To Build A Fire - Analysis

One of Jack London's most famous short stories, To Build A Fire, was actually written twice. The original version had a named protagonist, while the second version consisted of a nameless protagonist and a dog that was also without a name (D'Ammassa). The plots of the two were very similar, where the main character was in the process of making a long trek in the snow and subzero temperature. In both stories, but in different ways, the protagonist ends up with his feet wet, forcing him to build a fire. The second version includes an unsuccessful main character, who is forced to rely on his dog for warmth when he is unsuccessful in creating a fire. He creates a plan to kill his dog and warm his hands in it, but the dog suspects uneasiness and will not let him get near him (D'Ammassa). The narrator is forced to be doomed by his poor decisions that he made and lives, or dies, with the consequences.

The first version of the short story was written with very little detail, and in a very short, choppy format. The first revision included a writing style that was very detailed and opened the reader up to more information pertaining to the main character (D'Ammassa). Also in the first revision, London depicts his theme very obviously than in his original draft. The man is completely out of touch with reality and loses all sense of survival skills (). The main idea of the story is that while the main character did finally learn his lesson, he was not able to save himself from the doom that he created for himself. London also portrayed a message that followed the philosophy of "survival of the fittest." At the time that this story was written, many people believed in a theory known as social Darwinism. This theory was adapted from Darwin's theory of evolution, but applied to a social sense. This theory is directly related to the time period, which was when realism writing was the popular writing style.

D'Ammassa, Don. "'To Build a Fire'." Encyclopedia of Adventure Fiction. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2008. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= EAdvF140&SingleRecord=True (accessed March 8, 2012).