On "White Fang" by Jack London
This is not a book review, nor does it give much details about the actual story. In fact, there is really no definite purpose behind this blog post; I completed the book a few minutes back and am just allowing my mind to take over and write whatever it wants about the book.
Let me start by giving you a brief idea of what the novel is all about. The story is mostly set in the icy desolate backdrop of the Northland – a place where Nature reigns supreme in all her icy savageness, where there is nothing but the blinding whiteness of snow as far as the eye can reach. It starts with a bitter, savage chase – a chase to the death, a chase for life. It’s a chase for food – and for survival. And that’s what most of the book is all about – a fight for survival.
The subject of the story is White Fang, a wolf-dog born in the wilderness of the Northland. In his puppy hood itself, he gets into the company of Man and there starts his story. His puppy hood is plagued by brutality from his fellow puppies. He still has “the Wild” in him – that is what makes him different from them, that is what makes him their most-hated enemy. So from a very early age, he learns to fight; and this is no playful puppy fight, but a fight for survival. The world around him is ruthless and unforgiving, but he is even more so; and that is how he manages to survive. He has to fight every inch of the way and it culminates in his becoming the ultimate “fighting machine”. And then finally he finds “Love” – the love of a Man - and his life changes forever.
Throughout the book, the use of words by Jack London has been nothing short of amazing. It starts in the very first paragraph when he describes the Wild as “frozen-hearted” with a “hint of laughter” – “laughing at the futility of life and the effort of life”. Then there is the word “ki-yi” to describe the cries and whimpering of the puppy – the word is so so real you can almost hear the puppy. No other word would probably have conveyed the meaning so well. But the master stroke is probably is the usage of the word “god” for Man. For a wild wolf coming to stay in the “fires of Man”, God is nothing but Man itself – “unmistakable and inescapable”. Man is the ruler, He is the one who makes the Laws, He is the one who commands, He is the one who metes out Justice – and most importantly, He has the power to enforce His wishes. He is a tangible entity, an entity which White Fang could sense with all his 5 senses, and he has the power to make himself obeyed. This is what makes Him his Ruler, his Master.
But then when White Fang experiences Love, there is added another dimension to his god. No longer does White Fan obey Him because of His power, he obeys Him because of Love. His previous gods used to thrash him mercilessly when he disobeyed, however they hurt his physical self alone. But even a sharp word from this new god hurts him deep deep within, to the very depths of his heart and soul. And it is here that Jack London delivers the best – he calls Him the “Love-God”
May 21 2006
12:45 AM
PS: You can read the book online at http://www.literatureproject.com/white-fang/index.htm
Let me start by giving you a brief idea of what the novel is all about. The story is mostly set in the icy desolate backdrop of the Northland – a place where Nature reigns supreme in all her icy savageness, where there is nothing but the blinding whiteness of snow as far as the eye can reach. It starts with a bitter, savage chase – a chase to the death, a chase for life. It’s a chase for food – and for survival. And that’s what most of the book is all about – a fight for survival.
The subject of the story is White Fang, a wolf-dog born in the wilderness of the Northland. In his puppy hood itself, he gets into the company of Man and there starts his story. His puppy hood is plagued by brutality from his fellow puppies. He still has “the Wild” in him – that is what makes him different from them, that is what makes him their most-hated enemy. So from a very early age, he learns to fight; and this is no playful puppy fight, but a fight for survival. The world around him is ruthless and unforgiving, but he is even more so; and that is how he manages to survive. He has to fight every inch of the way and it culminates in his becoming the ultimate “fighting machine”. And then finally he finds “Love” – the love of a Man - and his life changes forever.
Throughout the book, the use of words by Jack London has been nothing short of amazing. It starts in the very first paragraph when he describes the Wild as “frozen-hearted” with a “hint of laughter” – “laughing at the futility of life and the effort of life”. Then there is the word “ki-yi” to describe the cries and whimpering of the puppy – the word is so so real you can almost hear the puppy. No other word would probably have conveyed the meaning so well. But the master stroke is probably is the usage of the word “god” for Man. For a wild wolf coming to stay in the “fires of Man”, God is nothing but Man itself – “unmistakable and inescapable”. Man is the ruler, He is the one who makes the Laws, He is the one who commands, He is the one who metes out Justice – and most importantly, He has the power to enforce His wishes. He is a tangible entity, an entity which White Fang could sense with all his 5 senses, and he has the power to make himself obeyed. This is what makes Him his Ruler, his Master.
But then when White Fang experiences Love, there is added another dimension to his god. No longer does White Fan obey Him because of His power, he obeys Him because of Love. His previous gods used to thrash him mercilessly when he disobeyed, however they hurt his physical self alone. But even a sharp word from this new god hurts him deep deep within, to the very depths of his heart and soul. And it is here that Jack London delivers the best – he calls Him the “Love-God”
May 21 2006
12:45 AM
PS: You can read the book online at http://www.literatureproject.com/white-fang/index.htm
posted by Ranajoy Sanyal at 5:58 PM
1 Comments:
I can easily map this dog to any man who names that entity that satisfies his needs as God. Hmm Pretty insightful...
The last time i read a novel where the animal was the narrator was Black Beauty...
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