"To Build a Fire" Test Essay

Directions: Listed below are four questions. You are to answer two of the four questions. Each question's answer must be at least 3/4 to one page long. You must answer the question using complete sentences, correct spelling, and grammar. Each question must be fully answered, and you must use specific examples from the story to support your answer. Good Luck!

  1. Early in "To Build a Fire" London writes, "The animal was depressed by the tremendous cold. It knew that it was no time for travelling." This passage forshadows possible trouble ahead - and you become alert for signs of difficulty. Find four other passages in the first six paragraphs of the story that foreshadow later events. Explain the link between each passage and the later event.
  2. In the story, a man who thinks is contrasted with a dog that follows its instinct without thinking. Describe how the man and dog differ in the way they approach the great cold of the Yukon.
  3. Identify what you consider the main conflict in the story. Then describe the opposing forces. Use passages from the story to back up your interpretation. Which force wins?
  4. The man in the story is not a very likeable character. He's pretty much a loner, ignores the advice of his elders, isn't good at thinking, and has no love for dogs. Explain whether you would have enjoyed the story more -- or less -- if the man were portrayed in a more sympathetic light. Give several specific reasons to support your opinion.
2. In this essay, I will tell how the dog and the man differ in the way they approach the cold of the Yukon.

The man, who would rely on his thinking, but had little imagination, thought of the cold at first of something that could be conquered, something only a wimp (he believed) wouldn't do. He hadn't listened hard enough to the old timer, but he should have. The man felt the cold couldn't conquer him, he was prepared.

The dog, however, was different. It knew through its instincts that extreme cold wasn't something to conquer, but something to avoid. Its instincts told it to hide in a hole in the snow until the cold was over. In spite of this, the dog stayed with the man through the story, he learned that the man could provide fire to keep warm. But this man failed.

As you can see, the dog and the man handled the cold very differently, which ended up costing the man his life.

3. In the following essay, I will identify the main conflict, describe the opposing forces, and tell which wins.

The main conflict in this story is man vs. nature.

Nature was giving this man its worst: extreme cold, gloomy conditions, and expanses of seemingly unhostile land. Nature had the upper hand, and it was not prepared to give it up.

All the man had, on the other hand, was himself, matches, clothing, and lunch. He had ignored the advice of the old timer at Sulpher Creek, and that would cause him to lose to nature.

He had fallen into water up to his shin, and was forced to build a fire. His attempt at making a fire failed, and he later froze to death in his sleep.

In conclusion, you can see that the man fought a losing battle with nature.

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