Naturalism In The Open Boat

The writing style referred to as naturalism—popular among many notable late-nineteenth century writers—can be defined as the study of a character’s relationship to its surrounding and how the environment dictates and contributes to the character’s motives and values. Stephen Crane’s short-story “The Open Boat”, holds a very cynical depiction of life as the four main characters are stranded in the ocean on a small boat, left to face the wrath of waves, sharks, aching muscles, and coming to the realization that nature holds all the power. Similarly in “To Build a Fire” by Jack London, the main character is pitted against the brutal forces of nature in the extreme climate of the Yukon; 75 degrees below zero, the environment is utterly indifferent
to the main character’s survival. Naturalism is evident in both writing pieces as humans are shown to have no control over the events that occur, and if they choose to go against nature, they will lose no matter what. The reality that humans do not have the power to control their own fate as much as they like to believe is central to the idea of naturalism, and is encompassed iconically in both Stephen Crane’s and Jack London’s respective writing. Stephen Crane’s “The Open Boat” is a perfect example of naturalism as it deals primarily with nature as an indifferent force.