Call of the Wild Essay

     Call of the Wild Essay

“Buck did not read the newspapers, or he would have known that trouble was brewing, not alone for himself, but for every tidewater dog, strong of muscle and with warm, long hair, from Puget Sound to San Diego. Because men, groping in the Arctic darkness, had found a yellow metal, after this thousands of men were rushing into the Northland. These men wanted dogs, and the dogs they wanted were heavy dogs, with strong muscles by which to toil, and furry coats to protect them from the frost”(3) The search for treasure is a timeless tale. Men have always gone on quests to find wealth and untold adventure. That was the starting point for Buck in this tale of adventure. In Call of the Wild by Jack London, Buck must survive the harsh Yukon environment. But how does he does he do it? By adapting to people, dogs and Yukon environment.

The first way Buck adopts is by people. One instance of this is by adapting to the man in the red sweater and learning the law of the club. “He was beaten (he knew that); but he was not broken. He saw, once for all, that he stood no chance against a man with a club. He had learned the lesson, and in all his after life he never forgot it. That club was a revelation. It was his introduction to the reign of primitive law, and he met the introduction halfway” (13). This quotation is taken from late in Chapter I, “Into the Primitive,” just after Buck has been beaten repeatedly by one of his kidnappers. Each time he is clubbed, Buck leaps up to attack again, until finally the man knocks him unconscious. This incident is Buck's introduction to a new way of life, vastly different from the pampered existence that he led in the Santa Clara Valley. There, civilized law, and civilized morality were the ruling forces—symbolized by the fact that his first master, Judge Miller, is a judge. In the wild, though, Buck comes to terms with “the reign of primitive law,” in which might makes right, and a man with a club (or a powerful dog) can do as he pleases to weaker creatures. In this scene, Buck is mastered by the man in the red sweater with the club, but he learns his lesson. Another way buck adopts to people is that he learn from Charles, Hal, and Mercedes “Buck felt vaguely that there was no depending upon these two men and the woman. They did not know how to do anything, and as the days went by it became apparent that they could not learn. They were slack in all things, without order or discipline"(65). Charles, Hal, and Mercedes are all caught up in the excitement of adventure. They are unprepared to face the challenges of survival in the harsh conditions of the north. It would be possible to forgive their inexperience. However, as the narrator observes, they do not learn from their mistakes. Their unwillingness to change behaviors that are not working makes them more dangerous.the last way buck adapts to people is John Thornton “...each day mankind and the claims of mankind slipped farther from him. Deep in the forest a call was sounding, and as often as he heard this call, mysteriously thrilling and luring, he felt compelled to turn his back upon the fire, and to plunge into the forest. . . . But as often as he gained the soft unbroken earth and the green shade, the love of John Thornton drew him back to the fire again”(82).This quotation is from Chapter VI, “For the Love of a Man,” and it depicts the tension building within Buck during his time with John Thornton. Thornton is the ideal master, and his relationship with Buck represents a perfect partnership between man and dog. London tells us that this is the first time that Buck has truly loved a human being. Yet, at the same time, it is clear that Buck’s destiny lies in the wild, and so he is torn between the urges that pull him away from humanity and his intense loyalty to Thornton. That love, it becomes clear, is the only thing tying him to the world of men—which means that when Thornton is killed, there is nothing left to hold him, and he embraces his destiny as a wild creature. London’s novel is the story of Buck’s transformation from a pampered pet to a fierce, masterful wild animal, and this transformation naturally means that the canine protagonist gradually separates himself from his human masters on his way to achieving a final independence. Nevertheless, The Call of the Wild ultimately offers an uncertainty, rather than negative, portrait of Buck’s relationship to humanity. It suggests that while some human-dog relationships can be dreadful to the dog’s welfare, others are mutually beneficial, and a natural love can develop between dogs and their masters. The negative side of the man-dog compact is embodied in Hal, Charles, and Mercedes, whose inexperience, stubbornness, and general incompetence bring disaster not only on themselves but also on their sled dogs. The trio’s failure to understand the laws of the wild ultimately leads to the death of every one of their animals except, of course, Buck, whom John Thornton saves. It is Thornton, whom Buck loves intensely, who embodies the better way in which humans and dogs can be partners where each looks out for the other’s welfare.