Facts in Fiction

    Opposites are often far from opposite. Cats and dogs can be considered opposites, but they are both animals that are domesticated and receive our attention. Warm and cool represent subjective realities. Cool could not be defined without warm. In this fashion fact and fiction associate. Fiction is laced with facts. Stories are nothing without a base in factual material. Facts are what relate the audience to the tale: the metaphorical glue between the reader and his or her reading. In short, facts make an ambiguous story seem relatable. In the case of “To Build A Fire,” a realist short story written by Jack London in the early 20th century, the authentic qualities of man are what connect readers to the story. Few have rambled through the Alaskan wilderness in -75 degree weather, and yet, the story remains prominent in American society. The qualities that make up humans and appeal to them are what draw attention to this story and stories in the news. The story demonstrates man’s vulnerability, his ignorance, and his comprehension of his own fragility and diminutive existence in the domain of nature. Newspapers and television anchors tell stories that relate to everyday people. People look for themselves in the news. People look for themselves in literature. In both areas, the characteristics of human identity give people what they desire. “To Build A Fire” exhibits that fiction, in order to give a semblance of relatability, is often established in fact.

    Man is a vulnerable being. He can sustain himself only in the most perfect conditions. If the temperature shifts, food vanishes, and water excissicates, he will perish. His instincts tell him to survive and flourish, especially in the wilderness. Jack London knew that the fragility of human life weighed heavily in every single man and woman’s mind. His story bases its plot in the human instinct to survive. This fact of life encourages the reader to determine this particular man’s story. News stories about a war zone or a recent threat or shooting interest the public. The interest in human life, its preservation and its loss, attracts people. A story on CNN about the conflict surrounding the Saudi Arabian-Yemen border appeared as an alert on my phone and as a notification in my facebook feed. News about violence and the struggle for survival interests the people, so, more and more news like it is printed or televised. Much like this news cycle, literature preys on the vulnerability of the human spirit. In the story the unnamed man is held at nature’s whim despite his ignorance of its hold on him. The basis of the story is based on the fact that humans are vulnerable, ignorant beings.

The theme of exhibiting common human characteristics continues with the man’s ignorance. No person is capable of expelling all ignorance from themselves. Common imperfections presented in a fictional story work to assimilate the fiction to the life of the reader. With the goal of the writer to be well read and well understood, the inclusion of facts and of universal truths exclusively serves to widen the readership. Such are the goals of newspapers and television programs. By including facts and common truths in the news they publish, they will become more popular. Thus, the fiction we read and the news we hear both follow the same general principle: the more accessible and relatable the story, the more praise it will receive. In the story, the man does not comprehend the gravity of his situation: his fatal error. Ignorance in fiction and the news point to the fact that a story or news article rooted in fact and truth is a successful one.

The third and final truth hidden in “To Build a Fire” is that nature should be taken seriously. As the man learns, a disrespect for nature and her abilities ultimately leads to severe consequences. This fact, much like the two preceding examples, provides insight into why we read stories. People feel connected to a story if they feel they associate with one of the characters. Nature in this story, more so than in the news, represents again the vulnerability of humans and our insignificance in the world. With billions of people on Earth, each individual become less significant. Everyone grapples with this unpleasant truth. Thus, seeing a character in a fiction story affected by the same problems as the reader connects the two together. Facts of life bind together a reader and a fiction story.

The facts in fiction give fiction meaning. The facts provide for accessibility to otherwise improbable and seemingly exclusive stories. Much like the news in circulation today, fiction stories are meant to capture a reader and hold him or her tight the story. Ideally, a story or news article connects with the reader on the personal level. The connection can only be made, however, with the inclusion of facts.