4.5 Jack London

Notes

Jack London (1876-1916) wrote adventure fiction with naturalist themes, often set in the Yukon during the Gold Rush.

• The Call of the Wild (1903): Buck, a pampered dog, is stolen and sold as a sled dog. To survive he adapts, tapping ancient instincts until he joins a wolf pack.
• "To Build a Fire" (1908): a man hikes alone in extreme cold, ignoring an old-timer's warning never to travel alone. His own overconfidence and the cold lead to his death. His dog survives by instinct.
• Naturalist ideas: survival of the fittest, instinct over reason, and nature's power.
• Worked example: the man lacks imagination to understand the danger, while the dog senses the cold; London contrasts human pride with instinct.