Greek Tragedy In Jack London's To Build A Fire

In Jack London’s To Build a Fire, it is evident that Greek Tragedy is a theme that can be seen throughout the short story. The theme of Greek Tragedy is evident in the short story through the elements of pity and fear, tragic error through hubris, the downfall of a protagonist due to tragic error, and the plot of the story (GVSU). The element of pity and fear in To Build a Fire is shown through the pity the reader may have when the man falls in the water and when the snow puts out the man’s fire, and through the fear the reader may have that this situation could happen to them (London). The element of tragic error through hubris is evident when the man doesn’t listen to the old man, keeps moving even though he realizes it’s colder than fifty

According to GVSU, “‘reversal’…: occurs when a situation seems to developing in one direction, then suddenly ‘reverses’ to another”. This reversal is evident when the man is making his way over patches of ice for a while, then all of a sudden transitions (reverses) when he falls through the ice and gets his feet wet (London). According to GVSU, “‘recognition’…: a change from ignorance to awareness of a bond of love or hate”. This recognition is evident when the man recognizes how fast his hands and feet are freezing in the cold, and when he realizes that he should have brought a trail-mate once the snow puts out the fire he made to dry his feet (London). According to GVSU, “‘suffering’…: Also translated as ‘a calamity,’ the third element of plot is ‘a destructive or painful act’”. This suffering is evident when the man begins to freeze to death, and eventually hallucinates that he sees himself with his friends, walking towards his dying body, and after this he slowly freezes to death (London). This shows that the plot of To Build a Fire is similar to that of a complex plot of a Greek Tragedy, which again shows that To Build a Fire can be seen as a Greek Tragedy.

It is evident that the given elements in To Build a Fire show that it can be seen as a Greek Tragedy. It is evident in the element of pity the readers feel towards the man and the fear that the readers have of the mans experience happening to them. It is evident through the tragic flaw that the man has in the story, his hubristic and prideful outlook, which in turn eventually leads to his downfall. Even through the story’s plot, with the pattern of reversal, recognition, and suffering, that it can be seen as a Greek