Allison McNatt L.James Adv. Eng. 10 XX September 2023 “To Build a Fire” The heartbreaking narrative of a man who chooses to travel alone through the dangerous terrain of the Yukon, displays a dangerous decision to travel alone. In the below-freezing temperatures, he encounters challenges that are associated with survival of the fittest. He is left with no strength to fight for himself and perishes at the hands of nature's ruthless and unforgiving power. Jack London’s “To Build a Fire” demonstrates the goal to survive in the cold while using naturalism, realism, and foreshadowing in the fight for survival. London presented an understanding of what might happen in the future of the book. The foreshadowing tactics he used gave us an insight into what is going to happen next: “Usually …show more content…
He knew what he had to accomplish, but that didn't stop him from being frightened of not being kept warm: “The man was shocked. It was as though he had just heard his own sentence of death” (London 553). The naturalistic behaviors and actions of not being able to take action when he was dying from the cold weather, lead to the realization that death was possible. He finally started to ponder what will happen if he can't recover from the drastic temperature. It is hard for him to accomplish anything if he can't make a fire. In the understanding of desperation he tries at life one more time;“He panics and starts running, stopping and starting several times and finally collapsing from exhaustion. Lying on the frozen snow, he drifts off to sleep and death seeing a vision” (Haddon). He runs until the naturalistic effects from not being able to get warm takes a deadly outlook on his life. His choices could have been avoided if he would have listened to the people around him and taken someone with him. The first mistake he made left him unprotected from the burden of the natural environment that encased