—“The dog had learned fire, and it wanted fire, or else to burrow under the snow and cuddle its warmth away from the air.”

The dog depends on instinct, knowing that fire means survival and warmth. Unlike the man, who is overconfident and makes mistakes, the dog indicates a natural wisdom, which is also a kind of symbolism in the story. This contrast highlights instinct can be more reliable than human reasoning in extreme conditions, and the dog become a mirror that shows the man’s weakness against nature.

From the last sentence of the whole story, “A little longer it delayed, howling under the stars that leaped and danced and shone brightly in the cold sky. Then it turned and trotted up the trail in the direction of the camp it knew, where were the other food-providers and fire-providers.” The dog "thought" the man was just "his" helper and provider, which showed its clever and not very royal. Also the author choose to use it as the last sentence is also significance, it can give readers the feeling of uncovering the facts and the truth.

P4 “He smiled agreeably to himself as he thought of those biscuits, each cut open and sopped in bacon grease, and each enclosing a generous slice of fried bacon.”

it shows his casual and confident, almost naive attitude.This man just care about the tasty food toward the extreme cold, contrasting with the danger.

P14 “That man from Sulphur Creek had spoken the truth when telling how cold it sometimes got in the country. And he had laughed at him at the time!”

It directly shows the confidence of this man.The man ignore all potential dangers of the nature and he paid no attention at all to the advice of the experienced person.

Dog — Calm and patient

The dog knows that he need to find a person who can fire for warmth, we can know this dog is very experienced and very composed in the extreme weather. Additionally, while the man struggled to build fires, the dog sat and watched quietly, its eyes showing eagerness for fire but no restlessness. It waited patiently even as the man failed repeatedly, and only left once it confirmed the man was dead.

Evidence: “The trouble with him was that he was without imagination… Fifty degrees below zero was to him just precisely fifty degrees below zero.”

This detail shows that the man is very practical. The coldness didn’t mean anything to him, he cannot see underneath the surface, so he underestimates the power of the environment. The man is an overly confident person, someone who is careless and stubborn. He believes he can handle anything if he just keeps going, but this attitude makes him blind to the true danger around him.

Analysis of the dog:


Evidence: “The animal was depressed by the tremendous cold. It knew that it was no time for travelling. Its instinct told it a truer tale than was told to the man by the man's judgment.”


This evidence shows the dog’s sharp instincts. Unlike the man, the dog does not need to calculate numbers or think logically. Its natural sense warns it that the cold is threatening his life and that traveling is not safe. The dog wants to stop, want to wait by the fire for warmth. This contrast with the man which highlights how instinct can sometimes be wiser than human‘s logic. The dog’s behavior shows that it is careful and clever.

“The result was that a crystal beard of the color and solidity of amber was increasing its length on his chin. If he fell down it would shatter itself, like glass, into brittle fragments. But he

did not mind the appendage.” and the “Empty as the man's mind was of thoughts, he was keenly observant, and he noticed the changes in the creek, the curves and bends and timber-jams, and always he sharply noted where he placed

his feet. ”

The two quotes from the original passage are reflecting the man’s arrogance and rationality to the readers. He knew that the appendage on his beard can be very dangerous if he fell down to the ground but he didn’t care about that. He just continued to split the tobacco out of his mouth. Making the heavy frost covering his beard. This shows his arrogance to potential dangers. He not only knew the dangers but also knew the risks. However, he still decided to keep chewing his tobacco. Just like why he decided to walk on the creek although it’s very dangerous.

Also, his rationality was represented by the his actions. He first observed the places where may had holes and tried to avoid them. He noticed the dangers and knew to avoid them. Showing his rationality in the cruel nature.

The Dog:

“The dog did not know anything about thermometers. Possibly in its brain there was no sharp consciousness of a condition of very cold such as was in the man's

brain. But the brute had its instinct.”

The quote from the passage shows the dog’s loyalty to instinct and primitive thoughts. The dog knew nothing about the science but knew the exact temperature. Much precise than the Man’s prediction. It only has the instinct of animal to avoid the cold and to survive. Different with the man, it relied on its nature rather than rational thinking.

1. The man

The quotation indicates that the mam didn’t take account of external factors like blizzard, ice crackle and something might retard him, thereby causing the subsequent event. It shows that the man is lacking of foresight and imagination. In addition, it also validates that the man only observe the outline of the event rather than its significance.

2. The dog

“The dog did not know anything about thermometers. Possibly in its brain there was no sharp consciousness of a condition of very cold such as was in the man's brain. But the brute had its instinct. It experienced a vague but menacing apprehension that subdued it and made it slink along at the man's heels, and that made it question eagerly every unwonted movement of the man as if expecting him to go into camp or to seek shelter somewhere and build a fire.”

According to the quotation, the dog detects numerous emergencies through its instinct, which reflects the foolishness of the man and emphasizes the importance of natural instinct. It shows a kind of natural wisdom to withstand the extreme disaster.

“Once again, however, he had a close call; and once, suspecting danger, he compelled the dog to go on in front. The dog did not want to go. It hung back until the man shoved it forward,   and then it went quickly across the white, unbroken surface.” This quotation indicates the man’ s attitude to the dog. The way he treats the dog shows his cruelty and ruthlessness.

“ But the brute had its instinct. It experienced a vague but menacing apprehension that subdued it and made its link along at the man's heels, and that made it question eagerly every unwonted movement of the man as if expecting him to go into camp or to seek shelter somewhere and build a fire. The dog had learned fire, and it wanted fire, or else to burrow under the snow and cuddle its warmth away from the air.” This sentence shows the dog rely on its instinct.

"The dog did not want to go. It hung back until the man shoved it forward, and then it went quickly across the white, unbroken surface. The ice held, and the man laughed aloud. After all, he was making progress; and the dog, docile, with tail between its legs, ambled along at his heels."

It has an instinct for self - preservation, unlike the man who relies on flawed human reasoning. For example, the dog senses the extreme cold and wants to seek warmth, while the man underestimates the cold.

characterization

"He was a newcomer in the land, a chechaquo, and this was his first winter. The trouble with him was that he was without imagination."

 When he starts a fire under the snow - covered spruce tree and snow falls on it, extinguishing the fire, he doesn't fully grasp the danger. This detail characterizes him as someone who is ill - prepared and overly sure of his own abilities in a harsh environment.

conflict

"At a place where there were no signs, where the soft, unbroken snow seemed to advertise solidity beneath, the man broke through. It was not deep. He wet himself halfway to the knees before he floundered out to the firm crust."

The man vs. nature. The extreme cold (around seventy - five degrees below zero) is a threat. He struggles to keep warm, to find safe paths, and to start fires.

“He was without imagination. He was quick and alert in the things of life, but only in the things, and not in the significances.” The evidence shows the man’s lack of understanding to the things that he is facing. Although he is practical, he cannot see consequence of the objective facts. He is unable to predict the danger of the cold weather because he cannot imagine the consequences. His logical consideration such as thinking he could travel long distances in the freezing weather are flawed because they ignore the powerful of nature. This contrast with the dog highlights how human reasoning. The man’s behavior shows that he is overconfident, which ultimately leads to his downfall.

Dog

“The dog had learned about fire, and it wanted fire. Otherwise, it would dig itself into the snow and find shelter from the cold air.“ This evidence shows the dog’s adaptability and survival wisdom. Unlike the man, the dog do not want to struggle against nature but always changing its behavior to survive. It knows that fire means warmth to itself, but if fire is unable to build up, it can still could try other methods. This highlights the dog’s strong survival instincts. In contrast, the man tries on traveling forward and ignores other safer choices, which reveals his overconfidence. The dog’s behavior shows that it is flexiable and more in sitiable with the natural than the man.

Fire symbolizes fragile human survival and reason against nature’s power:

When the man builds a roaring fire, it "outwits" the cold—letting him thaw, eat, and survive, representing humanity’s ability to use reason .

When a snow avalanche extinguishes the fire, the man feels "his own sentence of death"—revealing that human control over survival is fleeting, and nature can destroy it in an instant .

Characterization: The Man’s Arrogance and Lack of Imagination

He sees 50 below zero only as "cold and uncomfortable," never reflecting on human frailty or the deeper danger—showing his lack of imagination .

He mocks the old-timer’s warning (calling him "womanish") and insists "any man could travel alone," revealing arrogance that blinds him to his vulnerability .

1. Express the possible theme of that story ( remember: it should be a claim)

2. One literature technique the author has used in that story (one technique across the text)

3. One example of how the author used that technique

The story asserts that disregarding nature’s power and acting with overconfidence in harsh environments leads to ruin, underscoring the necessity of humility and respect for the natural world.

2. Literature Technique

Imagery

3. Example

The author uses vivid imagery of the “frozen moisture making the hair of his face into ice needles” and the “dead, cold eyes of the Yukon” to depict the brutal, unforgiving nature of the environment, emphasizing how the harsh landscape overwhelms the protagonist’s arrogance and leads to his downfall.

The author use literature technique symbolism.

Fire symbolizes human's hope to survive against nature. When the fire fails, it shows nature is too strong for humans. The dog symbolizes respecting nature's rules. It knows the cold is dangerous, unlike the man who is overconfident.

The author employs naturalism, portraying the man as a victim of deterministic forces beyond his control. Vivid, sensory imagery immerses the reader in the extreme environment, making the cold a tangible antagonist. The dog acts as a foil, and its primal instincts contrasting with the man's flawed rationality. The key events like the snow extinguishing his fire utilize foreshadowing to build inevitable tension. Ultimately, the story's power lies in its detached, objective tone, which mirrors nature's own lack of malice, simply presenting the consequences of human error against an unforgiving universe.

The dog. In the paragraph, the dog represent the right way to survive in winter. The dog has been always sensative to environment, which included cold temperature and reliance on camp fire. But the man had less feeling of the cold temperature until he die, evem forgot to set campfire. Which the dog represent the survival possibility of man.

2.Characterization

The overconfidence of the man and his action reflect the man was a careless man, he always recognize the dangerous until he encountered. He for got to set camp fire and ignores the old man's warning. Thus finally cause his death.

3.Conflict

The conflict between the man and natre significantly shown in the story. The man overc onfident and not pay attention to the weather finally cause his death. He was still being careless under the cold weather, which the nature finally punish him that freezed him and extinguish his camp fire finally kill himself.