Jack London was an American writer born in San Francisco, California in 1876. He wrote during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a time of social and cultural change in the United States. The Sheriff of Kona was first published in 1910 and is set in Hawaii, where London lived for a time.

In The Sheriff of Kona, London portrays leprosy and people with leprosy in a negative light. He describes leprosy as a "loathsome disease" and refers to those with the disease as "monstrous creatures." The main character, the sheriff, is portrayed as heroic for protecting the healthy population from those with leprosy who are considered a danger to society. The lepers are depicted as outcasts and are forced to live in a separate colony away from the healthy population. They are also portrayed as having a hopeless and miserable existence.

London's negative portrayal of leprosy and those with the disease is likely influenced by the cultural and social context of the time. In the early 20th century, there was a great deal of fear and stigma surrounding leprosy, and those who were infected were often isolated and ostracized from society. This was especially true in Hawaii, where leprosy was considered an epidemic and those with the disease were sent to live in colonies.