Nature In Jack London's To Build A Fire

Nature is usually seen more as the setting, rather than the antagonist in a story. In Jack London’s “To Build a Fire,” there is a never ending battle between nature and the four different living entities, whether they be current or past experiences. This portrays nature as more of an opposing character, rather than it being a part of the setting. By using the four characters, the man, the dog, the old-timer from Sulphur Creek and the boys, London is able to portray how nature impacts them all and how they react based on their experience and knowledge.

When first being introduced to the man in “To Build a Fire,” it is evident that he might not be up to par when it comes to dealing with the fierce chill in the Yukon mountains. “It was a steep bank, and he paused for a breath at the top” (518) After one steep hill the man is already having to catch his breath. That should have been his first clue, showing that he would

not be able to take on the vicious hike. There were many things that occurred throughout the story, that should have shown the man that he needed to stop and that he was not equipped to handle those harsh conditions. The mans lack of experience shields his eyes to those many clues. Later in the story, the man is referred to as a “chechaquo,” (518) which would be described as a newcomer to the land. “The trouble with him was that he was without imagination. He was quick and alert in the things of life, but only in the things, and not in the significances” (518). This meant that he knew it was cold, but the fact that his spit froze before it hit the ground and that he was in seventy-five degrees below zero weather didn’t inspire any troubling thoughts as to if he would survive the hike or not. At this point in the story, it is obvious as to how arrogant the man really is and in the end it’s his stupidity that ultimately causes his death. His first attempt to build a fire was a success, but this success overall hindered him more than it helped. After his success, he thought surely that he would be fine and that he would make it back to camp no problem. “There was the fire, snapping and crackling and promising life with every dancing flame” (523). If the man hadn’t of been so arrogant, maybe he would have survived. Towards the end of the story, the man soon realizes that his death is inevitable. “When he had recovered his breath and control, he sat up and entertained in his mind the conception of meeting death with dignity” (527). As the man starts to picture the other boys and the old man, it becomes evident to him how foolish he really was.
During the story, the dog is referred to as, “a big native husky, the proper wolf-dog, grey-coated and without any visible or temperamental difference from its brother, the wild wolf” (519). This tells the reader that through inherited characteristics, the dog should able to withstand the cold. London uses the dog in the story to show how the man is lacking in basic knowledge. “The animal was depressed by the tremendous cold” (519). If a dog who has the ability to survive extreme cold temperatures is effected by the coldness, then that should have told the man that its way too cold to be hiking through the woods, especially by himself. Throughout the story, it becomes apparent that the dog is a representation of instinct. “It had wet its forefeet and legs, and almost immediately the water that clung to it turned to ice. It made quick efforts to lick the ice off its legs, then dropped down in the snow and began to bite out the ice that had formed between the toes” (521). Dogs do not think the same way humans do, so when the dog’s legs got wet, it recognized that if the ice were to be left on its legs walking would be unbearable, but it was pure instinct that told him, not acquired knowledge. At the end of the story, the dog doesn’t realize right away that the man is dead. “There were no signs of a fire to be made, and, besides, never in the dog’s experience had it known a man to sit like that in the snow and make no fire” (528). The dog knew something wasn’t right, but it did not have the knowledge to know that the man was dead. “And still later it crept close to the man and caught the scent of death” (528). Just from that scent, the dog knew it was time to find a new food and fire provider. Yet again, it used its instincts “and trotted up the trail in the direction of the camp it knew” (528).
As the story goes on, the man talks about how an old-timer from Sulphur Creek had tried to give him some advice before pursuing his future endeavors. The old guy told him about how harsh the cold could really get in the Yukon wilderness. “That man from Sulpher Creek had spoken the truth when telling how cold it sometimes got in the country. And he had laughed at him at the time” (521). It was common for a man who had so much confidence in himself to demean someone wiser than him like that. When the man builds his first successful fire, he begins to belittle the old man again. “Those old-timers were rather womanish, some of them, he thought” (523). Its hard to feel bad for someone who ultimately brought all of his suffering upon himself. Throughout the story, the main character starts to realize his mistakes and his attitude slowly shifts towards the old-timer. “The old-timer on Sulphur Creek had told him about it the previous fall, and now he was appreciating the advice” (523). His attitude changes furthermore towards the end of the story when the man is near death. “You were right, old hoss; you were right,” the man mumbled to the old-timer of Sulphur Creek” (528). Its evident in the beginning that the old man had experience with those harsh conditions. Overall, the man is a huge representation of acquired knowledge and the reader can tell that by all the advice he tried to give the main character. The old-timer knows that man is nothing compared to the force of nature and when competing against the intense cold, it won’t man that wins. If the man would have listened to the old-timer, he would have been able to sustain his life. Whether it be through him, taking a partner with him like the old man told him to, or the man just not going on the hike at all.
Though the boys had very little presence in “To Build a Fire”, they still played a huge role.

The man towards the end refers to himself being a part of the boys. “He did not belong with himself any more, for even then was out of himself, standing with the boys and looking at himself in the snow” (527). Although, this might be what the man ultimately wanted, it was far from being true. The boys might not have had as much knowledge as the old-timer, but they at least had enough to know that they need to stay together and stay on the direct route to camp. The man goes off the trail because he wants to check out timber prospects, this could be because he wanted to impress the boys. He was a newcomer, maybe he felt as if he had to earn his way into the group. The boys represent safety. When they are referred to in the story, its always in relation to food and fire, the two things needed to survive in the wilderness. “The boys would be there, a fire would be going, and a hot supper would be ready” (519). Even to the dog, the boy represented fire and

food.
London does a tremendous job at showing the reader how different each character takes on the harsh wilderness. Throughout the whole story, it is obvious that knowledge plays a huge role in whether or not those characters succeed. While the dog relies on pure instinct, rather than knowledge, it still knows what to do it troubled situations. The boys knew to stay on the path and to stay together. The old man used his acquired knowledge to know that going alone on that hike was far from a good idea. Then there is the man, who represents arrogance or the lack of knowledge more than anything, thus making his death inevitable more and more as the story goes on.