Realism: “To Build a Fire” by Jack London

To Build a Fire by seafarer capital of the United Kingdom is the tragic tale of a macrocosm who becomes a dupe of the relentless and unforgiving power of nature. Mirroring life as most quite a little experience it, true-to-life(prenominal) fiction includes the daily ch tout ensembleenges and tribulations of being hu gentle objet dart. Throughout the story, London creates irony with the main character, which adds to the bleakness that is realism. The main character in this story is a newcomer to the land who is oblivious to natures abilities. With little knowledge of what its like to be where he is, the man is practically clueless virtually what he is get into.His eventual unfastening is the result of using the little knowledge he has and overestimating his abilities, cause him to dress foolish decisions. For example, an old-timer on Sulfur Creek had once cautioned him about how extremely moth-eaten it was yet the man ignores the warning. Irony comes into play when the man w alks along a creek trail, mindful of the dangerous, hidden springs, and falls through a safe spot in the snow. The man knows to watch for hide water spots, yet he steps in one unexpectedly, getting wet up to his shins.This incident is the first stumbling block in the road, which adds to the real feel of the story. Following the mans every footstep is his doglike companion, a Husky dog. The dog is depressed by the extreme cold and knows that it is no time for traveling. The dogs knowledge brings us to some other ironic situation. The man carries on his way, disregarding the serious warning signs such(prenominal) as his frozen cheekbones, numbness, and pain. We expect a man to be smarter than a dog, but ironically the dog is the one who understands the severity of the temperature.The dog had intentional at an early age that men make fire and test shelter to survive. The fact that this man doesnt do so is realistic in that it shows how humans dont always make the dress hat decis ions. Most of the ironic situations in this story come from nature. The man gets a dose of the capricious nature of the universe when, after starting a fire, the life-sustaining fire is ironically put out by move snow. The man starts another fire, but it too gets put out. In a desperate attempt to keep himself warm, he starts to run to heat up his body. However, he has no strength, and soon he stops to sit down.The man has done everything he can to survive, but it is to no avail. Nature takes control, causing him to fall into a deep, relaxing, deadly sleep. Nature contributes to the irony because even with all of the mans knowledge, he is still helpless to natural forces. By accenting the essential parts of his story with irony, London directs the readers attention to the heartless indifference of nature. He illustrates and emphasizes realistic qualities through his canny placement of irony. To the reader, this helps to communicate a straight-forward example of human life as it re ally is.