Understanding of Nature in To Build a Fire by Jack London - Essay Example

“To build a fire” by Jack London “To build a fire” is a story by Jack London set in the open-air. London’s use of the outdoor as a setting offers a distinct view of the various literary aspects of the story. In the story, Hillier avers that London employs the theme of nature and depicts it as a jagged, free place to demonstrate that, even though people may want to be free in the outdoors, it is important to always cultivate a sense of friendship or live within what has been tested (173). The author uses a deep understanding of nature to create a backdrop of a desert that captures the essence and meaning of the story-line. In the setting appears a man whose perception of the probable successes of the untested world has made him to consider carrying out a rare excursion into the wilderness. In this plot, London suggests how an individual needs to consider that, regardless of how much he or she may contemplate that they can manage something, nature will impact their endeavors. This means individual perceptions have defects and often do not supersede nature. According to Kennedy and Gioia, London depicts an elderly person’s point of view as superior to that of the younger generations (115). This wisdom is presented in the elderly man from Sulphur Creek. The elderly character had issued an alert to the younger character about his impending excursion into the wilderness where adverse weather is the order of the day. The young man chooses to take the warning less seriously and sets out to the wasteland anyway. At this point, London shows the reader that, though the younger generation’s point of view is important to making individual decisions, the older people offer a better advice based on their past experiences, which usually span several decades. The elderly people are experienced enough to predict what is viable or worthwhile. Evans indicates that London carefully sneaks in the subject of harsh individualism to demonstrate how sometimes people cannot live on their own (159). On the other hand, Kennedy and Gioia point out that if the adventurer had been accompanied by a friend instead of a pet, the two would have shared their different points of view and settled on the best move to save the man’s life in the face of adversity (116). Instead the man chose to ignore anyone’s point of view, perhaps to demonstrate that his is a turf character and thus could make it alone. Worse still, by choosing to advance his own point of view regarding the excursion, the character most probably had nothing to demonstrate to the public but to boost his self-esteem. London notes that “the dog had learned fire, and it wanted fire,” perhaps to create a flashback to the old man’s point of view. This implies that the temperature would be unbearable and as predicted was now taking the toll on the man and his only companion – the dog (1). Nonetheless, the man refused to heed the dog’s warning signals; he thought that by fretting, the dog was merely reacting to the difficult journey. This way, the dog suggests to the man that it was inappropriate to break the adverse weather by moving any further. In conclusion, the man’s point of view contributes to the meaning of the story by helping to cut the image of a self-centered individual who does not listen to friends, and associates such as the elderly man. Worse still, he fails to read the mood of the dog in regard to difficult journey despite having it accompany him. According to London, the ruggedness of the man’s point of view instilled extreme courage and zeal in him to the point that he saw nothing wrong with continuing his journey in a temperature “fifty degrees below zero” (1). London uses the character to symbolize certain individuals who ooze of overconfidence and think that they can exist without anybody’s help. The author shows that if an individual tries to live on their own, then regardless of their confidence and capability, the unexpected often happens. If the character had been accompanied by a buddy, then he could have evaded death. “The Rocking Horse Winner” by D.H. Lawrence Lawrence’s “The Rocking Horse Winner” written in 1926 is a complicated story about how wealth changes the perception of people and impacts their happiness. According to Kennedy and Gioia, the social link between the characters is highly impacted by material wealth and its acquisition (561). The story shows how delusions and obsessions of an affluent lifestyle can strain the social ties, especially in a nuclear family. The most interesting part of the story is about the mother’s unending worry about her family’s poor background. Her delusions of leading an affluent lifestyle are so pronounced they estrange her from the family and eventually trigger her son’s death. Due to Paul’s uninformed perception that his adult associates mean good to him, mother’s exploitative behavior and opinion takes prominence leading her to manipulate the younger Paul for economic expediency. As the story begins, Kennedy and Gioia indicate the mother is depicted as someone whose point of view favors strong family values and love for her children, when in the real sense she knows this is not true (559). Lawrence indicates that the mother’s real point of view was that of no love at all, due to her quest for riches. The mother’s frosty relationship with her minors, according to her point of view, came to be as a result of her marriage that failed to work. The children appear to be very sensitive to the strained relationship and lack of love they experience in the family. According to Humma, the mother attempts to struggle her way to riches by engaging in various trading activities in order to generate income and reclaim the good luck that evaded her at the beginning story (56). Her perception is that trade would turn out to be lucrative and earn her the scale of wealth that she believes would earn her a decent lifestyle. Noticing her worry, young Paul opts to challenge his mother’s money-driven perception. According to Burke, Paul’s constant questions about the family’s economic status within the society prompt her to suppress him. The mother asks him to never mind. She feels she “started with all the advantages, yet she had no luck” (51). The reply leads Paul to embark on a mission to change this reality. According to Heise, Paul’s point of view in regard to reversing the trend of lack of resources in his family leads him to ride on his rocking horse to where he thinks he can claim his family’s luck (63). He believes that he could bring to his family great fortunes if only he managed to steer the horse to the right place. Paul’s perception of achieving success is based on some kind of divine intervention that dawn on him while he rides his rocking horse. Paul’s unique gift of telling the horse that would win a race results in the reign of a superior point of view to his. The character eventually suffers manipulation and abuse in the hands of his mother and his uncle. This is clear indication that an adult’s point of view will suffice. The mother’s clear perception of love for her son eventually becomes so obscured by the desire for a more affluent lifestyle, which she is determined to achieve at all cost. According to Kennedy and Gioia, the ego and superego of Paul’s mother lets these reticent manipulations to take charge of her opinion and behavior without any individual deterrence (566). In conclusion, it would be rational for one to believe that Paul’s seniors were working in cahoots to satisfy their egos by becoming richer through the sweat and sacrifice of the young man. The story is thus a clear demonstration of the fact that a superior person’s point of view will prevail, at the expense of the hapless people toiling in society. Works Cited Burke, Daniel. “The Secrets of "The Rocking-Horse Winner."” Beyond Interpretation: Studies in the Modern Short Story (1991): 49-63. Print. Evans, Robert C. “To Build a Fire.” Short Fiction: A Critical Companion (1997): 158-164. Print. Heise, Joris. “Characters, Plots and Themes in "The Rocking Horse Winner. "” Eureka Studies in Teaching Short Fiction 8.2 (2008): 62-74. Print. Hillier, Russell M. “Crystal Beards and Dantean Influence in Jack London's “To Build a Fire (II).”” ANQ 23.3 (2008): 172-178. Print. Humma, John B. “Pan and "The Rocking-Horse Winner."” Essays in Literature 5.1 (1978): 53- 60. Print. Kennedy, X.J., and Dana Gioia. Literature: An introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing. New York: Longman Publishing Group, 2009. Print London, Jack. To Build a Fire. The World of Jack London, Aug. 1908. Web. 2 Nov. 2012. . Read More