Jack London Unpreparedness

Jack London’s short story To Build A Fire narrates the tale of one adventurer’s experience freezing to death in the Klondike, a result of his missteps and failure to adhere to the words of more experienced adventurers. Upon realization of his slim chances of survival, the main character frantically looks for means to survive. Unfortunately, the adventurer’s last-ditch efforts to remain alive prove to be futile, and before long the adventurer encounters the icy embrace of death. On the surface, one could assume that the motif of this story is centered around the extreme unpreparedness and grand misfortune of the main character, but upon closer analysis of the text, it is apparent that the author of the story was really trying to emphasize two significant human deficiencies: pride and frailty. Throughout the story, the adventurer displays a strong show of confidence in his capability to sustain his own life in the treacherously frigid Klondike climate. However, despite all of his attempts, he is unable to conquer the reality of the fragility of the human body. Through the detailed emotional layers of the main character and tasteful diction throughout the story, Jack London expertly communicates to the reader that regardless of how self-assured an individual
The story walks the reader step by step through the decisions that lead to a person’s downfall, and it shows the reader how simple overconfidence, bold statements, disobedience and disregard are not strong enough to mask the frailty and weakness that is in human life. Jack London uses his character, the adventurer, to highlight key mistakes people make that eventually cut them short in multiple areas of life. At the end of the story, when the main character discovers his mortality, the he is forced to give up his pride. To Build A Fire is above all else a lesson to the high-minded people of this world: the higher you climb, the colder it