Situational Irony In Jack London's War

In the short story “War” by Jack London the use of situational irony helps reveal the theme of survival of the fittest. The narrator is currently in the woods scouting for enemies and as he goes to the river for water, he spots a man with a ginger beard. “He glanced down the sights, and knew that he was gazing upon a man who was as good as dead. It was impossible to miss at such point blank range. But he did not shoot.” During this war the narrator spared an enemy’s life as he chose not to fire his carbine. At the end of the story, however it is that same ginger-bearded man who kills the main character. This is situational irony because the main character decided to let the man with the ginger beard live so the reader found it so unexpected when the ginger man didn’t spare him. This makes the reader wish that the narrator should have killed the ginger man because desperate …show more content…
“It was a face covered with several weeks growth of a ginger-colored beard. The eyes were blue and wide apart, with laughter-wrinkles in the corners that showed despite the tired and anxious expression of the whole face.” The character’s pity is clearly portrayed in this quote as he feels this man is harmless and believes if he lets him go then nothing will happen. Even though people with laughter wrinkles and blue eyes are usually very kind and happy you can never trust others in the setting of war. This is exactly what the main character did and he paid the price with his life being taken away from the ginger man. Again showing the situational irony as he spared the ginger man’s life and is later killed by that same man. Also showing the reader that the narrator was unfit in this survival of the fittest situation. The main character thought he could just leave the ginger man be when he could have possibly been an enemy and it turns out in the end that he was and the narrator paid