U1 The King of Mazy Maze Compare & Contrast

Define

Comparing and contrasting are processes we use all the time to distinguish
between two or more things. We use them so often, we hardly think about
it—choosing what to wear, what to buy, or where to go. When you compare
things, you’re noting how they’re similar. When you contrast things, you’re
noting how they’re different. When you read, comparing and contrasting can
help you analyze and understand all sorts of things, from what two characters
have in common to how differently two texts treat the same theme or topic.

Identification and Application:

●Compare and contrast a fictional portrayal of a time, place, or character with an historical account of the
same period.

●Look for ways that the time, place, character, or events in the fictional portrayal are similar to the historical
account.

●Look for ways that the time, place, character, or events in the fictional portrayal differ from the historical
account.

●Evaluate the differences. Is one portrayal more inaccurate than the other?

●Determine how the author of the fictional portrayal has used or altered history.

Model

Authors of historical fiction use historical facts and events to frame their stories. Some authors are careful to maintain historical accuracy, while others
may change historical facts for the benefit of the story. One way to understand how a writer of fiction has used or altered history is to compare and
contrast the piece of literature with a historical account from the same time period.

“The King of Mazy May” and Call of the Klondike are two selections that are appropriate to compare and contrast. The short story and the historical
account both focus on the Klondike Gold Rush. Consider paragraph 4 of “The King of Mazy May” and paragraphs 1 and 3 of Call of the Klondike:

Walt was born a thousand miles or so down the Yukon, in a trading-post below the Ramparts. After his mother died, his father and he came on up the
river, step by step, from camp to camp, till now they are settled down on the Mazy May Creek in the Klondike country. Last year they and several
others had spent much toil and time on the Mazy May, and endured great hardships; the creek, in turn, was just beginning to show up its
richness and to reward them for their heavy labor. But with the news of their discoveries, strange men began to come and go through the short
days and long nights, and many unjust things they did to the men who had worked so long upon the creek.
—”The King of Mazy May”

Stanley Pearce and Marshall Bond were in Seattle, Washington, when it happened. On July 17, 1897, sixty-eight rugged miners stepped off the S.S.
Portland steamship and made their way through the excited crowd. They were carrying large sacks filled with the most precious metal in the
world—gold. ...Three days earlier, miners on another ship, the S.S. Excelsior, had arrived in San Francisco with large quantities of gold as well. Both
groups of miners had found their gold in the same place: the Klondike region of northern Canada. Soon these discoveries would make
headlines around the world.
— Call of the Klondike

By comparing the two excerpts, the reader can determine that the setting for “The King of Mazy May” and the structure of the plot surrounding the search for
gold in the Klondike are accurate portrayals of history. Through the comparison, the reader can also determine a time frame for Jack London’s story—the
l890s—the period of the Klondike Gold Rush.

Model

Now consider the following two excerpts from paragraph 5 of “The King of Mazy May” and paragraph 6 of Call of the Klondike:

Si Hartman had gone away on a moose-hunt, to return and find new stakes driven and his claim jumped. George
Lukens and his brother had lost their claims in a like manner, having delayed too long on the way to Dawson to
record them. In short, it was an old story, and quite a number of the earnest, industrious prospectors had suffered
similar losses.
—”The King of Mazy May”

When prospectors found a promising spot, they staked a claim by placing posts at each corner, one with their
name and date on it. The prospector then had three days to go to town and file a legal claim. Because the claims
were usually measured by crude means, disagreements over exact boundaries were common.
— Call of the Klondike

In the excerpt from “The King of Mazy May,” London recounts the story of Walt’s neighbors having their claims jumped by
strangers who come in and remove the neighbors’ stakes and replace them with their own. The jumpers could do this because
the neighbors had not yet recorded their claims in Dawson. The idea of claim jumping is crucial to the plot, since it is the reason
that Walt takes the dogs and sled from the stampeders and races off toward Dawson in an effort to save Loren Hall’s claim.
Although the account in Call of the Klondike does not discuss claim jumping or mention Dawson specifically, the details of how
a claim is staked and the need to record it within three days support London’s portrayal of history.

By comparing the details in “The King of Mazy May” to the details in Call of the Klondike, the reader can determine that Jack
London has used historical facts accurately.

Your Turn

Read these passages from “The King of Mazy May” and Call of the Klondike to compare and contrast the two
accounts. Then answer the follow-up questions.

“The creek is all right, boys,” a large, black-bearded man, evidently the leader, said, “and I think the best thing we can do is
to pull out to-night. The dogs can follow the trail; besides, it’s going to be moonlight. . . . If we can get to Dawson and
record, we’re rich men; and there is no telling who’s been sneaking along in our tracks, watching us, and perhaps now off
to give the alarm. The thing for us to do is to rest the dogs a bit, and then hit the trail as hard as we can. What do you say?”
— “The King of Mazy May”

Together, these miners brought back an astounding four thousand pounds of gold. It was worth nearly one million dollars,
which, by today’s standards, would be many times that amount. Three days earlier, miners on another ship, the S.S.
Excelsior, had arrived in San Francisco with large quantities of gold as well. Both groups of miners had found their gold in
the same place: the Klondike region of northern Canada. Soon these discoveries would make headlines around the world.
— Call of the Klondike

Multiple Choice

Part A

Which of the following statements based on evidence in “The King of Mazy May” is supported by historical facts in Call of the Klondike?

• 1. Some miners were dishonest.

  
  

• 2. Gold was found along Mazy May Creek.

  
  

• 3. Some miners became rich prospecting for gold.

  
  

• 4. Claims had to be registered in Dawson to be valid.

  
  

Multiple Choice

Part B

Which sentence or phrase from Call of the Klondike supports your answer to Part A?

• 1. “Both groups of miners had found their gold in the same place . . . .”

  
  

• 2. “It was worth nearly one million dollars, which, by today’s standards, would be many times that amount.”

  
  

• 3. “Soon these discoveries would make headlines around the world.”

  
  

• 4. “. . . the Klondike region of northern Canada.”