To Build A Fire Analysis

Arthur Schopenhauer once said, “Mostly it is loss which teaches us about the worth of things.” All of the characters in the stories learn the significance of what the things they once had. One similar theme that runs throughout those three works, “To Build a Fire” by Jack London, “The Fish” by Elizabeth Bishop, and “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin is the loss of something significant. Each story or poem has a different way of ending peacefully and handling the loss. The narrator in “To Build a Fire” by Jack London, experiences the loss of fire. The wise man told the narrator that he should not go out in the Yukon by himself. There were many failed attempts by the narrator to build a fire to keep him, and his dog warm. Unlike the dog, the narrator wasn’t able to use instincts to keep himself alive. Fire equals heat, and heat is essential to life. When the narrator failed to light a successful fire, he lost his life. This goes back to the theme of losing something
Mallard is faced with the news of her husbands sudden death. Surprisingly to her family members she is not extremely devastated, as they thought she would be. Mrs. Mallard in some way, is happy that Mr. Mallard is dead. When she says, “free, free, free!”(Chopin 396), Mrs. Mallard is realizing she can now be the independent woman she always wanted to be. However, it turned out that Mr. Mallard was not dead he was very much alive. When Mr. Mallard walks through the front door unharmed, Mrs. Mallard passes out and dies. This shows her loss of independence. While Mrs. Mallard loved Mr. Mallard and was glad that he was ok, the loss of independence overwhelmed her and ultimately killed her. The doctor’s say that she died of a joy that kills; Mrs. Mallard died of the loss of something significant, joy and independence. Through her death, however, her problems are handled and she dies missing what she always wanted,