Jack London

Jack London is both a realism and regionalism author. His travels when he was a young adult helped him to become on of the nations best authors. His parents did not want to claim him and he moved in with a family friend and his step sister (Meet). He toke a job at eleven to help to get money to help his family to be able to eat (Meet). He did not know how to read or write. When he was traveling, he noticed that many of the uneducated people did not have a place in that society (Meet). He realized that he could not depend on his strength his whole life (Meet). That must have been hard for him to realize. He was in a place where he did not have many friends and he taught himself how to read and write (Meet). In his teens, he signed up to go to work as a schooner in Siberia (Meet). It inspired his first story. He attended University of California and Berkeley, but he he left because wanted to go to Klondike to strike gold (Meet). He did not find any gold, but he did get lots of experiences for his later stories (Meet). In 1903, he moved back home to write stories for a living (Meet). After he published many some of his books, he became on of the most well-known authors in the country (Meet). He also became one of the countries most paid authors in the country (Meet). He gave his money to help out his family and friends (Meet). He also went into debt helping out these people (Meet). He did make enough money to build his dream home in California (Meet). It was almost done and it was burnt down (Meet). This influenced London greatly and left him in emotional and financial turmoil.
Jack London uses the type of literature called naturalism in his writing "To Build a Fire". Naturalism is telling a story using the factors of nature to relay important things in writings (Campbell). The story is about a guy who moved to Klondike in northern United States. London moved to Klondike to try to find gold, and he failed (Meet). He uses his experiences in the land and he writes about them. The main issue in the story "To Build a Fire" is about the harsh, cold, bitter weather of Canada (London). The people were not ready ro prepared for the the gruesome winter (London). It is naturalism because Jack London is talking about how nature is affecting him and the other men around him lives. It would be horrible to go to a place that you have never been to before. They did not know what to expect and they could not pack for the weather because there was no room for them to carry a huge coat with them in the middle of the summer when they travel. The purpose of building a fire is so the men there can have warmth in the midst of their frowziness. London used his personal experiences to write an intellectual and neat story about nature and its effects on him and others.

London, Jack. "To Build a Fire." Glencoe Literature. Comp. Jeffery D. Wilhelm. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw Hill, 2009. 603-614. Print.

"Meet Jack London." Glencoe Literature. Comp. Jeffery D. Wilhelm. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw Hill, 2009. 601. Print.

Campbell, Donna M. "Naturalism in American Literature." Washington State University - Pullman, Washington. 27 July 2010. Web. 08 Feb. 2011.