To Build A Fire Theme Essay

To Build A Fire: Theme Analysis When it comes to nature, a lack of common sense, or failure to take sound advice, can lead to life or death consequences. In “To Build A Fire,” by Jack London he depicts a vivid example of this. Despite warnings against venturing out into the frigid negative 50 degree temperatures of the Yukon alone, the main character, accompanied by his wolf-dog, decides to anyway. While the dog's instincts tell it that it is much too cold to travel, it follows the man regardless of what it thinks. After many hours of trudging along, and many close calls with almost falling through a frozen water way, disaster strikes as the man crashes through the ice in to the freezing water. In vain, the man tries to make a fire, but in the end succumbs to the elements. The dog is left alone and instinctively follows the way back to the camp. With this, London shows that primitive instinct can be more important than civilized judgement, when it comes to nature. …show more content…
Even the dog, that the man regularly treated like a dumb animal, was smart enough to see that it was not a good idea, and was reluctant to follow. “The animal was depressed by the tremendous cold. It knew that that it was no time for traveling. Its instincts told it a truer tale than was told by the man’s judgment.”(14) The man feels high and mighty compared to the dog. That, as a human, he has better capabilities to make intelligent decisions than an animal ever could. If he was the one following the dogs lead, instead of being the one leading, it is not completely impossible to believe that the man could survive. Another example of the dynamic between the man in the dog is their relationship to each