Биография Джека Лондона Мероприятия Видеоуроки Кабинет Экзамены, ЕГЭ, ОГЭ Разное Факультативы Классные часы

LONDON, Jack (1876-1916).

The novelist and short-story writer Jack London was, in his lifetime,

one of the most popular authors in the world. After World War I his fame

was eclipsed in the United States by a new generation of writers, but he

remained popular in many other countries, especially in the Soviet

Union, for his romantic tales of adventure mixed with elemental

struggles for survival.

John Griffith London was born in San Francisco on Jan. 12, 1876. His

family was poor, and he was forced to go to work early in life to

support himself. At 17 he sailed to Japan and Siberia on a seal-hunting

voyage. He was largely self-taught, reading voluminously in libraries

and spending a year at the University of California. In the late 1890s

he joined the gold rush to the Klondike. This experience gave him

material for his first book, 'The Son of Wolf', published in 1900, and

for 'Call of the Wild' (1903), one of his most popular stories.

In his writing career of 17 years, London produced 50 books and many

short stories. He wrote mostly for money, to meet ever-increasing

expenses. His fame as a writer gave him a ready audience as a spokesman

for a peculiar and inconsistent blend of socialism and racial

superiority.

London's works, all hastily written, are of uneven quality. The best

books are the Klondike tales, which also include 'White Fang' (1906) and

'Burning Daylight' (1910). His most enduring novel is probably the

autobiographical 'Martin Eden' (1909), but the exciting 'Sea Wolf'

(1904) continues to have great appeal for young readers.

In 1910 London settled near Glen Ellen, Calif., where he intended to

build his dream home, "Wolf House." After the house burned down before

completion in 1913, he was a broken and sick man. His death on Nov. 22,

1916, from an overdose of drugs, was probably a suicide.