TO BUILD A FIRE – JACK LONDON

PRITAM CHATTERJEE
9874673310
1. How does the story depict the struggle between man and nature?
INTRODUCTION

"To Build a Fire" is the quintessential naturalist short story. Naturalism was a movement in literature developed
largely in the late 19th-century. Its major themes are determinism over free will, the indifference of the
environment, survival, absence of moral judgment, instinct over intellectualism, a fascination with processes, the
emphasis of narrative over character.

SETTING

The story takes place in Klondike region of Canada near Alaska during the “gold rush” which began in 1897.
During the great Klondike Gold Rush many people flocked to Canada’s Yukon territory in search of an instant
fortune. The wilderness of Yukon during the harsh winter months means “there was no sun nor hint of sun” in
the sky. Into this setting, the unnamed narrator, a chechaquo’ or a newcomer to the region, walks in.

THE MAN’S IGNORANCE, PRIDE & THE DOG’S INSTINCTS

The man is travelling alone, except for his dog, a native, husky wolf-dog. He is without imagination, alert “only in
the things and not in the significances.” He cannot even understand the danger of temperature estimated at
seventy-five below zero. He does not consider it to be a matter of life and death but only as a “mere
inconvenience”. He believes that the harsh Klondike winter can be easily taken care of by the use of mittens, ear-
flaps, warm moccasins and thick socks, and preferably a nose-strap of some sort. It is terribly cold, so cold that
his spittle crackles in the air rather than on the snow. His frosted cheekbone have become painful. The judice
that he expels from his mouth on chewing tobacco instantly freezes. His fingers go numb when he unbuttons his
jacket and shirt to take out his lunch. Yet, he is determined to reach his destination, the left fork of Henderson
Creek on time.

Even his dog knows the extent of the cold. The dog does not have a sharp consciousness of a condition of very
cold nor does it know anything about temperature, yet it can understand by its instincts that it is not a time to
travel. It is a time to light a fire, “burrow under the snow”. It expects the man to go to the camp and seek fire.

But, the man is ignorantly adventurous willing to take risks. He ignores the animals instincts and continues his
journey much to the dog’s disappointment. He is proud, too. He does pay attention to the advice of an old timer
that “no man mist travel alone in the Klondike after fifty below”. He considers it womanish and thus, undertakes
the journey alone in the brutal cold and “travelled light” without a trail mate.

THE MAN’S LATE REALIZATION

However, in time, he becomes frightened at the intensity of the freezing weather. Knowing that numbness
preceeds hypothermia he plans to build a fire “and thaw out” before trying to eat. Although he is “keenly
observant” about the springs under the snow which may be traps for one he became less aware of his
surroundings and steps into a hidden spring which wet him halfway to the knees. He becomes angry not because
he is frightened for his life but because this would delay him an hour, for he will have to build a fire and dry out
his gear.

He builds another fire. His fire is a success. This time his hubris makes him to conclude that any many can travel
alone as long as he keeps his head. But, nature presents itself to be more powerful than the man can ever think
of. It seems even nature has decided to be unsympathetic with the man. As soon as he starts to untie his
moccasins to dry his feet, the tree under which he has built the fire blots out the fire.
HIS FINAL STRUGGLE TO SURVIVE

His chances for survival becomes slimmer. Being a lone individual, he decides to rebuilt the fire in the open space
with dry grass and tiny sticks. But, he is unable to light the match. His lifeless fingers cannot hold them and the
whole packs falls in the snow. He somehow lights the matches but burns himself badly.

Soon he changes his goal. It is no more to reach the camp but to war off the frost bite, to merely stay alive. He
even thinks of killing the dog but the latter instinctively recoils and backs away. The fear of death makes him lose
control of himself. In the frenzy he begins to run along the creek bed, but he fails to do so. He resigns to his fate.
He slips into frozen sleep. He dies.

CONCLUSION

Thus, at the end Nature becomes supreme instrument – a master who can be both benevolent and “red in tooth
and claw”. The man, unable to realise this, is swept away with greed and pride, ignorance and neglect, finally
succumbs to the Nature.

2. Contrast between the dog and the man. / How does the story show the theme of the
“Importance of Primitive Instincts”.

Charles Darwin’s theory of “Survival of the fittest” states a species, which best adapts to its niche in nature
will be more likely to survive than a species that is not so well adapted. Jack London's story "To Build a Fire'
is all about a man's fight with Nature. A dog follows the man in his arduous journey. The dog survives but the
man dies, and this has much to do with their approach to Nature.

The man is arrogant and foolish in deciding to undertake a journey across the Yukon on a bitter cold day. He
feels confident enough to trek alone without a partner. He does not listen to the well-meant advice of the
old man of Sulphur Creek. The man dismisses it as 'womanly' but later has to admit that the old man was
right.

The dog is introduced as a foil to the man. It is a big native husky who is more or less a part of the
surroundings. It does not approve of the man walking in the icy cold region but follows him out of sheer
obedience. Its instinct says that this is the time for retreating into the warmth of a fire. It is apprehensive of
the man's insistence on going ahead when the temperature is far below minus fifty degrees. It is depressed
by the tremendous cold, its tail droops in discouragement. It does not know anything about thermometers:
there is no sharp consciousness but the inner voice tells it that this is no time to travel. Once, it breaks
through ice wetting its feet and promptly bites out the ice that has formed between its toes to avoid sore
feet. It does not know this, but is mysteriously prompted by the accumulated knowledge of its ancestors.
Also, its suspicious nature senses the murderous intention of its companion, which helps it to avoid certain
death. At the end, it senses the smell of death emanating from the man and trots up the trail seeking for
other food and fire providers.

In contrast to the dog, the man uses his judgment, which goes terribly wrong as he fails to foresee the
danger. Unlike the dog, he does not respect the power of Nature. The gloom, the lack of sunlight, the
strangeness, the weirdness of it all does not worry him. The problem is that he is totally devoid of
imagination. He is quick and alert but does not think of his frailty as a creature of temperature, a human that
can live only within the parameters of certain degrees of cold and heat. He also makes the mistake of making
fire under a snow-laden spruce tree, ignoring the voice of wisdom or common sense.

Thus, the story can be considered as a tussle between Naturalism, which is represented by the wolf-dog, a
native of the land and Realism, represented by the man, a stranger and newcomer to the place.
3. Comment on the setting of the story.

Jack London gives a vivid portrayal of the natural setting in such a way that the reader feels very much a part
of the story. Specific details of the environment are pointed out to create an atmosphere of gloom and
foreboding.

Nature is shown at her cruellest, best in her icy cold setting. The frailty of man is contrasted with the power
of Nature. That the day is cold and grey is made clear at the outset. There is no hint of sun. Yukon is a mile
wide and hidden under three feet of ice and many feet of snow. His spittle crackles mid-air indicating that it
is much below minus. His nose and cheekbones are sore, his beard and moustache is frosted and the
tobacco juice has made a brown muzzle below his chin.

The man accidentally breaks the ice and wets his feet. He wants the fire to save his feet. Fire is the only
protection but he miserably fails to make one and that spells his doom.

The man is punished by Nature for his arrogance, for his inability to understand his frailty when faced with
the superior power of Nature and lack of foresight. The icy landscape looms large throughout the story,
making the human so puny and ineffectual. The man's pathetic efforts to build a fire are thwarted by the
forces of Nature. Only if he had respected her power, and been more like his companion dog, he would have
escaped death.

The man suffers because of the mistakes he makes, as he does not have imagination or instinct to survive
the challenges thrown by the superior power. He first throws caution to the wind and decides to travel
alone. He makes fire under the snow-clad spruce tree. He thinks of running to thaw the numbness caused by
cold but his endurance deserts him. He cannot bring blood flow to his cheeks, to his hands. When he realizes
he is running like a chicken with its head cut off, he succumbs to the power of Nature.

Throughout the narration, the setting stands not in the background but very much in the foreground, playing
the role of a full-fledged character-threatening, menacing and all-pervading.

4. How does the story establish the difference between instinctual knowledge and scientific knowledge.

Jack London’s short story “To Build a Fire” is an example of Naturalism, a literary movement that focuses on
the realism of human experiences, and often engages with the broad theme of “man versus nature.”
London’s unique take on this larger literary idea is through the topic of knowledge.

Two types of knowledge are discussed throughout the short story: instinctual knowledge and scientific
knowledge. The first is associated with the dog and the second with the man. These two figures represent a
larger distinction between nature and humans. The dog cannot understand or reason, but his instincts direct
his survival throughout the story. The man, on the other hand, relies on information gained from others, on
logic, and on tools and technologies (matches and a knife). This scientific or rational knowledge clouds the
man’s instinctual knowledge, and gives him confidence in his ability to protect himself from the natural
elements with the resource of fire. Because of this confidence, he ignores the dog’s instinctual knowledge
that the weather is too cold to safely travel. In this way, the man is presented as separate from nature, and
distant from his biological instinct for survival, because he understands the world scientifically rather than
instinctually. Ultimately, the conclusion of the story shows a triumph of instinctual knowledge and trust in
one’s nature over confidence in logic and reason, as do other Naturalist texts.

5. How does the story show the importance of imagination?

Early in the story, the man is identified as not being a “thinker” and as “unimaginative.” He is aware of the
world around him and of the terrible cold, but he does not imagine the possible outcomes of this cold.
 Because the man eventually dies due to his initial mistake of traveling on such a cold day, his failure to
imagine possible outcomes of his choice is linked to his inability to survive. Imagination could have saved his
life. This theme connects to the theme of Chance and Human Error, as several of the man’s errors seem
linked to his inability to imagine the outcome, as when he builds a fire under a snowy tree, or strikes all the
matches at once, with dreadful consequences. Had he been more imaginative, more open to the possibilities
of what could result from his actions and from the terrible cold, he might have avoided these mistakes.

At the end of the story, in the moments of the man’s death, his imagination suddenly flourishes. He imagines
the boys finding his body in the snow, and he contemplates the certainty of his own death. These
imaginative acts are linked to his acceptance of his death. Before, when the man was focused on survival, he
considered only the resources at his disposal and what they could achieve. Once he accepts his death, he
begins to imagine and to imaginatively apply the wisdom of the old man at Sulphur Creek (that no one
should hike alone in weather below 50 degrees) to his own situation.

6. How is the story an adventurous one?

Adventure fiction refers to fiction that usually present danger, or gives the reader a sense of excitement.

In adventure fiction, action is the key element , overshadowing the character, theme, and setting. The
conflict in an adventure fiction is an action packed, fast- paced, plot in which a protagonist has to complete a
quest or task in a short period of time which is having a thrilling climax.

'To build a Fire' can be read as an adventure fiction as the protagonist is in constant threat of being
overpowered by the wilderness.

The unnamed protagonist of the story was filled with adventurous spirit. In spite of knowing the risks in
involved, he started a nine hour long exciting journey through Yukon wilderness without a trail mate.

The man was a newcomer, "a chechaquo", who was unfamiliar with Klondike's harsh winter landscape. He
was inexperienced as well as without imagination. He could not even figure out the coldness as he estimated
seventy five below zero as fifty five below zero. This much low temperature did not bother him to
contemplate about life and death. He only considered it as cold - a mere inconvenience. He believed that
harsh Klondike's winter could be easily taken care of by the use of mittens, ear - flaps, warm moccasins, and
thick socks.

The man was so taken over by his sense of adventure that he did not pay any heed on the advice of an old
timer that, "no man must travel alone in the Klondike after fifty below. "

He made fun of this advice by calling it " rather womanish " and undertook the challenging journey alone,
except for a dog and was "travelling light" on foot rather then by sled and carrying only abacon sandwich,
tobacco, matches and some birch bark.

From the beginning it was made clear that the nature was against the man's chance of survival. Though the
man did not meditate upon his physical frailty as a creature of temperature ,he was startled when his "spittle
had crackled in the air " before it even hit the snow.

During his trek, the man was confronted again and again by his weakness as a lone individual against the
formidable power of the brutal cold. Each time he removed his gloves, the man was surprised at how fast his
nose and cheeks froze, the juice that was being expelled from his mouth on chewing tobacco was instantly
freezing, his fingers went numb when he unbuttoned his jacket and shirt to take out his lunch. It was in
such a deadly cold that the man's adventurous spirit was at peak .
The man had several thrilling experience while he journey ed through Yukon wilderness. He walked over the
trail of snow and "plunged in among the big spruce trees."

He observed and noticed the changes in creeks, the curves and bends and was cautious of the hidden
streams under snow. "They were traps. They hid pools of water under the snow that might be three inches
deep, or three feet. "

He experienced numbness and excruciating pain in hands. Besides wetting himself to the knees, building a
fire for the second time and seeing it die.
"It was as though he had just heard his own sentence of death. "

These all were thrilling experiences which made his journey adventurous though these experiences also
forced him to accept his fate and to die with dignity.

Thus, many of Jack London's stories were published in adventure magazines and were written to satisfy a
reading public that was fascinated by tales of daring exploits.