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Analysis of jack london
Jack london essayc
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“It’s a unique phenomenon when a male becomes a man so late in life–probably because if he never truly became a man when most do, he likely never will. He certainly won’t seek out someone to father him like his own father failed to do, and if one such person appears on the scene he will likely avoid the man in a mechanism of defense.” (Christine Weber) When readers first encounter Humphrey Van Weyden, he measures up to almost no man. Throughout the novel The Sea Wolf, “Hump” as he’s nicknamed by Wolf Larsen transforms into much more than a man, Hump becomes his own Superman. His profound transformation into Humphrey Van Weyden-- man, can be credited to his experiences aboard Ghost and interactions with the crew. On first impression, Hump is a far cry from debonair. He is portrayed as cowardly and faint-hearted. The sinking of the ferryboat evidences this. As the boat begins to sink, Hump sees people screaming, including a multitude of women. Hump likens this to “the squealing of pigs under the knife of the butcher.” (Jack London) This startles Hump so much that he must remove himself by running out on deck to regain his composure. Once the ferry sinks, Hump is left floating in the dark, cold water. “I was alone, floating in the midst of a grey primordial vastness, I confess a madness seized me, that I shrieked aloud as the women had done, and beat the water with my numb hands.”(Jack London) It becomes clear that Humphrey has never been alone, and he is afraid to be. He has never been able to fend for himself and test his abilities. Hump doesn’t know what he is truly capable of. After the ferry sinks, Hump is rescued by the ship Ghost, under the command of Wolf Larsen. Once he is taken aboard, two sailors revive Hump. One of... ... middle of paper ... ... a man who is no longer absent to reality, but in a much more real sense, now driven by it. Bibliography Auerbach, Jonathan. Male Call: Becoming Jack London. Durham, NC: Duke UP, 1996. Print. Barrish, Phillip. The Cambridge Introduction to American Literary Realism. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge UP, 2011. Print. Deane, Paul. "Jack London: The Paradox of Individualism." New York State English Council, Oswego 19.2 (1968): 14-19. Web. 25 Nov. 2013. . London, Jack. The Sea Wolf, Etc. [A Novel.]. Macmillan Co.: New York; Macmillan &: London, 1904. Print. Sauble, Margaret. "The Sea Wolf's Humphrey Van Weyden: From Meek to Man."Suite101.com. Suite 101, 25 Nov. 2013. Web. 26 Nov. 2013. Weber, M. Christine. "Humphrey Weyden And Wolf Larsen | M. Christine Weber." M Christine Weber RSS. N.p., 15 Apr. 2010. Web. 26 Nov. 2013.
The contrast between the chaos and calm of the boat and McMurphy shows how he helps the men to stay calm and believe in themselves in tough situations. He didn’t doubt himself, so neither did they. The positive tone of the passage reveals McMurphy’s effect on the patients by making them see a brighter side of life, and by doing this gave them confidence. Also, the metaphor of being big vs. being small shows how McMurphy turns the patients from weaker, scared individuals into strong, self-assured men who had control over their lives. All they needed was someone to pull them out the fog and show them what they could be. Maybe all people need to create change in their lives is a little push to start a chain reaction of
Baym, Nina et al, eds. The Norton Anthology of American Literature. New York: W.W. Norton & Co. 1995.
Fate has commonly been perceived by humans as an immaterial but also binding “plan.” Fate is, “a power that is believed to control what happens in the future,” and is also commonly regarded as being inescapable (Fate 1). The ancient greeks built up this modern idea of fate. The Moirae in greek mythology were the gods which decided everybodies fate. They were split up into three different gods, Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos. Clotho spun the thread of life when women were in the ninth month of pregnancy to decide the child’s fate. Lachesis would then measure the thread of life given to each person, and Atropos would cut the thread of life, deciding when each persons life would end. In greek, atropos literally translates to “inevitable.” This is where the idea that fate is given to every human being and already decided even before the human being is born (David and Sharon Hoffman 1).
The Norton Anthology of English Literature, Volume 1c. New York: W.W. Norton & Co, 2006. Print. The.
Baym, Franklin, Gottesman, Holland, et al., eds. The Norton Anthology of American Literature. 4th ed. New York: Norton, 1994.
The human voyage into life is basically feeble, vulnerable, uncontrollable. Since the crew on a dangerous sea without hope are depicted as "the babes of the sea", it can be inferred that we are likely to be ignorant strangers in the universe. In addition to the danger we face, we have to also overcome the new challenges of the waves in the daily life. These waves are "most wrongfully and barbarously abrupt and tall", requiring "a new leap, and a leap." Therefore, the incessant troubles arising from human conditions often bring about unpredictable crises as "shipwrecks are apropos of nothing." The tiny "open boat", which characters desperately cling to, signifies the weak, helpless, and vulnerable conditions of human life since it is deprived of other protection due to the shipwreck. The "open boat" also accentuates the "open suggestion of hopelessness" amid the wild waves of life. The crew of the boat perceive their precarious fate as "preposterous" and "absurd" so much so that they can feel the "tragic" aspect and "coldness of the water." At this point, the question of why they are forced to be "dragged away" and to "nibble the sacred cheese of life" raises a meaningful issue over life itself. This pessimistic view of life reflects the helpless human condition as well as the limitation of human life.
American Literary Realism, 1870-1910. Vol. 8, Issue 1 - "The 'Standard' University of Texas, 1975. http://www.ut Gilman, Charlotte.
The characters also are involved in the belief of the anti-transcendental philosophy. The story shows how each character acts with nature and each other. Many of the whalers must protect the boat and each other as they trek through the wild tides and horrible weather conditions. They try their hardest to fight these conditions, but sadly the narrator is the only survivor. These men exemplify the philosophy by fighting the animals; especially the whales ...
The. Rpt. Jack London: Essays in Criticism. Ed. Ray Wilson.
Baym, Franklin, Gottesman, Holland, et al., eds. The Norton Anthology of American Literature. 4th ed. New York: Norton, 1994.
Abrams, M.H., ed. The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 6th ed. Vol. 2. New York: Norton, 1993.
... point of view, and irony. Crane use these techniques to guide the reader in the course of the struggles, both internally and externally, of mans great endeavor against nature. The tone sets the suspense of the story by building the impending doom upon the crew. The stories point of view allows the reader to gradually understand and expect the indifference of nature upon people’s lives. The reality of nature is expressed through the use of different kinds of irony. The universe is represented by the power of the ocean, and the small boat in this ocean is symbolic of man in this giant universe. The immaculate power of the ocean is very indifferent to the small boat, just as our great universe could not care less for man.
Baym, Franklin, Gottesman, Holland, et al., eds. The Norton Anthology of American Literature. 4th ed. New York: Norton, 1994.
Brenner, Gery. The Old Man and the Sea- The Story of a Common Man. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1991.
Between the years of 1865 and 1914, American literature was mainly comprised of three writing styles: realism, regionalism, and naturalism. Realism aims to portray life realistically. Though realism...