Zita Cserv¿k

Jack London's Naturalism: Martin Eden and the White Silence Zita Cserv¿k

Jack London lived in a period of rapid industrial expansion and the rise of corporations, banks, and department stores. Born in poverty, he saw something else, too: filthy slums, exhausted labourers, and struggling families. Like others, he could have been a victim? Instead, he became a successful writer. His readings directed his way of thinking and writing towards realism and naturalism. This book deals with the examination of the naturalistic elements in two of London?s works: Martin Eden (1909) and 'The White Silence' (1899). Martin Eden is the story of a young working class man who becomes a writer, hoping to win a high society girl's heart and to be a part of the bourgeoisie. The trio of 'The White Silence' have to cope with the cruel laws of nature in order to survive in the remote, vast land of the Yukon. The two different genres and landscapes have been selected deliberately in order to prove London's versatility and his accuracy in documentating the world around him.