Comparisons in the Representation of the Modern Man in “The Hollow Men” and “To Build a Fire” Anonymous College

Writers and poets customarily portray the traits of the modern man in their contemporary setting akin to the altering literary and social values. In T.S Eliot’s poem, The Hollow Men, the titular men are confined in a purgatory of two counterpart spaces, between nihility and existence or life and death, with an uncertain hope for death's dream kingdom. They are portrayed as aware of their hollowness, their inability to take action to execute their desires, and the various death’s kingdoms with either redemption or judgment. Eliot illustrates the awareness that the perpetual acts of amorality, spiritual paralysis, and alienation by the modern men contradicts with the need for redemption, as they are also aware of their quandary. Whereas in Jack London’s story, To Build a Fire, the nameless protagonist gambles to trail through the forest in extremely cold weather with his pet dog despite obvious warnings. London portrays the modern man as overriding his instinctual judgment with learned behavior in every decision which eventually leads to his own demise. Though slightly distinct in their execution pertaining to the flaws of the modern man, both works portray the perpetual tragic reality of his existence due to these tendencies....