January 25, 2004
Day had broken cold and grey, exceedingly cold and grey, when the man turned aside from the main Yukon trail[2] and climbed the high earth bank, where a dim and little-traveled trail led eastward through the fat spruce timberland. It was a steep bank, and he paused for breath at the top, excusing the act to himself by looking at his watch. It was nine o’clock. There was no sun nor hint of sun, though there was not a cloud in the sky. It was a clear day, and yet there seemed an intangible pall over the face of things, a subtle gloom that made the day dark, and that was due to the absence of sun. This fact did not worry the man. He was used to the lack of sun. It had been days since he had seen the sun, and he knew that a few more days must pass before that cheerful orb, due south, would just peep above the skyline and dip immediately from view. The man flung a look back along the way he had come. The Yukon[3] lay a mile wide and hidden under three feet of ice. On top of this ice were as many feet of snow. It was all pure white, rolling in gentle undulations where the ice jams of the freeze-up had formed. North and south, as far as his eye could see, it was unbroken white, save for a dark hairline that curved and twisted from around the spruce-covered island to the south, and that curved and twisted away into the north, where it disappeared behind another spruce-covered island. This dark hairline was the trail—the main trail—that led south five hundred miles to the Chilcoot Pass, Dyea, and salt water;[4] and that led north seventy miles to Dawson, and still on to the north a thousand miles to Nulato, and finally to St. Michael on Bering Sea, a thousand miles and half a thousand more. . . . |
notes
- ↑ Jack London, an American author of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, is celebrated for his adventurous tales that explore the raw and unforgiving power of nature. “To Build a Fire,” one of London’s most acclaimed short stories, stands as a stark testament to his keen understanding of the human struggle against the elements and the inherent dangers of the wilderness. London’s narrative is marked by a meticulous attention to detail, portraying chilling conditions and the relentless battle for survival. The story serves as a meditation on the fragility of human existence in the face of nature’s indifferent forces, highlighting the inherent conflict between man and the natural world.
One key aspect that distinguishes “Fire” is London’s use of naturalism, a literary movement that emerged in the late 19th century. The story exemplifies naturalistic principles by depicting the characters as subject to external forces beyond their control, emphasizing the power of the environment in shaping human destiny. - ↑ The Yukon Trail, officially known as the Chilkoot Trail, is a 33-mile long passage through the Coast Mountains from Bennett, British Columbia, in the north to Dyea, Alaska, to the south. The trail is part of the Klondike Gold Rush National Park in the U.S. and a National Historic Site of Canada in British Columbia. The Chilkoot Trail acquired fame in the late 1800s during the Klondike gold rush. (via USA Today)
- ↑ I.e., the Yukon River. The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. From its source in British Columbia, Canada, it flows through Canada’s territory of Yukon (itself named after the river). The lower half of the river continues westward through the U.S. state of Alaska. The river is 1,980 miles long and empties into the Bering Sea at the Yukon–Kuskokwim Delta. The longest river in Alaska and Yukon, it was one of the principal means of transportation during the 1896–1903 Klondike Gold Rush.
- ↑ Chilkoot Pass is a high mountain pass through the Boundary Ranges of the Coast Mountains in the U.S. state of Alaska and British Columbia, Canada. It is the highest point along the Chilkoot Trail that leads from Dyea, Alaska to Bennett Lake, British Columbia. The Chilkoot Trail was long a route used by the Tlingit for trade. During the Klondike Gold Rush of the late 19th century, it was used by prospectors and packers to get through the mountains.
