Theme Of Pride In Jack London's To Build A Fire

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In the short story “To Build a Fire” by Jack London, the protagonist is challenged with the impossible task of navigating through the Yukon in weather that he had never experienced before. The man believed he could travel through temperatures of 107 degrees below freezing. However, his pride proves to be his weakness as Widdicombe explains, “In the context of “To Build a Fire,” then, “imagination” is the ability to recognize one's limitations. As it happens, the man does not possess this ability until it is too late” (Widdicombe 3). Moreover, the man should not have gone on the journey in the first place. The protagonist’s pride and confidence overtook his ability to think and analyze the situation, which resulted in his death. Widdicombe