Product Description

The semiautobiographical Martin Eden is the most vital and original character Jack London ever created. Set in San Francisco, this is the story of Martin Eden, an impoverished seaman who pursues, obsessively and aggressively, dreams of education and literary fame. London, dissatisfied with the rewards of his own success, intended Martin Eden as an attack on individualism and a criticism of ambition; however, much of its status as a classic has been conferred by admirers of its ambitious protagonist. Andrew Sinclair's wide-ranging introduction discusses the conflict between London's support of socialism and his powerful self-will. Sinclair also explores the parallels and divergences between the life of Martin Eden and that of his creator, focusing on London's mental depressions and how they affected his depiction of Eden.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #142706 in Books
• Published on: 1994-08-25
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 480 pages

About the Author
Jack London (1876–1916) was born John Chaney in Pennsylvania, USA. In 1896 he was caught up in the gold rush to the Klondike river in north-west Canada, which became the inspiration for <I>The Call of the Wild (</I>1903) and <I>White Fang</I> (1906). Jack London became one of the most widely read writers in the world.

Customer Reviews

An oft-misread American modern classic
Having read the book myself, I disagree with those who regard it an inspiring tale of personal triumph. To be sure, the book dramatizes the gut-wrenching, heart-wringing struggle of the protagonist, Martin Eden, to reinvent himself, through self-study, into a versatile writer of repute with a view to making himself worthy not only of his fiancée, Ruth Morse, but also of the bourgeois society to which she belongs and in which he seeks to gain membership despite his humble origins. But the book, as anyone who has read it conscientiously knows, ends on a tragic note: Martin Eden's suicide at the height of his success can't simply be discounted. Shouldn't this ending then provoke one into asking whether or not the book is truly the inspirational narrative that it is popularly regarded to be?

I believe it should.

In my view, the book is a cautionary tale of transcendence gone awry. How so? Martin Eden's tenacity of purpose is predicated on his a priori conviction that his fiancée and the bourgeoisie can value his intrinsic worth as an individual of potential. But alas! Much to his profound disillusionment, he discovers later on that his fiancée and the bourgeoisie have no appreciation at all (and can never have any) for what he is and what he's willing himself to be. Only when Fame and Fortune have already smiled on him are they prepared to regard him well - and only superficially so at that. In other words, Martin Eden realizes he is wrong in believing they can value him on his own terms, not on theirs; only his extrinsic worth as an individual of attainment matters to them, and like it or not, that's all he can ever expect of them.

That the force of realization is strong enough to dissipate his passion for living is hardly surprising. He has inadvertently foredoomed himself by obsessively seeking genuine affirmation from the people of the `wrong' sort. It can't be otherwise especially in view of his rigid sense of self-consistency, which prevents him from accepting the way things are and amending himself accordingly. Whether or not his suicide then is an act of lunacy, cowardice, or plain weakness, one thing is certain: it is arguably an act of repudiation like Kate Chopin's tragic heroine Edna Pontellier's in the Awakening. Their suicides, which coincidentally involved entombing themselves in watery graves, could be said to constitute the ultimate statement of defiance against their societies that have given them much sorrow.

London's life in fiction
Most astute readers recognise the name Jack London and think:snow, howling hounds and macho adventure. Alongside his "boys-own-adventure" style novels London can be creditted with writing a few classic works and this people is one of them! In many respects Martin Eden is a mirror of London's own life: a rough seafarer educates himself, relentlessly pursues a literary career, succeeds becomes wealthy, rejects the falsity of his new life and seeks a way out. The novel should be read by anyone hoping to pursue a writing career, we see Eden crushed by rejection, with neither his work nor love finding an audience. what holds him back : lack of talent or his low class origins? We witness a writer's stuggle with himself as he attempts to fathom the nature of his failure and more importantly of his success. Martin Eden is not a pretty book, Martin Eden is not a pretty character but both are worth welcoming into your house. Lust, failure, rejection, love and fury. Its all here in black and white: buy it , read it, learn from it and most of all dream it! Along gritty read well worth the journey.