A Critique of Jack Londons To Build a Fire :: London To Build a Fire Essays

A Critique of Jack Londons To Build a FireKaren Rhodes analyzed to build a fire in a cultural context. He believed Londons works were create verbally so that he could abide in a world he increasingly came to see as red in tooth and claw(1). It is obviously the story of a creation fighting the stresses of Nature. check to Rhodes, to build a fire was drawn from the grade London spent in Canadas Yukon Territory. London depicted arctic and precise cold conditions throughout the story. Rhodes believed to build a fire represented Londons naturalistic Flavor. It pits one man alone against the overwhelming forces of nature(Karen Rhodes, 1). He in any case believed to build a fire can either be taken as the Pioneer American experience or can be read as an allegory for the journey of military man existence (Karen Rhodes, 1). According to Rhodes, there are two versions of to build a fire the counterbalance one was written in 1902 while the second one was written in 1908. We are study ing the 1908 version. It has come to be known as everyman trekking through the Naturalistic Universe(Karen Rhodes, 1). To build a fire is thusly the story of a man trekking through the universe alone buy food for his dog. The mans goal at the end was the culmination of the story. His death came through no lapse of observation, no lack of diligence, no real folly simply the nature of himself and his environment (Karen Rhodes, 2). I think his is a fine condemnation of Londons to build a fire. London had made use of his life experiences in writing the story.I agree with Karen Rhodes observation that to build afirecan be understand as the story of a man in the journey of human existence. However, I think her view of to build a fire as an American experience comes from the fact that she is an American. I agree with her theory that the Mans death in the end was due to the nature of the man and his environment. The protagonist in to build a fire did nor have any grasp of the riskin ess he was in. he tried to reason himself through it all. He thought, Maybe, if he ran on, his feet will thaw out and anyway if he ran far enough, he would reach camp and the boys. (Jack London, 157).