How Does Jack London Celebrate The Unyielding Yukon Climate?

In “To Build a Fire”, by Jack London, the man is unable to withstand the unyielding Yukon climate because of his inability to recognize danger and his lack of imagination. In the beginning of “To Build a Fire”, the man is trekking in the snow covered Yukon hoping to reach camp by nightfall when he spits and it solidifies mid air, due to the below freezing temperatures. When he spits into the air, “There was a sharp, explosive crackle that startled him” (8). The man fails to notice that he should not be traveling in such cold weather, even after his own spittle freezes. Subsequently, the man does not succeed in sustaining a fire because his hands are numb and a piece of moss extinguishes the fire, when he thinks about killing the dog for
warmth. He usually “[speaks] to it with the sound of whiplashes” (11) and the different tone he uses causes the dog to shy away from him. If the man had used his imagination to develop a bond with the dog, then he might have been able to let the dog warm him. Finally, while hiking in the Yukon, the man ignores the advice from the old timer who lives on Sulfur Creek, who had specifically told him the proper way to survive in harsh weather. While drifting off to sleep in the snow, the man mumbles to himself, “ You were right, old hoss; you were right” (17). The man eventually recognizes his mistakes, but it is too late because he dies in the snow while sleeping. Conclusively, the man’s incompetence to recognize danger causes his untimely death and the realization of his mistakes.