Jack London was one of America’s most celebrated writers. London (1876-1916) gained worldwide acclaim as a writer by basing his works on his own colorful worldwide exploits. “Jack London was a native Californian who achieved worldwide acclaim as a powerful storyteller, a legendary public figure, and America's most commercially successful writer” (Hogge 12). London had a remarkable talent for writing about many of issues that occurred in American society during the early years of the twentieth century. He related many things about his personal life to his writing in such a way that made his writing believable. Jack London’s use of imagery, theme, and symbolism helps the readers visualize the story he is telling. Jack London was born in San Francisco, California in 1876. He was born as an illegimate child into a life of poverty. His early years were plagued by poverty and eventually forced London to enter the working world at the early age of ten. This caused London to develop a self-reliance and resilience that would later appear in many of his writings. Although he was denied a formal education, he compensated by becoming an avid reader who could often be found at the public library reading all sorts of books. In 1893, London started his first legitimate job as a member of the crew of a sealing vessel on the North Pacific. This job took him on a seven month voyage at sea which proved to be the start of a great adventure for London. After this job he traveled across the country, all the way to New York. However this trip ended up with him getting arrested for vagrancy, which caused him to return to California. After returning to California, London enrolled in high school where he contributed many writings to the student literary magazine. He eventually completed his entrance exams to the University of California at Berkeley. Unfortunately, he had to drop out after a year due to financial reasons. Many of London’s critics contribute his early years of exploration on the seas to his success as a storyteller as it provided a reference for London to draw from in his writings. Many of his youthful experiences became inspirations for future writings (“Jack London” 246). After dealing with the setback of having to leave college, London devoted his energy to his writing. During this time, he did not experience much success in his writing career and eventually set his sights on becoming rich in the goldfields of the Klondike. In the summer of 1897, London headed out to the Klondike to try his luck as a gold miner. While in the Klondike, London was plagued with setbacks caused by brutal weather or serious illness. Although he did not experience much success as a gold miner, London gained all kinds of knowledge about the frozen north and the adventures that could be had there. Upon returning to California, he focused only on his writing. Over the next decade, “London transformed his Yukon adventures into an assortment of successful short stories and novels that have proved to be his most enduring work, particularly the novels The Call of the Wild (1903) and White Fang (1906)” (“Jack London” 222). His novel, The Call of the Wild, became an eventual success and is still read by many Americans. In The Call of the Wild, London tells the story of Buck, a Saint Bernard/Scotch Shepard mix dog who is taken from a happy life in California and given to an unforgiveable life in the Klondike of Alaska. The novel tells the story of Buck’s struggle to survive in a world that is all but foreign to him. As the novel progresses, Buck begins to take on human characteristics that readers can relate to. The struggles that Buck must face in order to survive provide a look into the depths of what can be achieved through self-reliance. Buck’s struggles in the novel provide the reader with a gripping tale of survival in the face of adversity (Bolan 131). Jack London...
