Stephen Cranes \"The Open Boat\"

¶ … Stephen Cranes "The Open Boat" and Jack London "To build a fire"

Stephen Crane's 1897 short story "The Open Boat" and Jack London's short story "To Build a Fire" both address philosophical matters concerning naturalism. These stories relate to the importance of accepting nature as a powerful force that is capable of making free will appear to be something that does not exist. These writers want readers to understand that fate is stronger than free will and that it is pointless for individuals to try and alter their future in situations when it is obvious that they are powerless. All that people can do is to try and endure through the suffering that nature imposes on them and hope that things will change for the better.

Crane apparently wants to present readers with the reality of life through emphasizing that people need to struggle in order to survive. The surrounding environment does not express any interest in the well being of humanity and simply acts in accordance with its own system of laws. The characters in the story experience nature's indifference in regard to their welfare first-hand. This feeling is emphasized by Crane's description of the birds that comfortably sat in groups as if there was nothing wrong with the situation that the four men were in. The writerd virtually teaches his readers that one of the most only things that they have in their struggle to survive is their pride. This can lead them to making terrible mistakes and actually plays a decisive role regarding their chances to stay alive.

London puts across a similar attitude to Crane when considering the way that he deals with the central character in his story. Moreover, he appears to believe that a human being is of little to no importance when faced with the greatness of the universe. The protagonist in his story appears to be insignificant to London, as the writer does not even bother to provide him with a name. The story focuses on the narrative rather than on the character in order to have readers understand that a human being is worthless when it is presented alongside of more powerful natural forces. The main character in the story rarely expresses his thinking and influences readers to conclude that he is insignificant and that they actually have to concentrate on the narrative of the story.

In addition to the fact that both stories present characters (Crane even names his characters), readers are probable to ignore a very important character that is present in both stories and that has a strong influence over the other characters. Nature acts as an individual and confronts these people as they struggle to stay alive using any means that they possibly can. It is more powerful than any of these individuals and can decide their fate as it pleases, especially considering that none of these characters arrive at a point where they consider themselves truly safe. While London's solitary traveler appears to have his fate decided from the moment when he relates to the instructions he received from the "old man," Crane's characters constantly hope to find salvation on the island. Even with that, the prospect of not finding any shelter or resources on the island makes it possible for them to acknowledge that their chances are limited by nature's power. All that these people can do is wait and hope that nature assists them in overcoming their problems.

The two stories deal with a psychological fight that starts between the four men in the boat and nature's power and London's man, his inability to use his instinct as a means to save himself, and nature's unforgiving character. Naturalism generally relates to how events can happen for no apparent reason and that people are helpless when considering the power they have to control their lives. London's traveler is, to a certain degree, experiencing less terrible conditions and he is practically responsible for everything that happens to him. In contrast, the men on the boat have no power over what happens to them and they are constantly subjected to unfortunate events, even with the fact that they do everything that they can in order to remedy things. Crane's characters virtually refuse to believe that nature can be as unforgiving as to present them with an island and prevent them from reaching it, especially after they went through a lot of trouble to get to that location. Nature is cruel to these men, as it provides them with hope but refrains from protecting them from its power. Even if they eventually save themselves, they are left with the impression that they are ultimately powerless in the face of nature and that they have little to no power regarding their future.

London's character largely appears to suffer as a consequence of his own mistakes: he builds a fire in a wrong place, he falls into water, and he ruins his second fire by removing a piece of moss. However, his fate is not necessarily decided by his lack of experience, as he actually suffers because of nature's power. An old man who he remembers said that it was wrong for any sane individual to go out when temperatures are below minus fifty. This enables readers to understand that no one, regardless of their training, had any reasonable chances to survive in times like these. "To Build a Fire" puts across a man vs. nature theme, supporting the concept of naturalism through the fact that it deals with the main character's foolish confidence regarding his ability to withstand the forces of nature without falling victim to its power.