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The importance of setting in a story
Importance of setting in literature
The importance of setting in a story
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The Importance of Setting in Jack London's To Build A Fire
In "To Build a Fire" by Jack London, the setting plays a
significant role throughout the entire short story. Jack London uses
certain techniques to establish the atmosphere of the story. By
introducing his readers to the setting, prepares them for a tone that is
depressed and frightening. Isolated by an environment of frigid
weather and doom, the author shows us how the main character of the story
is completely unaware of his surroundings. The only world the man is truly
accustomed to, is his own. Never being exposed to such a harsh climate,
draws us to the conclusion that the environment is the determining factor
of his survival, as well as his dog's too. Anything that the man and his
dog comes into contact with, creates an anticipation for disaster in the
story.
London places a strong emphasis on the setting in the introduction
to the story. "Day had broken cold and grey, exceedingly cold and grey..."
He repeats these phrases to redefine to his readers the impact the setting
has on the lives of the characters. The gloominess of the setting instills
feelings in the man and the dog, of a constant battle with this world of
depression they are in. Being given no sense of imagination, the man is
only gifted with his practical knowledge. He therefore is shown to lack
the experience and thought to adapt to the conditions encompassing him.
Typically, man never wants to deal with the reality, especially
when it is unpleasant. "But all this-the mysterious, far-reaching hairline
trail, the absence of sun from the sky, the tremendou...
... middle of paper ...
...he man didn't listen to the advice of experienced
people, he was ignorant and never expected to be defeated by the climate.
If the man had prepared himself for the worst, his death would not have
been inevitable. Providing the separation between survival an death, the
setting was the most important factor in "To Build a Fire" by Jack London.
Works Cited and Consulted
Hendricks, King. Jack London: Master Craftsman of the Short Story. Logan: Utah State U P,
1966. Rpt. In Jack London: Essays in Criticism. Ed. Ray Wilson Ownbey. Santa Barbara:
Peregrine, 1978. 13-30.
London, Jack. "To Build a Fire." Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry and Drama.
6th ed. Ed. X. J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia. New York: Harper Collins, 1995. 118-29.
Perry, John. Jack London: An American Myth. Chicago: Nelson-Hall, 1981.
Meyer, Michael. The Bedford Introduction to Literature. Ed. 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2008. 2189.
London, Jack. "To Build a Fire, by Jack London." The World of Jack London 2012®. Web. 02
Jack London has written a classic short story in the 1908 version of "To Build a Fire." This is the classic story of man fighting nature. In most genres (e.g. movies, novels, short stories) the main character comes out on top, however unlikely that is. Jack London takes literary naturalism and shows the reader how unmerciful nature is. Much like Stephen Crane in "The Open Boat," in which the one of the characters dies, London doesn't buy into that "has to have a good ending" contrivance. Through analysis of two London's letters (to R.W. Gilder and Cloudesly Johns) these two versions of "To Build a Fire" come alive with new meaning. Although there are many differences on the surface, both stories use his philosophy as expressed to Johns and both teach a moral lesson, one which will not soon be forgotten: "Never travel alone."
11th ed. By Kelly J. Mays. New York: W W Norton &, 2013. 551-57. Print.
Naturalism portrays humans' control over their actions and fate as limited and determined by the natural world, including their very humanity. The freedom described by Jean-Paul Sartre results in all individuals having the ability to make present choices independently. Despite the fatalism illustrated in naturalism, the characters in London's 'To Build a Fire' and Crane's 'The Open Boat' are ultimately responsible for their choices and consequences of their choices.
What Is a Success? Success is not earning a fat juicy check at the end of each month, or being part of a large social group filled with fraudulent people that appear as familiar faces. But it is a person discovering him or herself after they have been lost and establishing a sense of purpose that fills them with a warm, glowing sense of accomplishment. Success does not have one transparent definition, it has various meanings depending on what success means to the individual trying to achieve it. Success is surviving the loss.
Literature. Ed. Richard Sime and Bill Wahlgreen. Dallas: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 2000. Page 739. Print.
The great and disastrous impact of nature against man proves to play a central role as an external conflict in London's short story. The extreme cold and immense amount of snow has a powerful and dangerous hold against the man. The numbing cold proved so chilling that the man could not even spit without the spit freezing. “He knew that at fifty below spittle crackled on the snow, but this spittle had crackled in the air."(604). That deadly force of nature goes on to further challenge the man, preventing him from continuing his goal. "At a place where there were no signs, where the soft unbroken snow seemed to advertise solidity beneath, the man broke through."(608). At this point in the story, nature overtakes the man, a conflict that directly stops him from achieving his goal, establishing nature as an external conflict providing the man with a struggle.
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When Jack London wrote "To Build a Fire" he embraced the idea of naturalism because it mirrored the events of daily life. Naturalism showed how humans had to be wary at every corner because at anytime death could be there, waiting for them to make a mistake and forfeit their lives. He used naturalism, the most realistic literary movement, to show how violent and uncaring nature really is and how no matter what you do nature will always be there. London also presented the basic idea of Darwinism and the survival of the fittest, basically if you are dumb you will die. Collectively, London used naturalism to show how in life, humans can depend on nothing but themselves to survive. "To Build a Fire" is a short story that embodies the idea of naturalism and how, if one is not careful, nature will gain the upper hand and they will perish.
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Their description of their love for their dog could also describe the dog's loyalty in a way because dogs are known for being very loyal to their owners as well as loving them very much. The owner may feel as though they will feel bad once the dog dies because of how loyal and loving the dog was. Also the dog may have saved him from a dangerous situation. The clue to that is when they say "how will I know in thicket ahead is treasure or danger."
In “To Build a Fire” by Jack London, the setting plays a significant role throughout the entire story. The chosen setting by London creates a specific and idealistic mood for his depressing story. It forces, as well as prepares, it’s audience to what the story holds. The amount of constant detail the story holds allows the reader to anticipate the ending that is inevitable to happen.
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Charles Dickens wrote Hard Times as an attempt to show the injustices of life for many different people and to explain that in order to be happy, people need one another. Through the epiphanies of many characters in this novel, Dickens shows their realization of this fact and how they plan to pursue their goals from there on. These characters are used as mouthpieces to spread the theme to the reader. Louisa Gradgrind, Stephen Blackpool, and Tom Gradgrind are such characters. All three follow their respective lives for the first book of the novel. As the story progresses, the reader sees these characters become unhappy and distant with their previous views as life begins to turn on them. For each, a last fleeting moment presents itself as they plan to change their ways and move forward to their best suited destination. Stephen, Louisa and Tom differ in their prior lives, their paths to change, and final plan of action, but they change for the better. These changes are used by Dickens to voice what he wishes in this novel. Through the use of many literary elements Dickens does this. Dickens uses imagery and foreshadowing to reflect the change in Louisa’s, Tom’s and Stephen’s view on life.