Motifs And Theme In Jack London's The Call Of The Wild

First, Buck has to fight off one hundred huskies. For example, Buck tries to escape the camp with Spitz. Since, he doesn’t want to be killed by the starving dogs. Second, Buck and the other dogs know Dave has been put down. For instance, the dogs know he has been killed and they are scared. Since, they are all sad, but they are glad it was not them being put down. Last, Buck and the team eat too much and might not be able to stand the cold weather. For example, the dogs could die in the cold. Since, the food makes them full and unable to get up and move around. In conclusion, Buck furthers his knowledge of kill or be killed.

Spitz constantly picks on Buck, wanting to get in a fight with him; Buck, however, resists the challenges from Spitz. Then one time he steals the resting-place that Buck has created for himself. Buck has had enough and attacks Spitz with a vengeance. Francois and Perrault have to separate the two dogs. Although the fight is stopped, the animosity continues, and the two enemies are always in a skirmish. Then one day when Spitz prematurely kills a rabbit that all the dogs have been chasing, Buck attacks again. The battle is fierce, and Buck is losing. He then calls upon his intelligence and imagination to defeat Spitz. Instead of going for his throat, Buck attacks Spitz's front legs, breaking both of them. Once he is down, the other dogs come in for the kill.

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

Buck learned quickly what was expected of him. He knew that he would be beaten. Not only did he have to worry about his owners beating him but the other dogs. They kept each other in line and moving while in the traces. His first to owners ran him over 2500 miles. Then the third owner ran him more. The next owners had no idea what they were doing. The dogs would not work for them inspite of severe beatings.

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.

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)

Human traits and characteristics like imagination, love, anger and revenge are projected by London into Buck’s character, a trait called anthropomorphosis, by using these human feelings and thoughts allowing the reader to better relate to Buck’s understanding and handling of certain situations. “At various points in the narrative, Buck is said to “imagine”, “decide”, “realize”, “know”, “divine”, “wonder”, and so on” (Auerbach 53). Further analysis of London’s narration by Auerbach of Buck is critical, claiming that while London is writing an animal tale, he is doing so more from a human perspective, rather than that of an animal. Unlike other animal tales written during the same time-period, London’s narration helps the story work as an animal story partly due to the way “Buck is put into a situation not in his control, then invested with a human mentality and morality to evaluate the situation, and then represented as reacting to that situation by way of “instinct”,”

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.

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.

In the beginning of the book, Buck must adapt to the cold and cruelness of his new life in order to survive with very little food and recognition. First, Buck has to adapt to being transported to the North and learn to be a sled dog. For example, when he lived with the judge he slept wherever and whenever he wanted, but now that he is in the North he can only sleep under the snow and for few hours. Since, Buck learns that to live and carry on through his journey he has to make some changes from his old lifestyle. Second, Buck finds food for himself in order to survive and pull the sled longer. For instance, Buck steals food off of the man‘s plate because he is starving. Since, Buck can put his instincts into action, adapt and can be a good sled dog and stay alive. Last, Buck gets little recognition and learns to use his instincts and care for himself. For example, Buck gains confidence in himself to

First, Buck learns the Law of Club. There was a man in the red sweater who beat Buck with a club, and Buck would either get beat to death by the man or he could surrender which is exactly what the law of club is. You must know this in order to survive if you are a sled dog. Second, Buck learns the law of fang.

One instance in which his determination was shown is “He did not try to runaway, But retreated around and around the camp, advertising plainly that when his desires were met he would come back and be good,”(31). At this point in the novel Buck will not get in his harness unless he is made the new lead dog of the sled team. Buck sees what he wants and does everything he can do to get it. The final example of Buck's perseverance is “so that was the way. No fair play. Once down that was the end of you. Well he would see to it that he never went down,”(24). Buck sees Curly killed by some of the other dog in an unfair fight. He is determined to stay alive and not let what happen to Curly happen to

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

Jack London’s attitude in the text made it very apparent how he felt about life. In retrospect, he said that you do what you have to do to survive. One of the very first examples of why he believed this is in the novella, when Buck was taken from his castle in the Santa Clara Valley. Buck had no idea where he was, where he was going to, or why. He soon found out that he was going to be a sled dog and was auctioned off; Buck did not like that. He fought with the man in the red sweater and he finally surrendered so that he did not get beaten to death. London expresses that Buck just did what he had to do by saying, “He was beaten (he knew that); but he was not broken” (Call of the Wild, London) Another example of when Buck

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.