To Build A Fire: Repeated Words

As I read this story, I paid close attention to the setting of the short story “To Build A Fire”, written by Jack London, where I found that this story took place in The Yukon where it was colder than 50 degrees below freezing point. I also found it interesting that London uses a lot of repetitions for certain phrases to emphasize or signal the importance of an event that happened or was about to happen. For example, London repeatedly mentions the “old-timer from Sulphur Creek, Henderson Creek where he was headed, 50 and 75 below zero, freezing cold, frost, numb, pumping blood, lifeless, etc.” I found that these repetition of words assisted the readers to know the frustration, pain, and struggles that the main character faced while he traveled alone in the freezing temperature. Throughout his journey, he faced some issues with frost bite, hidden springs under the snow, and limited attempts to build a fire before freezing to death, and as he went throughout these situations, he remembered the advice that the “old-timer” once told him.
I found an article, written by Lee Clark Mitchell, where he writes about the repetition of words that London uses in “To Build A Fire”. Though I disagree with his first paragraph of the article, where critics say that Jack London writes “childish plots,” I respect the way Mitchell explains the responsibility of the repeated phrases and words in the story because it elevates London’s style of writing. Mitchell goes more into depth in explaining London’s story, but I chose this article because it coincides with what stood out when I read the story. I personally enjoyed reading this short story because I felt the characters’ frustration and pain and I wanted to see the end results of the story.

Mitchell, Lee Clark. “‘Keeping His Head’: Repetition and Responsibility in London’s ‘To Build a Fire.’.” Journal of Modern Literature, vol. 13, no. 1, Mar. 1986, p. 76. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=6893733&site=ehost-live.