How Did Jack London Contribute To The American Dream

The Voice of Jack London

All of Jack London’s experiences led him to impact the American dream and voice through his naturalistic writing. London’s writing career was the perfect illustration of the American dream. He was inspired by many authors who wrote about struggle to achieve goals. Some of London’s prominent themes include self-reliance, simplicity and determination. All of these themes perfectly reflect what it takes to achieve the American dream.

Jack London, in his personal life, encountered many obstacles; which was reflected through his natural talent for writing. As a child, Jack London was “plagued poverty and hardship.” (Barksdale 1) Many of the prominent themes that stand out in London’s writing came from what he learned from living in poverty: independence, self-reliance and work ethic. These themes are a perfect representations of the qualities to have in order to achieve the ideal American dream. London was denied a “formal education and compensated with voracious reading” (Barksdale 1) and started work and the young

These are all themes that foster the American dream within someone and Jack London experienced that. London focused on the “concepts of survival of the fittest and adaptations” (Courbin 5) in his novel Call of the Wild. The perseverence of Buck (a character in Call of the Wild) shows London’s drive to work hard and adapt to his environment, as “he was beaten; but he was not broken.”(London 10). London believed to living the American dream wouldn’t be easy and “calls for virtues such as courage, integrity and brotherhood” (Courbin 7) London grew up and learned to be independent and fend for himself. His ideas of independence was shown in the line: “They were all savages, all of them, who knew no law but the law of club and fang” (London 12) He educated himself in order to achieve his goals and his perseverence was seen in his