American Realism in Literature (Free Essay Sample)

The stories The Open Boat, The Narrative of the Life of Fredrick Douglass, and To Build a Fire all include the same characteristic. Every story represents American Realism. These three stories contain the characteristic Pragmatism. American Realism emphasizes emotion, imagination, and the individual. Pragmatism is a way of dealing with problems or situations that focuses on approaches and solutions. These stories address problems logically and practically.

The Open Boat uses words only to problem solve. Three men survive and one man dies. The struggle these men had to face against the ocean, required them to be quick and logical to survive. The man in the story quotes “What's that idiot with the coat mean? What's he signaling, anyhow?”(Crane, 12). This statement was showing communication and how the men have to understand what way the signal is indicated. The signal was towards the north because there was a life-saving station that way. The men were second-guessing themselves and assumed that the man signaling toward them was crazy. The men needed to problem solve, they either listen to the signal or drown in the ocean and face death. 

The Narrative of the Life of Fredrick Douglass story is about Fredrick Douglass who has a goal to abolish slavery. He managed to escape slavery after two failed attempts. Douglass’s dream now was to abolish slavery and use his education to his advantage, this is showing pragmatism. The underground railroad was recognized and that was the primary way for slaves to escape. Douglass despised the fact that this secret came out affecting the slaves who were pushing to become free. The story quotes “ I, however, can see very little good resulting from such a course, either to themselves or the slaves escaping; while, upon the other hand, I see and feel assured that those open declarations are a positive evil to the slaves remaining, who are seeking to escape.”(Douglass, 2). Douglass states that the underground railroad should be called the upper ground railroad. The abolitionists needed to come up with another way to help fugitive slaves escape. Douglass does not approve of the underground railroad anymore because many people know of it. 

The conflict in To Build a Fire is man versus nature. The man has to battle harsh conditions of the Yukon in order to survive. He had a dog as a companion by his side. The man was considering killing a dog because he was running out of solutions. The story quotes “With his helpless hands he could neither draw nor hold his sheath-knife nor throttle the animal.”(London, 10). The man lacked outdoorsman skills and never prepared for freezing conditions. He became a victim of harsh low temperatures. By killing the dog he knew the only way to survive was to cut open the dog and crawl inside the corpse. The man chose to die over killing his companion. 

In conclusion, all these stories use pragmatism in a powerful way to be displayed. Pragmatism is the way of dealing with problems. Each story dealt with their own issues and held multiple choices to create a solution. Someone who is pragmatic is practical and focuses on a goal.