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| Biography Jack London -- (1876 -- 1916) Deserted by his father, a roving astrologer, Jack London was raised in Oakland, California by his spirtualist mother and stepfather, whose surname, London, he took. Largely ignored, uncared for, and virtually without schooling, Jack London was to survive his harsh poverty on his wits and physical strength. Before he was in his teens, London already knew brutal factory work and the realities of the streets. Somehow in the midst of neglect, London taught himself how to read and became a vorocious reader sometimes reading for 19 hours at a time. At the age of fifteen he struck out on his own as a hobo. Later he became an oyster pirate, a seaman, and was jailed for vagrancy when he had no money, no job and nearly starving. At 19 he entered the University of California at Berkeley after cramming a four-year high school course in 18 months. One year of college was enough for this wanderer and he quit and moved to the Alaskan Klondike during the gold rush of 1897. London studied magazines and then set himself a disciplined, rigorous daily schedule of writing. Within two years, stories of his Alaskan adventures were being published. Not many people had been to or even heard about this area of the continent, so London's work, although often crude, began to win acceptance for their fresh subject matter and masculine force. His first book, a collection of short stories, The Son of the Wolf (1900) was popular as was the novelsThe Call of the Wild (1903), The Sea-Wolf (1904) and White Fang (1906). His reputation was further enhanced by the short story "To Build a Fire" (1908). He built the grandiose Wolf House in northern California in 1910 and produced over 50 books, earning him over one million dollars. He enjoyed spending his money and enjoying life to the hilt. London had several marriages as well as affairs, a ranch, a yacht, and traveled the world, but none of this bought him happiness or satisfaction. His life deteriorated into alcoholism and ended in 1916 at forty, apparently in the suicide he predicted in his autobiographical novel, Martin Eden (1909). Since his death, London's reputation as a writer has risen and declined. His worst writing is barely above high school essays, but his best work is still read and enjoyed today. His stories are regularly adapted into movies. He was a master of the brief expisode in which the individual struggles with the forces of nature. This most basic of all stories -- struggle for life against the threat of death -- drew upon London's considerable gifts for description and the creation of suspense. "To Build a Fire", for example, tells the story of a man's fight to survive the harsh cold of the Alaskan winter. "To Build a Fire" by Jack London Conflict: Conflict, a sturggle between two opposing forces or characters, plays a vital role in the plot development of a literary work. The events of a work are all related to the conflict as the plot develops. Frequently the conflict is resolved by the end of the work, though in many modern and contemporary works the conflict is left unresolved. Conflict may be internal or external. An internal conflict is a struggle between toughts and emotions within a character. Think of Arthur Dimmesdale's inner conflict in The Scarlet Letter. Or you face an internal conflict, for example, when you want to spend time studying for a test in Mr. Edwards's English class tomorrow, yet you want to go to the movies with your friends. An external conflict is a struggle between a character and an outside force, such as another character, society, nature, or fate. For example, in Moby-Dick Ahab struggles against a great white whale, Moby-Dick. In London's story "To Build a Fire" the conflict between the man and nature is extablished in the first three paragraphs. Following are brief comments about several stories in your textbook. On the lines below the comments, tell whether the conflict described is external or internal; then identify the opposing forces. 1. "To Build a Fire," Jack London A newcomer to the Yukon has ignored the advice of the old-timers and set out alone in weather fifty degrees below zero and sinking. By accident, the man's feet bcome wet. unable to dry them, the man freezes to death. _____________________________________ 2. "The Story of an Hour," Kate Chopin A woman loves her husband and is shocked by his death. Yet she is glad because now she is free. She cannot bear it when he turns up alive. ______________________________________ 3. "The Devil and Tom Walker," Washington Irving After Tom Walker makes a pact with the Devil, he becomes rich through the lending of money. Tom seeks to protect himself by becoming a rigid churchgoer and carrying a Bible with him always. When the Devil comes for Tom, however, Tom finds he has left his Bible behind. _______________________________________ 4. "A Wagner Matinee," Willa Cather A woman infatuated with a young man elopes with him to the rought prairie, away from her cultured city life. She stays with him there for thirty years. A visit to Boston reminds her of what she has lost. ________________________________________ Pre-Reading: Imagine that you are north of the Artic Circle during the middle of the winter. What types of things would you have to know to be able to survive? Also remember that because of the tilt of the earth, this area goes six months without sunshine and six months of day. London will regularly give information shat should propmt you to evaluate what is said. You should become aware of the need to ask questions as you read. . For example, in the second paragraph of the story, the author wrties that the tremendous cold "made no impression on the man." The reader should think about whether the cold ought to have made an impression on the man. Why is is important for someone in the man's situation to possess an imagination? Naturalism in "To Build a Fire" As in Stephen Crane's "The Open Boat," the events of jack London's "To Build a Fire" transpire in an indifferent universe. London, like Crane, populates this uiverse with nameless characters: "the man," "the dog," "the boys," "the od-timer." Such anonymity reinforces the insignificance of the individual, but also the cosmic implications of the dramatic situation. Nature is not merely a setting, but a force; the protagonist is not merely a person, but a representation of any and all people., the dog is not merely one dog, but a representative of its entire species. Thus, whatever conflicts appear in the story are abstract as well as real. However, there are also marked differences between "The Open Boat" and "To Build a Fire." Whereas the first is both a physical and spirtual journey taken by a character who eveloves from observer to participant to interpreter, the journey in "To Build a Fire" contains no similar psychological or morla development. The man in this story, as opposed to the correspondent and other characters in realistic fiction, learns nothing from his catastrophe. None the wiser at the end of the story than at the beginning, he is destroyed AND defeated. In "To Build a Fire" the man is involved with three natural forces: cosmic, human, and bestial. He underestimates the first, especially as shown by the frigid cold, when, at the very outset of the journey, he foolishly believes "the temperature did not matter." By the same token, the man overestimates the second. Failing to understand that he, no more than his ancestors, is equipped to deal instinctively with the elements, he ignores the unique human faculty of reason. Not only does he disregard the old-timer's advice that "after fifty below, a man should travel with a partner," but he even disregards the signals his own body continually gives hime, which might made him more mindful of the danger. Consequently, he becomes careless, forgetting to build a fire at noon, and later, building a fire under a snow-laden tree. It is ironic that when "the fire provider" (master) fails to provide for "the toil slave" (dog), the latter provides for itself. Neither underestimating external forces, nor overestimating the force within, the creature of instinct prevails, since "instinct told it a truer tale than was told to the man by the man's judgement." To reinforce the survival-of-the-fittest theme of naturalism, you can compare the ways in which the man the dog cope with the various misfortunes that befall them. HYPOTHERMIA AND "TO BUILD A FIRE" Hypothermia: First-aid books list some characteristics of hypothermia, or extremely low body heat. It would be worthwhile to review such information. The man in this story experiences many of the clinical symptoms. SYMPTOMS OF HYPOTHERMIA 1. Sensation of cold and shivering 2. Confusion, stumbling, disorientation (not enough blood in the working muscles to move normally). 3. Skin extremely cold to the touch, slurred speech, coordination is reduced, and introversion (person becomes less talkative and wants to be alone) 4. Pupils become dilated and vision is impaired 5. Delusional or confused thinking since the brain is deprived of blood 6. Decreased pulse and respiration. The musles of the heart can't keep warm and breathing becomes difficult. RELATED FACTORS 1. Exposure to a cold enviornment 2. Illness or fatigue 3. Malnutrition 4. Tobacco use 5. Exposure to windy or wet enviornment including inadequate clothing 6. Physical immobility. The body must be able to move to keep the heart pumping blood to the extremeties. WHAT TO DO FOR HYPOTHERMIA 1. Removal from enviornmental exposure 2. Insulating material (e.g. blankets), take in warm fluids and food if possible 3. Immersion in heated water, electric blankets, heated objects such as a water bottle 4. Active core rewarming such as introgastric balloons, colonic irrigation, and extracorporeal blood rewarming in extreme situations. FROSTBITE Frostbite and hypothermia are two types of cold emergencies. Frostbite is the breezing of body parts exposed to the cold. Severity depends on the air temperature, length of exposure, and the wind. Frostbite can cause the loss of fingers, hands, arms, toes, feet, and legs. To care for any frostbite, handle the area gently. NEVER rub an affected area. Rubbing causes further damage to soft tissues. Istead, warm the area gently by soaking the affectedd part in water no warmer 105 degrees Fahrenheit. It you don't have a thermometer, test the water temperature yourself. it the temperature is uncomfortable to your touch, the water is too warm. Keep the frostbitten part in the water until it looks read and feels warm. loosely bandage the area with a dry, sterile dressing. If fingers or toes are frostbitten, place cotton or gauze between them. Don't break any blisters and alert medical attention as soon as possible. In hypothermia the entire body cools because its ability to keep warm fails. The victim will die fi not given care. Start by caring for any life-threatening problems. Call the local emergency number. Make the victim comfortable. Remove any wet clothing and dry the victim. Warm the body gradually by wrapping the victim in blankets or putting on dry clothing and moving him or her to a warm place. If they are available, apply heat pads or other heat sources to the body. Keep a barrier, such as a blanket or towel or clothing between the heat source and the victim to avoid burning him or her. If the victim is alert, give warm liquids to drink. Do not warm the victim too quickly, such as by immersing the victim in warm water. Rapid rewarming can cause dangerous heart problems. Handle the victim gently. In cases of severe hypothermia the victim may be unconscious. Breathing might have slowed or stopped. The pulse may be slow and irregular. The body may feel stiff because the muscles become rigid. Call for an ambulance. Keep checking breathing and pulse. Give CPR if necessary. AVOIDING COLD-RELATED PROBLEMS 1. Avoid being outdoors in the coldest part of the day 2. Change your activity level according to the temperature 3. Take frequent breaks 4. Dress appropriately and keep body parts from being exposed to the cold 5. Drink LARGE amounts of fluids! Symbols: A symbol is any object, person or place that represents something larger than itself, such as a quality or a belief. For example, a dove is a type of bird, but symbolically represents peace as well. There are several symbols used by London in "To Build a Fire." The Yukon may symboliz the vast universe because it seems to have no end; just a white blanket of snow as far and as deep as the eye can see. Try to figure out what the following characters may symbolize in the story: The man: The dog: The old-timer: READING CHECK (the following check can be used to check your reading comprehension as well as your memory of the facts of the story) True/False 1. _____ "To Build a Fire" takes place in northern Montana. 2.______ The man begins the trip with a partner, but the partner is killed along the way. 3.______ The man does not fully realize the dangers of the cold. 4.______ He has brought along some biscuits and bacon for lunch. 5.______ The dog stands over the man's body and will not leave. Got comments or questions? See Mr. Jay Edwards or email him at:
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