A Story of Adaptation and Survival:
An Analysis of Motifs and Theme in The Call of the Wild
The Call of the Wild, one of Jack London’s best novels, was published in 1903 yet still holds the number thirty-five spot on a list of one hundred best novels. The novel was so popular, the first 10,000 copies sold immediately, and consequently, it was published in forty-five different languages for sale throughout the world. Revolving around a dog named Buck, this story tells how Buck was ripped from his Santa Clara Valley home and placed into a cold, harsh, and snowy environment. In order to survive this hazardous setting, Buck must use his wits and keen instincts. Throughout this epic adventure, Buck constantly shows just how quickly he can learn.
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Buck puts his learning ability to use while traveling throughout the Yukon as a sled dog(Magill, ed. 1147). One action that has shown Buck’s learning ability is when he digs a hole to sleep in at night(London 23). On the first day of his journey, Buck finds himself freezing at night. When he sees that the other dogs dig themselves a hole to sleep in, Buck does the same from then on out. Another event that exemplifies this motif is when Buck gets tangled in his traces(25). Buck is new to pulling a dogsled, and when he is caught in his traces, he is reprimanded. Once that occurred, Buck learned not to get tangled again for the novel says, “...Buck took good care of the traces thereafter...”(25). Not only did Buck have to worry about pulling a sled, he had to worry about the other dogs. Buck had learned to thwart the “...savage dogs...” by means of body language(21-22). The novel states, “...he bristled his neck hair and snarled (for he was learning fast)...”(22). By learning to use this body language, Buck was able to avoid attacks from other dogs and therefore kept himself alive. The last and maybe the most important lesson of all is the idea that “...an unthinkable misdeed in his former state, can be the difference between life and death…” now(Labor, ed. 74). With this in mind, Buck …show more content…
While fighting the main antagonist, Spitz, Buck learns that rushing Spitz head on is too dangerous because he is continuously hurt when he attempts that method of attack. Realizing this, Buck breaks Spitz’s front legs and then goes for the kill(50). Buck continues to prove he can learn from his mistakes when he saves John Thornton from drowning(99-100). When Buck first dove into the river, he did not go straight into the stream, but by his second try, he saw his mistake, and corrected himself to save Thornton’s life. One final example of Buck learning from his mistakes is when he repeatedly gets his food stolen. Buck learns that he has to eat his food quicker than usual for if he did not, he would starve and most likely die(Magill, ed. 1148).
Overall, London effectively uses the motif of Buck’s ability to learn to show the importance and necessity of adapting to survive hazardous environments. Buck’s learning abilities are best shown while he is a sled dog, and while he is learning from his mistakes. Whether Buck is digging a hole to sleep in at night, or eating his food much quicker, Buck repeatedly shows adept learning. Through these actions London was able to show how important change can be and ultimately how it could save a
In his novel, The Call of the Wild, Jack London wants us to see the step beyond the survival of the fittest to the complete adaptation to and domination of a once unfamiliar and unforgiving environment. Using a third-person, limited omniscient narrator, the cold, icy Yukon wilderness, and a journey from lazy farm life to the deadly work of a sled dog, we see Buck, a Saint Bernard/Scotch Shepherd mix slowly return to his ancestral roots. As Jacqueline Tavernier-Courbin states in her book The Call of the Wild: A Naturalistic Romance, “The book deals less with the concept of evolution than with that of devolution” (Courbin pg 57). London asks us to believe that happily domesticated farm dog, Buck, can not only survive life as a sled dog in the Yukon, but can become completely in tune with his primitive inner self, and ultimately thrive as a leader of a wolf pack.
Buck is a type of dog that doesn’t give give up, he was taken through some of the worst conditions and yet survived them. He was stolen, he was beaten, he was forced to run the entire distance of the Yukon mountain range. But yet he pushed through clung to life as if it was the only thing left that he had.
London’s novella Call of the Wild tells the story of Buck’s transformation from a domesticated pet on a vast Santa Clara Valley estate to the primal beast he becomes in the bitter regions of the Klondike wilderness. London delivers Buck’s journey in several key plot events and uses various settings and narration styles to tell the story in a way that allows a reader to easily become invested in Buck’s character and well-being from the viewpoint of a loyal and lovable pet, as well as, that of a creature returning to its primal roots and ancestry. Settings in Call of the Wild consist of generally harsh and vicious locations, situations previously unknown to Buck, and various hostile persons and dogs. As well as a variety of settings, London
This year’s summer reading options were marvelous. It was a hard choice to choose what book to read, but in the end, I chose The Call of the Wild by Jack London. The Call of the Wild was an adventurous tale about a dog named Buck and his adventures as he was sold into a harsh life of relentless labor in the cold and brutal North. The author of this classic novel, Jack London, was a short-story writer and a prolific American novelist. He was born in San Francisco, California. He was known for his other novels, The Sea Wolf and White Fang. I chose this particular novel because I love reading classic novels and it seemed to be an interesting and exciting story. Finally, this was the novel of my choice because it was recommended to me by my grandma.
The will and perseverance of a person can get the through the hardest and most difficult of times. The Call of the Wild is an adventure fiction novel by Jack London. The novel gives and insight into human nature. Set during the Yukon gold rush the Call of the wild tells the story of Buck. Buck ,a dog from Southern California, who is kidnaped and sold on the blackmarket to a sled team in Alaska. Perseverance play a big part in buck’s journey throughout the novel.
No matter how hard the human race tried to domesticate dogs, they will always end up back in the wild if they have a chance. Published by Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division in 1999 with illustrations by Wendell Minor, The Call of the Wild, by Jack London, implicates irony through Buck's upbringing, Spitz's death, and losses and gains. Buck's upbringing is one of the major ironies in this classic. As his owners in San Diego pampered him and never let him starve, it is not the nature of dogs to let themselves be pampered and accept food that were not killed by themselves.
The Call of the Wild, on the surface, is a story about Buck, a four- year old dog that is part Shepherd and part St. Bernard. More importantly, it is a naturalistic tale about the survival of the fittest in nature. Throughout the novel, Buck proves that he is fit and can endure the law of the club, the law of the fang, and the laws of nature.
At the beginning of the book, Buck must achieve survival, safety, and security at the start of his quest.First Buck learns survival.For example,the man in the red sweater beat Buck with a club teaching him the Law of Club, which is a man with a club must be obeyed. Since Buck learns this law, he can continue his quest because he’ll survive.”Second, Buck learns “Law of Fang”. For instance, Curly tried to befriend a strange dog, who attacked Curly and knocked him off his feet so that the pack could
First, Buck has to prove not only himself but also his strength. For example, Buck has to pull a 1,000 pound sled for 100 yards, in result of this he wins John and his new companions $1,600, which they take with them to look for gold. Since, Buck learns that he can do anything he puts his mind to, and he has the strength to carry on. Next, Buck has to adapt to being in the wild. For instance, Buck comes face to face with a black bear, moose, and wolverines. Since, Buck kills anything that is in way and adapts to all of the deadly situations. Last, Buck has to take care of himself after losing his master. For example, John after dies from getting attacked by the Yeehats Buck goes to where he died and howls once each year on the anniversary of his death. Since, Buck lives on with his life in the wild and is the leader of a wolf
In the beginning of the book buck faces kill or be killed situations. First, Buck is trying to take Alpha Dog with spitz. For example, When Buck first goes to Alaska with Francois and encounters Dave and Spitz. Since, Buck fights Spitz to the death for alpha dog and wins that shows that Buck faces kill or be killed situations. Second, Buck has to learn how to pull a dog sled. For instance, When he gets to Alaska and see’s how good the dog sled team is and he’s going to have to step up his game to compete with the other dogs. Since, Buck has to stay on the same level as the other dogs or he’ll get kicked off the team and most likely get killed. Last, Buck Scenes have to change or he's going to get cut from the team. For example, when he first gets and see’s the team's skills and what they can do . Since, he see’s how good the team is and he knows he his whole outlook needs to change.(Conclusion)
One of Buck’s most valuable assets in his struggle to adapt to the hostile Klondike environment is his intelligence. Buck watches one of his fellow sled dogs steal meat when needed and learns that he too must steal to fulfill his hunger: “When he saw Pike, one of the new dogs, a
Buck saves Thornton life on various occasions and even kills a man for his sake. Buck wins Thornton a nearly impossible bid for him to express his devotion to him. Later, when the Yeehat Indian kill Thornton Buck avenges his death by killing many of the Indians. Then, he follows a pack of wolves into the wild. This paper demonstrates how London manages to show and back his key themes in "The Call of the Wild."
After John Thornton dies and Buck’s only tie to humanity and civilization is severed, Buck proceeds to live out his days in a local wolf pack where he becomes the alpha. Here he becomes a legend to the locals and is forevermore known as the Ghost Dog because of ferocious actions presiding Thornton’s death. Throughout the novel, “The Call of the Wild” it is proven that adaptability is key to one’s survival in any harsh environment. Over the many years in Buck’s time after being kidnapped by Manuel, Buck demonstrated time and time again that being able to adapt to one’s surroundings is and essential to life. In the novel, it is conveyed through many different events and lessons that being able to become accustomed to a setting is key to
The author of The Call of the Wild, Jack London, heavily influenced the literary world with his inspirational works, specifically surrounding the theme of Naturalism. London followed the same theme, among others, in many of his works, focusing on how the environment affects its inhabitants and the details of the environment itself. The descriptions of nature London took the time to include in his books and the way they affect the story is what makes his works truly remarkable. He strongly committed himself to his works and put a great deal of effort into researching them to ensure accuracy. In The Call of the Wild, there are three main themes that are made evident: naturalism, coming of age, and loss of innocence. Naturalism is what London is most known for, and is shown through his attention to the surroundings of his characters. Coming of age was displayed through specific life changing events that altered Buck’s perspective. And finally, loss of innocence can be seen in the gradual, but sure decline of Buck’s morals.
Call of the Wild is a novella written by Jack London that is ironic about life and the way we look at it. We look at life as humans and other things are just living in our world, that nothing else has a say in the world because we do not speak the same languages. Example of this is how we “own” dogs, cats, horses, etc; we do not “own” them, they are their own being with goals of their own. We may not be able to understand what they are saying or what they are thinking, but as London explains throughout his novella, one dog in particular has such high aspirations for himself that he will not quit for anything and his name is Buck. Never giving up on what you want in your life is the real message in this story that is being portrayed through the life of Buck.