An Analysis of Three Major Characters in the Sea Wolf from Nietzschean Superman Philosophy View

Abstract:Jack London is a famous American writer， who is influenced by Nietzsche's superman philosophy most. The Sea Wolf attests this. Nietzsche claims his concept of superman as: \"The superman casts off all establish values and because he is now free of all restrains， rules， and codes of behavior imposed by civilization， he creates his own values. He knows life as it is given to him is without meaning---but he lives it laughingly， instinctively， full， dangerously\". Superman has the traits such as the power to overcome weakness， his own view of the world is different from the conventional， advantages in both mental and physical etc. The superman in Jack London's works caused severe arguments. While the author agrees with that Wolf Larsen is a model case， other two major characters change from the common to \"superman\" as the story develops.

Key words: Jack London， the Sea Wolf， Nietzsche， superman， Wolf Larsen， Van Weyden，

Maud Brewster

Jack London is a prolific American novelist and short story writer， his work--- the Sea Wolf， published in 1904， is one of the most significant sea stories. It has been popular worldwide for a century even without losing its artistic charm and social value today.

Jack London is impelled to form his worldview by various theories， which include those of Friedrich Nietzsche， Nietzsche’s theories influence him most， especially superman philosophy. Friedrich Nietzsche is a well-known German philosopher and critic of culture. The idea of the superman in Nietzsche’s works is a crucial element as he uses it as a foundation from which to attempt to challenge the ingrained values of society.

The superman in Jack London’s works cause severe argument， which result from the complex and contradiction in them and him. The famous biographer Irving Stone， in his chapter Sailor on Horseback， the Biography of Jack London， says “Nietzsche had a great emotional effect on Jack London…h(huán)e found the theory of superman in Nietzsche’s works…Jack felt that superman philosophy was to his taste because he thought he was a superman who could conquer any barriers”. However， “he was an individualist and socialist for his whole life”. The famous writer Upton Sinclair， his contemporary friend， in his article to commemorate Jack London， said “the struggle between individualism and socialism has never ceased in his mind”.

As far as I am concerned， for the three major characters， Wolf Larsen， Humphrey Van Weyden and Maud Brewster， the former is a typical Nietzsche-superman while the latter two grow to be as the story goes.

Nietzsche believes that superman is perfect in both mind and body and unmatched in strength and intelligence. He is not interfered by religious or social mores. Wolf Larsen is depicted as a powerful， bloodthirsty， rebellious barbarian. “Wolf Larsen commanded him to leave， but the boy refused to move. Then came an unexpected show of Wolf Larsen’s strength. In two seconds， it was finished. He had jumped six feet across the deck and hit the boy in the stomach.” Larsen is far form illiteracy. He learns all for himself---sailing， mathematics， science， and literature. Nietzsche urges every living individual to struggle， fight and exert the creative energy to the utmost though life itself is meaningless. Larsen has the same doctrine “Life? It has no value. Of cheap things， it is the cheapest…life eats life until the strongest and most piggish remain.” He himself always depredates others without guilty.

Van Weyden is anther central character besides Larsen， for his growth constitutes the main plot. At first， he is an effete wealthy student， who has never worked with his hands and whose muscles are small and soft， like those of a woman. Afterwards， he is trapped on the seal-hunting ship and becomes a cabin boy. The terrible living conditions and brutal competitions in the Ghost teach him that “force， nothing but force was the rule on this ship” It takes him some time to adapt himself to the environment. As soon as he aboard Ghost， his view of life and world is greatly influenced by the surroundings. Though not all the conceptions are changed， a new perspective is formed， which is free from the rules of civilization. His advice to Maud is the best proof. Getting rid of the weakness equals getting stronger. In addition， the will to survive plays an important role. In a word， Larsen’s brutal education turns Weyden into a Superman.

As the only female character， Maud Brewster， a poetess changes from a highly civilized， well-regarded writer to a strong-willed woman. During the “man play”， which the cook’s one foot is bit by a shark， she is so frightened that “her face was white; her eyes wide with shock”. Then “she turned away and almost fainted”. You must begin again”， she followed them. As Larsen’s sexual intentions become increasingly obvious， Maud is “terrified” but not “hysterical”. When the Ghost is attacked by Death Larsen， she refuses to go below deck， but smiles and says “we may be weak land creatures without legs， but we can show Captain Larsen that we are at least as brave as he”. At this time， she is totally adjust to the wild life and becomes strong enough to fight against it.

Van Weyden and Maud also are very brave as they face the death on the open ocean. They succeed in learning to steer together. They even settle on an isolated for some time. This time they seem to be primitive people， rather than the civilized ones. They try to kill the seals to get skins and make roof， ignoring the cruelty. Great efforts are made to do this since they don’t know the way. Their will is strong enough to face the threats around. According to Nietzsche， superman never casts off his tragic destiny. He would rather rise up to resist it than elude it. In the action of resistance can he taste the bliss of life and perceives the values of life. After getting seals skins， they get so thrilled “as we returned to our little house， she said， ‘it is exactly like coming home’ . The world of books is like a dream. I surely have hunted and fought all the days of my life.” I consider this as their milestone to superman， for they not only adjust to but also enjoy the current situation.

Conclusion:

Jack London is greatly influenced by Nietzsche’s superman philosophy. A case in point is the Sea Wolf. The three major characters---Wolf Larsen， Van Weyden， and Miss Maud all have the traits of superman. Larsen was molded into a typical one， who created a perilous environment on the schooner Ghost. The latter two grew in this hard environment from a highly civilized people to “superman”.

Book version: London， Jack·The Sea Wolf·中國書籍出版社·2005

Work cited:

[1]the Sea Wolf

[2]Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche， the Birth of Tragedy. Trans Walter Kaufmann

[3]Rod William Horton， Backgrounds of American Literary Thought

[4]Nietzschean Psychology in London’s the Sea Wolf

[5]Sailor on Horseback， the Biography of Jack London

[6]談杰克倫敦創(chuàng)作中超人的返祖現(xiàn)象

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