Revised Jack London Essay

By Jessica Arthur
In the piece Journey Into A Far Country main character Carter
Weatherbee embodies a struggle, joy and subjects we all face at some
point. This journey is the journey of change. Change is relentless force
that brings all unprepared souls to their knees. This challenge can be
met and the strength of characteristics possessed will carry one
through all they can face. Carter Weatherbee possess desire and
passion to escape all he views negatively, which launched him forth on
a journey much more enlightening than he could have ever presumed.
This is a journey into the vibrant, deep, cold, mysterious beast known
as the human spirit; and, becoming familiar with the gifts that are
brought forth from this creature of intangible and immense
proportions.
When in the depths of the human psyche can seem limitless,
just as nature can seem. For some journeying into their unconscious
mind can be more frightening than making an expedition to a far
country, the mind is a vast landscape full of new discoveries and
hidden spaces. There are so many habits and mannerisms that feel
like a grafted part of us, the thought of losing these ways can seem
like the severing of a limb. Yet, in the existence of yourself
cognitively, you must confront your fears in life and even more so or
you will find that you have already limited your potential immensely.
The variety of thoughts, perceptions, memories and goals, makes the
mind a place that is so rich and full, that perhaps if one mind were
totally unleashed it would surpass the confines of the biosphere.
Nature also gives good examples for our emotions and times of
our lives. Everything we encounter or live through has its season. We
are not meant to stay as one version of ourselves all our lives. This
can make the transitions we face smooth or rough at any given

moment but there is one fact that is certain, every season has an
end. Still, seasons are constant and they do return to life, so we
revisit our own the seasons of our own lives through memory. We
renew relationships and rediscover desires we had long since
forgotten. That does not mean that what we once had or knew, when
it does return, it may return in the same form, this is the rhythm and
presence of change.
Nature is still akin to our spiritual being. The wind is
powerful and intangible until we see and feel the force it
contains in action. Much as our thoughts are not visible
until they are manifest in the action, in the pursuit of our
dreams. Hot fiery passion and drive are like the heat of the
scorching summer. The intensity of our desire to fulfill our
dreams throughout these droughts, make our struggles
undeniable in this season. Then the summer gives way to a
calm and vivid autumn. Autumn is a time of reflection and
of preparation for the harsh winter.
Winter is very cold, harsh and the silence and
seclusion can be hauntingly lonesome at times. Winter is
desolate, cold, and a trying time, just as facing change is,
which is also a lonely process. Change is a process that can
only be done by one individual; that is to say, the individual
cannot get anything more than a certain amount of support
from others, the suffering and discomfort of that situation
is solely theirs. Cater Weatherbee left all that he knew
behind, he was alone physically but not in spirit. Thoughts
and feelings intertwining like the branches of trees can be
confusing at times and conflicting, they will grow to sprout
new life and new ambitions in the springtime, after the cold
hard winter. The world can seem to be vast and boundless
when you focus on a goal. You sometimes must then leave

the comfort and security of your life as you know it and

venture out into the wilderness of the unknown. Then,
everything is at a standstill, seemingly dead.
Nature itself knows that there will be a renewal in
spring, just as during the process of change one can feel
like they are not themselves. The harsh realities of your
surroundings and the boundaries set by others can crush
ones dreams and individuality like a frail newborn colt to
the wolves mercy. Yet, if you can make it through, after
you have established comfort in your new habitation, they
rediscover a more mature version of their former self. As
humans, we have a nature to dream, to seek excitement,
but also to seek acceptance. Winter, like excitement and
adventure, can also be very refreshing. When trying
something for the first time everything is new and crisp,
like winter air, not withstanding that without the proper
protection you can get frost bit and lose your vigor.
Being alone in this journey makes the need to adapt
evermore present. Carter was alone when he decided to
travel and he knew what had to be done. Adaptation in our
lives, like within the animal kingdom, means camouflage or
conformity. Then needs for survival and being true to
oneself come into play; Needs then begin to conflict,
making the struggle to exist in a new environment more
difficult and painfully secluded. Adaptation is also a difficult
process because by human nature, we are indolent and
overly melodramatic. It is a difficult process to change
habits good or bad, but it is even more difficult if it feels
like to change our ways we are being dishonest to
ourselves. Different types of animals travel in packs,
including humans, when we go into unfamiliar territory; we

at first seek to satisfy our need for companionship. This

makes adaptation and continuing on our journeys through
the wilderness to an objective easier or obtainable.
Journeying into a far country literally is difficult; but
what if you are trying to make a new start in life.
Everything may seem new if but, there is one process that
is constant among people. It is change. We are always
moving, maturing, or gaining new experiences. Yet as many
people that move around seeking adventure and
excitement, there are those who do not, for fear of the
unknown and disenchantment for leaving their comfort
zone. It is also difficult to prepare for the many unexpected
trials and tribulations that come along with venturing into
new territory; being mindful of the fact, that new
opportunities come with new risks. Carter Weatherbee
thought he was prepared for that unpredictability.
You cannot assume that if you put yourself in a totally
new environment that you will not have to conform to what
is natural or required for this environment. Finding a
balance is key to adapting because you cannot forget and
completely discard an entire grouping of habits before this
attempt to adjust. There is always room to grow and learn.
Viewing the process of learning new information and
behaviors as selling your soul is incorrect; however, going
against your convictions and moral fibers for the sake of
assimilation is giving up your individuality.
Total assimilation is only easy for those who lack
strong focused desire or have no particular idea of selfperception. Totally assimilated peoples are directed by
popular opinion and the majority rule, where it steers them,
content to follow along as long as they are accepted. The

people that so easily assimilate would not presumably seek

adventure or excitement because they would have a lack of
passion and only have a need to belong to some group or
association. You must have both passion and determination
to co-exist in a new environment.
Passion will drive you through the difficult process of
adapting and with balance and determination, you will be
more equipped. Focusing on your reasons for positioning
yourself in such an irregular situation: including many
situations to which you are not accustom, you will not allow
yourself to assimilate completely. Meditating on your goals
allows for reflection, which sparks self-education, keeping
track of yourself and not losing your identity through this
learning process.
Talking about goals and dream passion and excitement
are desires we all understand to some extent, Carter
Weatherbee understands something about those desires as
well. Living in what was probably the young United States
circa 1849, one may not understood the process of
understanding nor appreciating equal differences. There is
an importance to understanding that outside of our world
and our reality that you differences, are just that. If you do
not view the uniqueness that may encounter as better or
worse, superior or inferior, it will most likely become easier
to understand other traditions and customs. That
understanding will make adjusting go more smoothly.
The desire to understand things around you, rather
than making them become what is familiar to you, will
attract opportunities for companions; on its own, without
effort on your behalf. In turn, it will then be even easier for
you to understand how to adapt better to your new

surroundings. Americans know that our British ancestors

came to this land and acted as brutes and savages not
attempting to understand the inhabitants as equal human
beings but as a hunter studies prey. The settlers changed
everything around them into what they felt was
comfortable and secure, only slightly adapting to survive
this new harsh terrain. Once this was done the circle of
familiarity, which breeds contempt for ones life style and
the very fundamentals that sustain you began.
Becoming comfortable with this can make the years
blend into an indistinct blur, leaving you to wake up with a
lifetimes worth of regrets. Carter Weatherbee was
unexpected of this fate. If you realize that an opportunity
has come along to break this cycle, you then must decide
what is worse, boredom, or risk, which comes with
adventure. Carter Weatherbee must have looked at his
humdrum life and decided that he could not pass up the
opportunity to seek gold, adventure, and new experience
were his gold because that is truly, what he sought. Since
money was part of the life he wanted to break away from,
he may have contempt for this.
It is apparent he was very serious about being
exposed to something new; that is not to say money had no
appeal at all. Yet, he sought the road less traveled, the path
not beaten and left his comfort zone. After all the proof
showing what the love of your life is most evident only
when you are willing to die for it, which Carter was willing
to do for this journey which beckoned to him.
This whole concept is related to a new beginning and
goal in life. The changes we decide to make, the risks we
choose to take and the suffering we at some point must

endure. If we seek a greater purpose in life or else we will

surely feel the sting of regret, and question the choices we
have made. It is also shows how pessimistic we can be by
nature and weak we are under pressure. No one ever
became strong physically by not pushing past his or her
initial physical limits. No one will ever gain strength of
character without persevering through hardships and
pressure. In addition, we must be mentally balanced in
different ways, even our thought process. For if, we
continually think about everything for excessive amounts of
time, thinking will be the only result. If we do not think for
a long enough time and do not evaluate our plans deeply
we will surely fail, therein lies the need for balance.
This is also a piece of literature that teaches the
reader some kind of lesson or leaves then to come to a
conclusion that is enlightening. Theses ideas pertain to life,
the human condition in general, individuality, conformity,
inter-personal relationships, being self assured and
remaining true to oneself under the pressure of change and
growth. No matter what theme the reader's mind is
attracted to, these themes are all interlocking as they give
direction to one another, until there is an emotion felt or
threads are found that are common and adjoined to
everyday life.
Needs are a part of the human condition, that is within
even these short paragraphs, the need for individual
expression and for growth. Discovery is a risk that brings
hardship, which can bring new perspectives and maturity;
change is a constant in this life not to be feared but
embraced. Yet, conformity and not just mild adaptation, is a

present issue among people in the present day especially

the youth.
Expressing one's individuality and thoughts, is a very
popular notion especially among young people because
they have pressure from peer to fit in and pressure
authoritative figures put on them to fit a specific mold.
Every new experience is good because there is always
something to be learned, and the understanding of what
you have learned completes the circle of wisdom within
yourself that is to be shared with others. As long as we as
human beings continue to exist, the basic needs we share
will live on too. Companionship, even among the fiercest
and most dreadful of people has and will always be popular,
whether or not it is consciously recognized. All these
experience shape you and guide you to some conclusion. If
you are determined will receive what you seek. You will go
beyond what is safe, expected, and venturing into the
unknown in search of your gold.