that man can always travel alone proves that his lack of preparement will bring him into deeper trouble with nature. Mankind’s ignorance of nature is also evident in mankind’s constant trialing of nature’s limits. After traveling into the Yukon with many dogs and little food, Mason’s lack of intelligence causes a chaotic event that is described as, “The miserable creatures, weak from hunger, exerted their last strength. Up--up--the sled poised on the top of the bank; but the leader swung the string of dogs behind him to the right, fouling Mason's snowshoes. The result was grievous.” Mason’s testing of nature, though it not be intentional, earned him an

Imagine this, breathtaking cold, loneliness and uncertainty all wrapped into one. If given tips to survive, would you follow them or steer clear of that path? In Jack London’s short story titled “To Build A Fire,” a man is stuck in the great unknown. Not suitable for humans and in no way enjoyable. In Laurence Gonzales's short story titled,“Deep Survival”, there are twelve steps to any man's survival. If the man from “To Build a Fire” would have followed these steps, would his predicament have turned out differently?

In Jack London's “To Build A Fire” the story follows a man and his dog in the Klondike and their obstacles of trying to get to the boys which are his compatriots. The story revolves around the winter and how mankind reacts to the wild. The author uses nature to illustrate the poem’s tone by vilifying nature and using it as an obstacle.

Jack London starts early in the story to set a foreboding feeling: "Day had broken cold and gray, exceedingly cold and gray, when the man turned aside from the main Yukon trail and climbed the high earth-bank, where a dim and little traveled trail led eastward through the fat spruce timberland." (London) It is this

The power of nature is not something humans can overcome. Nature shows its power through harsh weather, and we must be smart about it. The message Jack London creates in this piece of writing is that pride cannot overcome nature; nature will have its way. The man shows too much pride to listen to others about the dangerous temperatures but only listens to himself as it costs him his life. In “To Build a Fire” Jack London shows us how dangerous it is to assume victory in the the battle of man v. nature.

In “To Build a Fire” by Jack London, an unnamed man and his dog attempts to trek across the freezing Yukon terrain to meet some people in a town. Before the journey, an old timer from Sulpher Creek supposedly warned him of the freezing weather. The man still goes out, not being aware that the cold can possibly kill him. He faces many obstacles, including being covered in snow after building a fire. Eventually, he becomes less aware of his surroundings and walks into a frigid spring. Most of his body is cold and numb. Near the end of the story, he accepts death and admits to himself that the old timer from Sulpher Creek was right. His dog stays until it smells the scent of death, and goes towards the camp.

Jack London's To Build a fire begins with a hiker in the Yukon, setting out to test his abilities with his large loyal dog at his side. At the start of the story there is a hint that things will not go as planned because it mentions how clear the day was, and the lack of sun and lack of worry on the man's part seems to be a foreshadowing of events to come, the man was experienced and should have known better to take nature for granted like he was doing. The hiker also had been warned by an old native man that hiking in negative 50 degree weather could have dangerous consequences and yet the man chose to ignore the old man's warning. In the whole story the man brushes off the cold temperatures even when he begins to feel symptoms of frostbite, like his face becoming numb, his fingers and toes start to freeze and he even doesn't have anything to protect his face from the harshness of the arctic temperatures.

The main theme of “To Build a Fire” by Jack London is naturalism. Jack London has his own experiences in the Youkan that have been said to have links to the story To Build a Fire and his naturalistic viewpoints that have even influenced Ernest Hemmingway. This story was written in the early 1900’s describing a man and his dog who are new to the Yukon. The man and his dog plan on a nine-hour hike in -75° F weather. He is warned not to travel alone but the man thinking he is above nature takes on the adventure alone with his dog. As the sky begins and he begins to freeze because he broke through the ice. He builds a fire to thaw his limbs. Being an ignorant person, he builds the fire underneath a tree with snow on its branches causing the

Without it, the events of the story would have no way to unfold. London describes the setting very clearly. He opens up the scene by describing it as a clear, gloomy day with “no sun nor hint of sun” with a temperature of 75 degrees below zero (1812,1814). In fact, the word “cold” is used many times. This gives readers the ability to imagine themselves in the place of the protagonist, facing the freezing temperature.

To build a fire” written by Jack London is more of a primitive survival story where the protagonist tries not to freeze to death. It represents the battle of a man versus the nature. When I was reading the story I could feel my body possessed by the cold temperature just because of the way the author described it. The man was travelling with a dog, which was more conscious than him about the situation that they were living and how arduous it was going to be travelling in such conditions. “The animal was depressed by the tremendous cold. It knew that it was no time for travelling.” (London) Phrase that suggests that animal was most self-conscious than the man, even smarter.

In the story To Build a Fire written by Jack London, a man and a dog travel together through the Yukon in freezing temperatures to get to a cabin where the man’s friends are. The significant events in the story include the man falling into a creek, the man’s fire going out and the dog leaving the mans body reveal the authors’ own understanding of how nature and humanity interact. The use of third person point of view and symbolism work together in order to help readers understand the themes that nature is indifferent to living beings and that you shouldn 't ignore the advice of others.