I think that this has some similarities to the philosophies of Emerson and Thoreau. First of all, this has a great amount of descriptions of nature which is defiantly a characteristic similar to transcendentalist writings. Also, the fact that it is one man alone in nature taking care of himself is similar to Emersononian “Self-Reliance.” Another thing that stood out to me is the fact that at the beginning of the story, when the man was still relatively warm and, well, alive, he talked about the wolf dog’s instincts in a condescending way compared to the man’s knowledge that came with being with a human. Then, when the man is running to camp for his life after his failed attempt at making the second fire, he cursed the dog because “the warmth and security of the animal angered him” (London 614). This shows that London thinks knowledge found in nature, like the kind the dog has, is more important than knowledge found through reason.
Sunday, March 18, 2012
"To Build A Fire"
“To Build a Fire” by Jack London was a short story about a man hiking the near the Yukon Trail in modern Alaska. It started off just talking about how he was making great time on his hike and how a dog started to follow him. There was a bit of foreshadowing when the narrator mentioned that a man told him that nobody should go out when it was fifty degrees below zero without a partner; it was seventy-five degrees below zero on this day. Then, as he is following a river, he falls into a deep pool of spring water. He only gets wet up to his knees, but that is still not a good thing to have when it is cold enough to freeze a man’s spit before it hits the ground. He tries to build a fire, but when he gets a good one started, snow falls off the tree above it and puts it out. By this time, his limbs are thoroughly numb, and he is having a hard time getting another fire started. He finally panics after failing to start another fire. He finally tires out, and lays down to fall asleep and accept death.
I think that this has some similarities to the philosophies of Emerson and Thoreau. First of all, this has a great amount of descriptions of nature which is defiantly a characteristic similar to transcendentalist writings. Also, the fact that it is one man alone in nature taking care of himself is similar to Emersononian “Self-Reliance.” Another thing that stood out to me is the fact that at the beginning of the story, when the man was still relatively warm and, well, alive, he talked about the wolf dog’s instincts in a condescending way compared to the man’s knowledge that came with being with a human. Then, when the man is running to camp for his life after his failed attempt at making the second fire, he cursed the dog because “the warmth and security of the animal angered him” (London 614). This shows that London thinks knowledge found in nature, like the kind the dog has, is more important than knowledge found through reason.
Jack London. "To Build A Fire" Glencoe Literature. By Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Douglas Fisher, Beverly Ann. Chin, and Jacqueline Jones. Royster. New York: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 2009. 603-614. Print.
I think that this has some similarities to the philosophies of Emerson and Thoreau. First of all, this has a great amount of descriptions of nature which is defiantly a characteristic similar to transcendentalist writings. Also, the fact that it is one man alone in nature taking care of himself is similar to Emersononian “Self-Reliance.” Another thing that stood out to me is the fact that at the beginning of the story, when the man was still relatively warm and, well, alive, he talked about the wolf dog’s instincts in a condescending way compared to the man’s knowledge that came with being with a human. Then, when the man is running to camp for his life after his failed attempt at making the second fire, he cursed the dog because “the warmth and security of the animal angered him” (London 614). This shows that London thinks knowledge found in nature, like the kind the dog has, is more important than knowledge found through reason.
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