The sea-wolf (Jack London)

The Sea-Wolf is Jack London’s journey deep into the heart of darkness and madness that each person carries within themselves. It is the story of a Danish youth named Humphrey „Hump” van Weyden and his struggles against the sea, as well as his own inner demons. Humphrey Van Weyden is a gentleman, and academic, who has lived a soft life among civilized, like-minded people. He is on a steemer to visit a friend. On this trip, a fog settles and the ship gets struck and sinks. Mr Van Weyden lives, despite the frigid waters, and finds himself picked up by a seal hunting schooner headed to Japan. Mr Van Weyden is saved, but his nightmare just begins. Set in the Pacific Ocean, the book reveals how raw nature can cause a human being to lose their grip on reality. The novel explores the big questions through the philosophical conversations between the Captain Wolf Larsen (a Nietzschean superman, materialist, and man of terrific strength) and Humphrey van Weyden (an effete, bookish, man of morals).