Three Themes in "How To Build A Fire" A theme can be defined as a central idea in a piece of writing or other work of art. In "How To Build A Fire", the man, an inexperienced adventurer , goes on a journey, with his dog, through the unpredictable and almost unbearable Alaskan temperatures. He plans to meet his friends by six o'clock at an old claim. It grows colder and the man's little mistakes , like wetting his feet, later lead to his demise. Although there are multiple themes, One should tend to believe that there are three more overwhelming themes. Thus, three themes, which are prominent in "How To Build a Fire", are determinism, instinct over intellectualism, and the un- forgiveness of nature. The first theme that is very present in "How To Build a Fire" is determinism. Charles Darwin's theory of Social Darwinism, applies to the human environment. It does because of the evolutionary concept that natural environments alter an organism's biological makeup over time, through natural selection. Thus, we humans, like animals, compete in a struggle for existence in which natural selection results in "survival of the fittest. In " How To Build a Fire", the author frequently demonstrates how the man does not have free will. Also it shows how nature has already mapped out his fate. Both times, the man has an accident, the author states "it happened," as if "it" were an inevitability of nature and that the man had played no role in "it." Also, if you look at the word