If I understand your question, the answer, regarding "To Build a Fire," is found in the traditional notions of manhood and male "self-sufficiency" London explores. There is also the theme of man and animal—their similarities, their bonding in a state of nature, and their differences or opposition to one another.
London himself, as his fiction in general indicates, believed in those traditional ideas about "masculine" values, but he also was critical of them. The Man in "To Build a Fire" tries to be too self-sufficient, traveling alone in the Yukon under conditions the "Old Timers" have warned him against. The ability or willingness to exist in the "wild," to defy nature, is not an unlimited virtue, in spite of what some men may believe. The Man understands things only on a superficial level, and he does not recognize his own vulnerability. Here is where animals, in their identity as beings relying chiefly on instinct, are in some way superior. The dog, with his ancestral knowledge, has a better understanding of the potentially fatal conditions at fifty below zero than the man has. Though the dog is fearful and obedient, when the Man tries to kill him, the dog's instinct overrides the normal dynamic between humans and animals. The dog survives—we are left to understand as he trots away that he will reach the camp safely—while the Man freezes to death, a victim of his over-confident male (and human) hubris.
Monday, July 8, 2013
How does “How to Build a Fire“ display gender and identity throughout the story?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
What is the theme of the chapter Lead?
Primo Levi's complex probing of the Holocaust, including his survival of Auschwitz and pre- and post-war life, is organized around indiv...
-
The statement "Development policy needs to be about poor people, not just poor countries," carries a lot of baggage. Let's dis...
-
Note that these events are not in chronological order. The story is told by the narrator, looking back upon her life. The first notable even...
-
Bacteria are single-celled microorganisms that thrive in diverse environments (such as the ocean, the soil, and the human body). Various bac...
-
It seems most likely you are asking about Michael Halliday's theories of language. He argues children have seven main functions they use...
-
James is very unhappy on a number of occasions throughout the story, but he's especially unhappy with his life situation as the story be...
-
Primo Levi's complex probing of the Holocaust, including his survival of Auschwitz and pre- and post-war life, is organized around indiv...
-
Under common law, any hotel, inn, or other hospitality establishment has a duty to exercise "reasonable care" for the safety an...
No comments:
Post a Comment