Literary Analysis Essay on A Piece of Steak: Jack London Story of Poverty & Generosity

Introduction

A piece of steak is a short story that is written by Jack London. The story depicts the main character, referred to as Tom King, who is a boxer (Mitchell 225). The author stipulates that Tom was a star who uses to spend money with a lot of generosity on himself with no exception to other people. Jack suggests that the boxer is now stricken with poverty such that the merchants cannot lend him adequate cash for a piece of steak (Mitchell 227). The writing of a piece of steak seizes the traces of humanity in the aspect of social Darwinism. The story focuses on the issue of elderly boxer and the certainty of decline towards ultimate death. Again the story focuses on the aging archetypical story of an experienced and a mature fighter who is struggling to win over an ambitious and powerful contender (Mitchell 228). Thus Tom King is the aging fighter trying to beat a young, powerful and ambitious man called Sandel. The aging boxer is poor that he is not able to provide for the family, while he fights a younger man with stamina (Mitchell 230). The paper seeks to explore the traits, background, and behavior, social and intellectual characters of Tom King.

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The author argues that Tom is living in poverty, and he is poor that he cannot afford to feed the family. For instance, his children went to bed earlier on an empty stomach because there is no food for them (Mitchell 232). His wife also goes to bed while hungry, and instead leaves the little to her fighting husband. The boxer swallows his last bite of bread and gravy while assuming the idea of being hungry still. His poverty is again evidenced when he goes out to smoke but realize that his tobacco is depleted. Tom is a muscular man, but he is slow, and his clothes and face is worn. The boxer has the face of a characteristic prize-fighter (Mitchell 235). He has a frightening appearance even though he is a kind and gentle man when he is not in the ring. The narrator reveals that Tom is a generous boxer because he spent his cash not only on himself but extends his generosity to other people, especially when he was fighting and winning good money (Mitchell 236). His generosity is also revealed by the idea that when he fights, it is for business reasons.

Tom is a loving and caring husband. For instance, when Tom is leaving for a fight, he is getting astonished with the kisses from his wife, and he cannot stop kissing her back, and every time he heads for the match (Mitchell 237). It is important to note that kisses to a wife symbolize love and the kind of happiness someone has for the family. He laughs about the match but stares at his wife and only thinks about the need to provide a living for the wife and children. He has debts borrowed to sustain the family, and he is enthusiastic about the match because if he wins, he will use the money to settle the debts and have some left-overs to provide for his people. Tom is optimistic, even though he has not found enough time to train, he is preparing for a fight with a motive of winning the match (Mitchell 239). Even though Tom is going to face a young and energetic man, he is not trembling, and he is optimistic about winning the game.

The boxer is aggressive and aspiring. He does not have cash and still walks a distance of two miles to the venue. Being hungry does not avert him from walking because that is the only means he can make it to the ring. On his way to the ring, Tom wishes he had learned about trade and joined a stable career (Mitchell 240). Perhaps Tom thinks that it is the trading career that could make him rich and not dwell in abject poverty. It is worth noting that, being a boxer and admiring other career means that Tom is not properly learned and therefore not intellectual (Mitchell 241). During his younger age in fighting, fighting could be easy and making money cheaply, and the possibilities of big cash could be seductive. He is a winner, fearful and regretful, he use to win a lot of matches and get good cash to feed his family, while at the same time he regrets that he uses to fight old people and that is what is inculcating fear in him that he could be defeated by the young star(Mitchell 242).

Conclusion

In conclusion, the story reveals a poor character and anxiety of poverty and its recurring nature. Tom King is not in a position to provide for the family, and he cannot purchase adequate food and, therefore, he is hungry to fight successfully. Tom is a loving, caring, kind and generous man because he does not only spend his money for himself and the family a lone but also to other people, he works hard to provide for the family. The boxer is a winner, fearful, and aggressive. He has won a lot of matches previously and got big cash. Tom is not learned, and he admires being in a stable career because he wants to be rich. He is optimistic and enthusiastic since he is preparing to win a fight with a young man while he is older. It is worth noting that Tom is a family man whose entire life depends on a ring fight, and that is the source of income for the family.

Work Cited

Mitchell, J. Lawrence. "Jack London and boxing." American Literary Realism 36.3 (2004): 225-242.