In Arthur Gordon's short story "The Sea Devil" and in Jack London's short story "To Build a Fire," it is clear that in spite of the many differences the two stories have many more similarities.
First, although there are more similarities between the two stories, there are still many qualities that portray the antithetic nature between the two short stories. For example, when the fisherman (in Jack London's story) used his intelligence to defeat his enemy; "Only by using his brain could he possible survive, and he called on his brain for a solution."(12) On the other hand, when the young man (in "To Build a Fire") panicked when struck by the thought of dying, "he was aware of the panicky feeling that it caused"(364) Also, In "To Build a fire" the young man did receive advice; "he knew that he should have listened to the man."(357)
Jack London's San Francisco Stories
English: Flora Wellman, Jack London's Mother
Grave of Jack and Charmian LondonConversely, In "The Sea Devil" the old man did not receive any advice. Furthermore, In Jack London's story the young man did learn a lesson, but he died; "Then the man drowsed off into what seemed to him the most comfortable sleep ever."(365) Contrarily, the man in Arthur Gordon's story learned a lesson; "He knew one thing. He knew he would do no more casting alone at night"... "No, not he."(13) Moreover, In Jack London's story, the plot mostly took place on land and in the day time. On the contrary, in Arthur Gordon's story, the plot mostly took place in water and at night. Also, in "To Build a Fire," the main character had a knife for a weapon; "With his helpless hands he could neither draw nor hold his sheath knife."(363) In contrast to this, in "The Sea Devil," the main...