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The Sea-Wolf 

For other uses, see Sea Wolf.
The Sea-Wolf book cover, 1st Edition
The Sea-Wolf book cover, 1st Edition

The Sea-Wolf is a novel written in 1904 by American author Jack London. An immediate bestseller, the first printing of forty thousand copies was sold out before publication. Of it, Ambrose Bierce wrote "The great thing—and it is among the greatest of things—is that tremendous creation, Wolf Larsen... the hewing out and setting up of such a figure is enough for a man to do in one lifetime."

Contents

Plot

Like The Call of the Wild, The Sea Wolf tells the story of a soft, domesticated lad, an intellectual named Humphrey van Weyden, forced to become tough and self-reliant by exposure to cruelty and brutality. Onboard a San Francisco ferry, which collides with a ship in the fog and sinks, he is picked up ("rescued" is not the right word) by Wolf Larsen. Larsen is the captain of the seal-hunting schooner Ghost. Brutal and cynical, yet also highly intelligent and intellectual (though highly biased in his opinions as he was self-taught), he rules over his ship and terrorizes the crew with the aid of his exceptionally great physical strength. Van Weyden adequately describes him as an individualist, a hedonist, and a materialist. As Larsen does not believe in the immortality of the soul, he finds no meaning in his life and has come to despise all human life and deny its value. Being interested in someone capable of intellectual disputes, he somewhat takes care of "Hump" while forcing him to become a cabin boy, do menial work, and learn to fight to protect himself from a brutal crew. Later, another castaway is picked up, Maud Brewster, a famous woman poet, with whom Hump soon falls in love.

Larsen

Larsen is a brutal but intelligent man, combining characteristics of both gentleman and brute. His malevolent nature seems to give him elevated strength and endurance. He has recurring attacks of a malady that leaves him temporarily unable to move or speak, but his mind remains alert, and he seems stronger and more malevolent after each attack. During a violent storm he has his strongest attack yet. Hump seizes the opportunity to take Maude off the Ghost onto a remote island, where they will have to provide for themselves in an elemental way, beyond the help of civilization. They leave Larsen in his bunk to an uncertain fate, alone and unloved, but not forgotten. Will he die, or will his powerful nature give him the strength to recover, and roam the sea once more like an evil spirit?

Background

The name "Wolf Larsen" was that of a real sailor London had known, Captain Alex MacLean. London, who was called "Wolf" by his close friends, also used a picture of a wolf on his bookplate, and named his mansion "Wolf House." Given that Hump's experiences in the novel bear some resemblance to experiences London had, or heard told about, when he sailed on the Sophia Sutherland, the autodidact sailor Wolf Larsen has been compared to the autodidact sailor Jack London.

London's intention in writing the The Sea-Wolf was "an attack on Nietzsche's super-man philosophy." The novel also contains references to Herbert Spencer, Omar Khayyám, Shakespeare, and John Milton.

Captain Alex MacLean was the inspiration for the title character, Wolf Larsen, in London’s bestselling novel, The Sea-Wolf. Originally from Cape Breton [Nova Scotia province, Canada], MacLean sailed to the Pacific side of North America when he was just twenty-one and worked there for thirty-five years as a sailor and sealer. His achievements and escapades while in the Victoria [British Columbia province, Canada] fleet in the 1880s laid the foundation for his status as a folk hero.

Although MacLean is a colourful character both in his own right and as mythologized by London, his biography reveals more than the construction of a legend. Biographer Don MacGillivray opens a window onto the complex world of pelagic sealing in the North Pacific. The sealing dispute brought the United States and Britain to the brink of war, with Canadian sealing interests frequently enmeshed in espionage, scientific debate, diplomatic negotiations, and vexing questions of maritime and environmental law. This vivid account brings history into focus.

MacLean’s story will appeal to maritime historians, historians of the Pacific Northwest, and readers interested in the history of sealing, international relations, and environmental politics. It will also appeal to readers interested in this fascinating character, both in his own right and as mythologized by Jack London.

Film adaptations

Jack London's novel has been adapted for motion pictures many times:

References

  1. ^ Shooting on The Sea Wolf to start in Halifax

External links
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