Reading Comprehension: Understanding Complex Sentences

Understanding Complex Sentences

But under it all they were men, penetrating the land of desolation and mockery and silence, puny adventurers bent on colossal adventure, pitting themselves against the might of a world as remote and silent and pulseless as the abysses of space.

(Extract from Jack London's White Fang) 

Phew! That is a mouthful! Jack London is saying a lot in that one, very complex sentence, and what exactly is he trying to get across? Firstly, let us put the sentence in perspective for those who are unfamiliar with the piece of work. In relation to the above sentence in White Fang, London is narrating the trials of men who had ventured into the unfriendly landscape of the cold regions of Canada.

Now, let's tackle the sentence in question by separating the many ideas found in the sentence. Once you isolate the ideas in the sentence, it is very easy to understand more completely what the author is attempting to communicate.

Main Idea		Meaning
1	But under it all they were men	The author is emphasising the fact that they are men, and in the later part of the sentence when he refers to them as `puny adventurers', we are also get the author's opinion about these men.
2	penetrating the land of desolation and mockery and silence	What are these men doing? They are going deep (`penetrating') into an isolated land where men does not go. This land is so bleak and empty that there is silence and yet, there is also mockery, almost as though the land is making fun of them.
3	puny adventurers bent on colossal adventure	These men are small, nothing compared to the vast land that they are in; in comparison to them the land is a giant. However, these men are stubborn as they insist on seeking an adventure that is huge.
4	pitting themselves against the might of a world as remote and silent and pulseless as the abysses of space.	What is it that they are up against in this huge adventure that they had sought to go on? They are setting themselves up against a world that is as distant, isolated and lifeless (pulseless) as deep space.

Now, take a look at the following complex sentence from the same piece of work, White Fang:

(It is not the way of the Wild to like movement.) It freezes the water to prevent it running to the sea; it drives the sap out of the trees till they are frozen to their mighty hearts; and most ferociously and terribly of all does the Wild harry and crush into submission man - man, who is the most restless of life, ever in revolt against the dictum that all movement must in the end come to the cessation of movement.

During mid-week, possible ideas contained in the above statement will be suggested in the Blog in the website of The Pear Tree Centre for Education.