Flashcards for To Build a Fire

The Dog

In Jack London's "To Build a Fire," the Dog is a large native husky that travels with the unnamed Man along a brutally cold Yukon trail.

character

The Man

The Man is the unnamed protagonist of Jack London's naturalist short story "To Build a Fire."

character

The Old-Timer on Sulphur Creek

The Old-Timer on Sulphur Creek is a crucial yet absent character in Jack London's "To Build a Fire."

character

“Fifty degrees below zero meant eighty-odd degrees of frost. Such fact impressed him as being cold and uncomfortable, and that was all.”

This line is from Jack London's short story "To Build a Fire" (1908), told from a close third-person perspective as an unnamed man trudges through the Yukon wilderness on an extremely cold day.

Narrator (third-person limited)

“Well, he was bound to freeze anyway, and he might as well take it decently.”

This line is from Jack London's naturalist short story "To Build a Fire" (1908), which is narrated in close third-person as the unnamed man's last moments of awareness fade away.

Narrator (free indirect discourse reflecting the man's thoughts) · Single-chapter short story

“A man was to walk in the face of death, and when he had walked far enough, he would find death waiting for him.”

This line comes from Jack London's short story "To Build a Fire" (1908), a prime example of Naturalist fiction.

Narrator (third-person omniscient) · N/A — single-chapter short story

“The dog did not know anything about thermometers, but the brute had its instinct.”

This line comes from Jack London's short story "To Build a Fire" (1908), narrated in the third person during a crucial moment when an unnamed man and his dog are trekking through the freezing Yukon wilderness.

Third-person narrator · N/A (single-chapter short story)

“The trouble with him was that he was without imagination.”

This line is near the beginning of Jack London's 1908 short story "To Build a Fire," narrated from a third-person omniscient perspective about an unnamed man making his way through the Yukon wilderness in extreme cold.

Third-person omniscient narrator

“The old-timer on Sulphur Creek was right, he thought in the moment of controlled despair that ensued: after fifty below, a man should travel with a partner.”

This line is from the unnamed protagonist in Jack London's 1908 short story "To Build a Fire."

Narrator (free indirect thought of the unnamed man) · N/A (single-chapter short story)

“It was his own fault, or rather, his mistake. He had had no business to expose himself to such cold.”

This line comes at a pivotal moment in Jack London's short story "To Build a Fire" (1908).

Narrator (third-person limited, reflecting the man's perspective) · N/A — single-chapter short story

“He was losing in his battle with the frost. It was creeping into his body from all sides.”

This passage is taken from Jack London's classic short story "To Build a Fire" (1908).

Omniscient Narrator

Fire

In Jack London's "To Build a Fire," fire represents the fragile line between human survival and nature's indifferent destructive power.

The Cold

In Jack London's "To Build a Fire," the cold represents the indifferent and overwhelming power of nature over human life.

The Dog

In Jack London's "To Build a Fire," the dog represents instinct, nature's wisdom, and the natural world's indifference to human ambition.

The Man's Hands

In Jack London's "To Build a Fire," the man's hands highlight human vulnerability and the harsh realities of physical existence against nature's indifference.

The Trail

In Jack London's "To Build a Fire," the trail illustrates the false sense of human control over nature.

Juxtaposition

In "To Build a Fire," Jack London relentlessly contrasts the man and the dog, placing their instincts and fates side by side for a powerful effect.

Tone

Jack London's "To Build a Fire" maintains a tone of cold, clinical detachment that serves as the story's most chilling weapon.

Symbolism

In Jack London's "To Build a Fire," fire serves as the story's main symbol, representing human reason, civilization, and the delicate line between life and death in a harsh natural environment.

Irony

In Jack London's "To Build a Fire," irony acts as the story's silent executioner.

Suspense

In Jack London's "To Build a Fire," the suspense doesn't come from uncertainty about what is going to happen—London reveals the man's fate almost immediately—but from the agonizing how and when.

Pathetic Fallacy

In Jack London's "To Build a Fire," pathetic fallacy serves not as sentimentality but as an ironic contrast: the Yukon landscape is depicted with a cold, indifferent hostility that reflects—and ultimately condemns—the man’s fatal arrogance.

Foreshadowing

In "To Build a Fire," Jack London weaves in so much foreshadowing that the man's death feels like a certainty long before it happens.

Imagery

In "To Build a Fire," Jack London uses sensory imagery to create a strong sense of dread, allowing readers to feel the cold of the Yukon as a tangible force rather than just an abstract concept.

Personification

In Jack London's "To Build a Fire," personification elevates the Yukon cold from just a weather condition to a menacing force that actively pursues the unnamed man.

exceedingly

To an extreme or very great degree; used here to emphasize how cold and severe the conditions are beyond what is ordinary.

adverb · Chapter 1

undulations

Gentle rising and falling waves or curves in a surface; here referring to the rolling, uneven shape of the snow-covered landscape.

noun · Chapter 1

conjectural

Based on guesswork or incomplete information rather than certainty; used to describe the man's uncertain, speculative way of thinking about his situation.

adjective · Chapter 1

intangible

Something that cannot be physically touched or clearly grasped; here describing a vague, unnamed feeling or impression the man cannot quite identify.

adjective · Chapter 1

spittle

Saliva or spit from the mouth; in this story it freezes almost instantly in the extreme cold, signaling the deadly temperature.

noun · Chapter 1

moccasins

Soft leather shoes or boots, originally of Native American design, worn here as cold-weather footwear in the Yukon wilderness.

noun · Chapter 1

pall

A dark, heavy covering or cloud that spreads over something; here used to describe a gloomy, oppressive shadow hanging over the landscape.

noun · Chapter 1

peremptorily

In a commanding, dismissive way that allows no argument or delay; here describing how the man sharply orders or drives the dog forward.

adverb · Chapter 1

apperception

The mind's ability to understand and interpret new experiences by connecting them to existing knowledge; used to highlight the dog's instinctive rather than reasoned awareness of danger.

noun · Chapter 1

protruded

Stuck out or jutted beyond a surrounding surface; here describing ice or flesh pushing outward from the skin due to freezing cold.

verb · Chapter 1

tinder

Dry, easily ignited material used to start a fire; the man carefully gathers and uses it as the first step in his desperate attempts to make a flame.

noun · Chapter 1

smote

Past tense of 'smite'; struck hard or hit with force. Here used to describe the sharp, painful impact of the cold on exposed flesh.

verb · Chapter 1

cache

A hidden or stored supply of food or goods kept for later use; here referring to a supply depot the man hopes to reach on his journey.

noun · Chapter 1

conflagration

A large, destructive, and uncontrolled fire; used ironically here given the man's desperate struggle to produce even the smallest flame.

noun · Chapter 1

numbness

The loss of feeling or sensation in a part of the body, especially from cold; a central physical threat in the story as the man's extremities stop working.

noun · Chapter 1

sulphur

A yellow chemical element used in making matches; the matches in this story have sulphur tips that the man struggles to ignite with his frozen hands.

noun · Chapter 1

poultice

A soft, moist mass applied to the body for warmth or healing; here used figuratively as the man considers pressing his freezing hands against his body for warmth.

noun · Chapter 1

recoiled

Flinched or drew back sharply, usually from something frightening or painful; here describing the dog's instinctive shrinking away from the man or from danger.

verb · Chapter 1

ensued

Happened or followed as a result; used to describe events or conditions that came about after a particular action or moment.

verb · Chapter 1

unwonted

Unusual or unfamiliar; not customary or expected. Here it describes a strange or uncharacteristic behavior or sensation that signals something is wrong.

adjective · Chapter 1