Jack London (biography)
1876-1916
Jack London, the famous American writer, was born in San Francisco. The family was poor and Jack began to work when he was nine years old. He got up at three in the morning and carried newspaper to people's house. After that the boy went to school. When school was over, he carried the evening newspapers round the town. On Saturdays and Sundays he worked at a hotel. The boy liked to read and spent all his free time with books.
Jack London left school at thirteen. After that he worked for ten and more hours every day, but he soon lost his work. Many people in San Francisco had no work at that time, so they decided to march to Washington and ask for work and bread. Jack marched to Washington, too. He didn't get any work there, but was arrested with ohter workers.
At that time London met a man who spoke to him about socialism and about Karl Marx. When London came back to San Francisco, he began to read books on socialism. For a year London wasba student at a univercity. But he soon left it. He had no money and couldn't pay to the univercity. He found work at a factory and in the evening wrote poems and stories. But nobody wanted to publish his stories.
Gold was found in Alaska at tat time, so London went there. He lived in Alaska for a year, but he didn't find any gold. He met heroes for stories there – strong men. Back in San Francisco, Jack worked in different places and at night wrote his stories about the North. In 1898 some of them were published and people liked them very much.. In 1902 Jack London visited the capital of England and wrote a novel about the poor people of London.
Jack London liked strong-willed people. His herous struggle with severe nature and tricks of fortune. He liked winners and almost all his characters were the ones.
He wrote short-story collections about the North: «The Son of the Wolf», «The Children of the Frost», «Love of Life and Other
Among his other famous works are "The Iron Heel", "The Call of the Wild", "The Sea Wolf", "White Fang".
One of the novels was Martin Eden, in which the writer describes his life.
Martin Eden
Part 1
1
Martin Eden, a strong man and talented worker, belongs to a working-class family. He meets Ruth Morse, a girl from a rich bourgeois family, and falls in love with her. He decides to become her equal in knowledge and culture. He must make a career for himself and become famous. He begins to read and study and Ruth helps him.
2
A week of heavy reading had passed since the evening he first met Ruth Morse, and still he didn't dare to go and see her. He was afraid of making mistakes in speech and manners.
3
Martin tried to read books that required years of preparatory work. One day he read a book on philosophy, and the next day a book on art. He read poetry, he read books by Karl Marx. He didn't understand what he was reading but he wanted to know. He had become interested in economy, industry and politics. He sat up in bed and tried to read, but the dictionary was in front of him more often than the book. He looked up so many new words that when he saw them again, he had forgotten their meaning and had to look them up again. He decided to write the words down in a note-book, and filled page after page with them. And still he could not understand what he was reading.
Poetry was not difficult. He loved poetry and beauty, and there he found beauty, as he found it in music.
4
At last Martin Eden had enough courage to go and see Ruth. She met him at the door herself and took him into the living-room. They talked first of the books he had borrowed from her, then poets. He told her of his plans to educate
5
"You should go back and finish grammar school, and then go through the high school and university." Ruth said.
"But that takes money." he said.
"Oh!" she cried. "I had not thought of that. But then you have relatives, somebody who could help you?"
He shook his head.
6
"My father and mother are dead. I have two sisters and some brothers, - I am the younger, -but they never helped anybody. The oldest died in India. Two are in South Africa now, and another one is on fishing boat at sea. One is travelling wish a circus. And I think I am just like them. I have taken care of myself since I was eleven - that s when my mother died. I think I must study by myself, and what to know is where to
7
"I should say the first thing of all would be to get grammar. Your grammar is not particularly good."
He got red. "I know I talk a lot of slang. I know words, picked them up from books, but I cannot say them correctly, so i don't use them."
"It is not what you say, so much as how you say it. You don't mind my saying that, do you? I don't want to hurt you.
"No,no," he cried. "Tell me everything I must know, and I had better hear it from you that from anybody else."
"Well, then, you say 'You was'; it must be ' You were'. You say ' I seen' for ' I saw'.
"That is clear," said Martin. "I never thought of it before."
"You will find it all in the grammar," she said and went to the bookcase. She took one of the books from the shelf and gave it to Martin.
Part 2
1
A few months after Martin Eden started to educate himself, he had to go to sea again as all his money was spent. He went as a sailor on a ship that was going to the South Sea.
2
The captain of the ship had a complete Shakespeare,which he never read. Martin had washed his clothes for him and in return he was allowed to read the books. For a time all the world took the from of Shakespearean tragedy or comedy;even Martin`s thoughts were expressed in the language of Shakespeare. This trained his ear and gave him a feeling for good English.
3
The eight month were spent well; he iearnet to understand Shakespeare and speak correctly, and what was most important, he learned muth abaut himself. Now he knew that he could more than he had done. He wanted to show Ruth the beauty of the South Sea and decided to do it in his letters.
4
And then the great idea came to him. He would describe the beauty of the world not only for Ruth but for other people as well.He could do it. He would be one of the eyes through which the world saw,one of the ears through which the world heard,one of the hearts through which it felt.He would be a writer.He would write-everything-poerty and prose,novels and descriptions,and plays like Shakespeare. There was career and the way to win Ruth.
5
For the 1st time he saw the aim of his life, and saw it in the middle of the great sea. Martin decided to begin writing when he comes back. He would describe the voyage to the Sought Sea and sell it to somew San Francisco newspaper. He would go on studying, and then, after some time, when he had learned and prepared himself, he would write great things.
6
When Martin Eden returned to San Fransisco, he began to write. He sent his works to newspapers and magazines, but the editors sent his manuscripts back. Martin continued to write and study at the same time.
7
Martin lived in a small room where he slept, studied, wrote and cooked his meals. Before the window there was the kitchen table that served as desk and library. The bed occupied two-thirds of the room. Martin slept 5 hours; only a man in very good health could work for nineteen hours a day. He never lost a moment. On the looking glass were lists of words: when he was shaving or combing his hair, he learned these words. Some lists were on the wall over the kitchen table, and he studied them while he was cooking or washing the dishes. New lists were always put there in place of the old ones.