unknown

by Jack London

Short story.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Classics, American, Survival, Audiobook

Paperback

First published January 1, 1899

About the author

John Griffith Chaney, better known as Jack London, was an American novelist, journalist and activist. A pioneer of commercial fiction and American magazines, he was one of the first American authors to become an international celebrity and earn a large fortune from writing. He was also an innovator in the genre that would later become known as science fiction.

London was part of the radical literary group "The Crowd" in San Francisco and a passionate advocate of animal rights, workers’ rights and socialism. London wrote several works dealing with these topics, such as his dystopian novel The Iron Heel, his non-fiction exposé The People of the Abyss, War of the Classes, and Before Adam.

His most famous works include The Call of the Wild and White Fang, both set in Alaska and the Yukon during the Klondike Gold Rush, as well as the short stories "To Build a Fire", "An Odyssey of the North", and "Love of Life". He also wrote about the South Pacific in stories such as "The Pearls of Parlay" and "The Heathen".

Reviews

[Maria Di Biase · Rating 3 out of 5]

Piacevolissimo. Il racconto è molto bello, ricalca i temi tipici della narrativa di London. Favino è bravissimo e il sottofondo musicale scelto è perfetto. Consigliato!

[Carla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Desde que un perro se llama Carmen mi vida no ha sido la misma.

[ali rezaei · Rating 5 out of 5]

it is short story about a man who have been left for dead in north of Canada's Savannah .he went there in sake of gold but get caught by the nature!!his mate left him and a few days later bones of him just shown up. actually if you wanna read some thing about naturalism and realism you need to recourse to London writing. Eden, white silence or even peace of steak may be intact source for young student.
white silence is story of parallelism between life and death.a man who struggle with nature poverty and he is carrying on by his instinct. but another face of nature immerse as a sick wolf.
and its funny despite being along with bears and bunch of coyote he need to get along with a this sick wolf and it appears to me London is joking with concept of death.just imaging a long shot with to element; a goner wolf chasing a mean whi has lost boundaries between reality and his dreams

[Benedict · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Jack London man vs nature short story, similar in theme to 'To Build a Fire'. Three companions, Mason, his wife Ruth, and the Malamute Kid are travelling through the frozen wastes during the Klondike Gold Rush. Gradually worsening situations leading to difficult decisions in their fight to survive the merciless Yukon landscape.

Good story. Short and sweet. And cold.

[Oysterboiwho · Rating 3 out of 5]

Història de 13 pàgines que m'he hagut de llegir per classe. Entenc que l'important és la forma d'escriure i l'atmosfera de l'escena però bastant meh, no passa gaire en tot el relat.

[JoeK · Rating 4 out of 5]

As the story begins, Mason, Ruth and the Malemute kid are on the Yukon Northland trail, the temperature is colder than -50 degrees, and they are trying to reach civilization before the spring. They are running low on food and do not have enough to give the dogs their fill so they are becoming ravenous. Mason tells the Malemute kid that one of the dogs does not have long to live. Mason attempts to mush the weak dogs up a hill, but once at the top one of the dogs falls, Mason is swept off his feet and the sled tumbles back, dragging everything to the bottom. Mason whips the dogs savagely, crippling the dog who was previously hurt and angering the other dogs. Ruth and Malemute kid watch in silence. Later, Mason has just stopped his sled when a massive pine tree comes crashing down on his shoulders.

Malemute kid and Ruth chop away the tree, build a fire and wrap Mason in furs. He has a broken leg, arm and back, and is paralyzed from the waist down. As they set up camp, Mason talks of his home in Tennessee and his previous wife, but mostly he talks of his love for Ruth. He asks Malemute kid to leave him so as to save Ruth and her unborn child. Malemute kid goes out to hunt a moose, which could keep them all alive for weeks, but is unsuccessful. Returning to camp, he finds that the ravenous pack of dogs have gone after their food. Malemute kid with his rifle, and Ruth with an axe, fight off the beasts, but all of their dry salmon is gone.

With only five pounds of flour remaining for the 200 miles of wilderness in front of them, Malemute kid and Ruth have no choice but to continue on their journey without Mason, who has fallen into a coma. Ruth, a native who is not accustomed to showing grief, kisses Mason and blindly takes off on her sled towards civilization. As Malemute kid waits for Mason's death, "the White Silence seemed to sneer, and a great fear came upon him." There is a sharp crack, and Malemute kid races in his sled across the snow with Ruth.

I was surprised to see the Wikipedia summary of this story suggest that Mason died of his own accord rather than being put out of his misery by the Malemute Kid. Are there two versions of the ending floating around out there? I thought that the Kid's deliema of choosing to end Mason's life rather than to leave him to die alone in the woods was the main crux of the story. In fact the author gives us just enough to begin to care about these characters and their predicament before everything gets dropped in the fire. A powerful story about man versus nature.

[Naviru Shorno · Rating 5 out of 5]

«El Silencio Blanco» es un cuento breve de 23 páginas escrito por el renombrado autor Jack London en 1899, ambientado en el desolado paisaje de Yukón. Este relato se presenta como un verdadero ejercicio de realismo extremo, situando a sus tres personajes en una situación límite que desafía las fronteras de la supervivencia.

A pesar de su limitada extensión, London demuestra su maestría al crear una atmósfera desoladora que envuelve al lector de principio a fin. Su habilidad para describir la cruda realidad que enfrentan los personajes es impresionante, lo que permite al lector sentir el frío mordaz y la desesperación que los acecha. La capacidad del autor para transmitir la humanidad en situaciones tan extremas es uno de los puntos más destacados de esta obra.

«El Silencio Blanco» es un cuento que no solo entretiene, sino que también ofrece una profunda reflexión sobre la naturaleza humana y su capacidad de prevalecer incluso en los momentos más oscuros. Jack London presenta un mensaje conmovedor que perdura en la mente del lector mucho después de haber concluido la historia.

Recomiendo encarecidamente esta historia a los amantes de los clásicos y de los cuentos de terror. «El Silencio Blanco» es una obra literaria que cautivará a quienes buscan una narrativa intensa y conmovedora, respaldada por la maestría de uno de los grandes autores de la literatura estadounidense.

[Kevin Dingess · Rating 4 out of 5]

"White Silence" by Jack London is a gripping short story set in the unforgiving wilderness of the Yukon during the Klondike Gold Rush. The narrative follows Mason, his wife Ruth, and their companion Malemute Kid as they traverse the harsh, snowy landscape in search of fortune. The story delves into the psychological and physical challenges posed by the extreme cold and isolation. When Mason becomes incapacitated by a grave injury, the trio's journey takes a dire turn, highlighting themes of survival, human endurance, and the stark, indifferent beauty of nature. London's evocative descriptions and deep understanding of the wilderness bring the stark realities of frontier life into vivid relief.

[Aaliyah · Rating 3 out of 5]

The idea of a white silence is profound in the way it’s portrayed. It would be easy to say it’s a place of existential crisis where man walks with nothing but fear and god but I think the white silence is just a place of true oblivion. I think it’s this because it’s literally reflected in its name “the white silence.” I think it’s a place of nothingness that will drive you insane - that will make you fear. “it is not pleasant to be alone with painful thoughts in the white silence.” This is a poetic book but after all it’s not really a novel so I guess it can mix dreamy concepts like the white silence with realistic concepts like dog fighting and racism

[Jeff Tankersley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Malemute Kid, six sled dogs, and his partners Mason and Ruth are struggling to make it to safety in the cold reaches of the Yukon. Danger, tragedy and responsibility take on new meaning in this remote and desperate place.

This tale is included in the Otto Penzler-edited "the Big Book of Adventure Stories" that I am working my way through.

Verdict: "The White Silence" (1899) is an immersive struggle for meaning and survival in this treacherous landscape that Jack London is so good at illustrating.

Jeff's Rating: 3 / 5 (Good)
movie rating if made into a movie: PG-13

[Nina Maxim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book for the first time when I was a kid. It left mixed feelings and a bit of a perplexation. Years later, having had an awful experience of being stick in the middle of nowhere, somehow I remembered extracts from this book. When I was through it all, I reached out to read it again, and somehow I felt much better and, to my own surprise, recovered very quickly, despite initial PTSD diagnosis.

[Una paloma lectora · Rating 3 out of 5]

Siendo honesta, si bien está historia tiene una muy bien adecuación a la época y el lugar que estan tratando de describir, es justamente por ese motivo que es muy inaccesible. Es muy difícil de entenderlo y te van varias re lecturas para terminar de agarrarle la mano. Este cuento esta escrito en el dialecto de la gente que cruzaba estas zonas heladas y por lo tanto, hasta los diálogos son difíciles de descifrar.

[Felipe CZ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short about Mason, Ruth and the Malemute kid who are on the Yukon trail with below-zero temperatures, trying to reach civilization as they run out of food. I won't be reading this type of books again, since I love nature and animals, and even though it is a great narrative, I don't like reading about animal cruelty.

[Eileen]

cw: racism, misogyny, a sled dog beaten half to death, death of man by crushing, a passage in which the white husband asks his comrade to take on his wife and unborn child as he believes that she couldn't stand to go back to her people after living so well with him. I wouldn't select this story for young kids.

[Candida · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great short story you should read if you get the chance. An interesting story of survival and the importance of a person's character.

[Warren Wong · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short read full of action.

Instantly draws a picture in your head of the travels in the Yukon.

Transports you back in time.

Vivid, real, chilling.

[Rosa Rodriguez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jack London nunca pasará de moda. Nos dejó muchas aventuras, donde los personajes a menudo se enfrentan a una naturaleza salvaje y luchan por la supervivencia.

[Arenisca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una corta, bella y trístisima tragedia romántica en un paraje desolado

[Apocalypse Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's an interesting read but the dated and slang language makes it hard to read.

[Kate Ohman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing beats a Jet2 holiday

[sonataiscool · Rating 3 out of 5]

And men who have shared their bed with death know when the call is sounded.

[Wyatt Trunk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short, sad. In other words, a Jack London story.

[Carielyn Mills · Rating 4 out of 5]

damn, jack london. i can't put you down.

[Orgio Dorgio · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Үнэндээ ам'драл гэдэг хэзээ ч олж болдоггүй тоглоом шүү дээ. Ам'дарна гэдэг өтөл нас чам руу сэмээрхэн гэтэн гэтсээр тулж иртэл шургаж унатлаа зүтгэж, зовж тарчилна гэсэн үг. Гэтэл бид ам'дралд хязгааргүй хайртай үхлийг туйлгүй үзэн яддаг." - Жек Лондон

[Alex Reale · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Nature has many tricks wherewith she convinces man of his finity--the ceaseless flow of the tides, the fury of the storm, the shock of the earthquake, the long roll of heaven's artillery--but the most tremendous, the most stupefying of all, is the passive phase of the White Silence.'

[Bicho · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jack London sí que sabía cómo hacer ciertas cosas. El silencio blanco es un fiel exponente de la maestría que tenía London para hacer sentir la soledad de las regiones más frías y remotas del planeta.

[Laura]

Available online here.

[Jamie Scott · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just depressing

[Hector · Rating 3 out of 5]

Es complicado de seguir la trama, de entender la historia, a pesar de ser buena. Quizá no es mi estilo.

[lorenzo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Va bene sì, è un racconto che ho letto in audiolibro, ma da piccolo amavo Jack London e volevo leggere qualcos'altro di suo. Non è imbrogliare, vero? 😂