Book  report on “The Call of the Wild”

 

“The call of the wild ”was written by American writer,Jack London. Jack London was born on January 12,1876 in San Francisco , California . His father , W . H . Wellman ,was a soldier , scout , backwoodsman , trapper , and wanderer . Jack`s family was very poor o he had to get a job at the age of ten. Jack took the name of his stepfather and became Jack London.

Jack sold newspapers on the streets before going to school. After school he sold the evening newspaper. All the money he earned selling papers went to support his family.

 

At the age of 15 Jack left home and school. By age 17 he found a job on a sealing schooner to hunt seals off the coasts of Japan and Russia. By age 20 he moved to the Klondike to prospect for gold. At age 26 Jack was a reporter for the Hearst newspaper chain.

 

   Jack began writing each morning. He would write a 1000 words. Jack had an ability to recognize when he had reached this limit and would often stop in the middle of a sentence.

 

   From 1907 to 1910, Jack began a round-the-world trip on his yacht, the Snark. On this trip he and his wife came down with a fever they had contracted in the islands they had visited. He had to return to the San Francisco Bay area to recover from this fever. At this time he began building his ranch and spent much time on horseback.

 

Jack wrote more than 50 books in the early 1900's including both fiction and non-fiction, hundreds of short stories, and numerous articles on a wide range of topics. Some of the most popular books are White Fang (1905) and The Call of the Wild (1903).

 

    Jack London died in Santa Rosa in 1916 at the age of 40.

 

 

The plot is about a dog named Buck how to turn to the wild .  

   The story began with a huge, four years old half Saint Bernard and half Scottish shepherd dog named Buck. It was living well in California’s Santa Clara Valley in the home of Judge Miller. Everything seemed so bright for Buck since Judge was providing a good life to Buck and he felt proud to own it as a pet. Peaceful time was just too short for Buck as the Yankees discovered gold in the great North. There was high demand on large dogs all at a sudden. Large dogs that could haul the heavy sleds through deep snow fields became tremendously valuable.

 

      Tragically, Buck was stolen by a servant and sold it to northern traders for some cash. Buck, however, did not adapt as easily as other big dogs. Buck could not tolerate being tied up and beaten. He tried to fight against his new master for freedom, but all his efforts to escape were futile. Then he learned that the new concept of obeying his new “master”. After days of travel, Buck discovered that he was in the forsaken North. It had nothing but strong wind and snow. There he rapidly learned to conform the nature law of this “new world” in order to survive. For instance, he tried to fit as a team member to pull a sled, he learned how to burrow hole in snow to sleep. He learned how to survive through starving and pains and how to rely his intelligence and animal instincts.  He killed his archival and the original leader of Francois’s dog team---Spitz, and become the new leader.

 

            Buck, at first, is too savage for the company of man until he coincidently encounters his beloved master-kindhearted John Thornton. He saves Buck from death at the hands of Hal, and Buck rewards Thornton with fierce loyalty. Finally, John’s incidental death breaks Buck’s last tie to the man and drives him into his long-desired wild with his pack.

In the story, Buck and John simply adopt themselves to answer the call of the wild. When it comes to Buck’s mind that one day he will eventually leave John- his master, all he wants to do is just to help him finish the gold-rush-trip. He "from then on, night and day, never put a halt, in desperation, he burst into long stretch of flight, did not to stay him (John)…" (Chapter VII The Sounding of The Wild) Buck wished to remember John’s image forever, he "for two days and nights never left camp, never let Thornton out of his sight. He followed him about at his work, watched him while saw him into blankets at night and out of them in the morning…" (Chapter VII) When I read these words I just could not hold my tears bursting. Can a real man devote himself to loyalty and friendship in such a way? On the other hand, John Thornton is not only a dog-lover but also a brave and venturous man. He is so straightforward and simple that makes him an accommodating man. Once he firmly roots a goal into his heart, it seems that nothing could prevent him from accomplishing it except death. I do not know whether the persistence is the most vital element to make a man successful, but what I know is that you are not far away from success once you occupy it

 

When I finished reading this novel, I could still recall the echo of a song – a wild song, which knocks up my dizzy mind that always cheerfully sink into the so-called civilized world without questioning. 　"He sings a song of the younger world, which is the song of the pack." (Chapter VII The Sounding of the Wild) Wild, is no longer a symbol of the law of jungle but a headspring where streams out love, passion, bravery, loyalty, friendship, venture, competition and tolerance all these virtues can easily be found in the Call of the Wild.   

 

 

 I have referred to some materials .

 

Atavism返祖: Hearing and Responding to the Call.

 

.......Buck’s experiences in the northland wilderness awaken in him the long-dormant长期休眠的 instincts本能 of a wild carnivore食肉动物.  When he acts on these instincts—by killing the moose驼鹿 ，for example, or befriending the “wolf brother”—he is responding to the call of the wild. His atavism—that is, his reversion回复 to the behavior of his canine 犬科的ancestors—gradually transforms him into a wolflike creature that prefers to live in a savage environment in which he must fight and kill to live.   

Survival Through Adaptation

 

.......Buck’s strength and courage support him through his ordeals磨难. However, more than anything else, it is his ability to adapt to his environment that ensures his survival. For example, after the man in the red sweater beats him with a club, he learns to subdue 克制his rage. On the trail, he quickly masters the ways of the sled dog. When he fights his cunning rival, Spitz, he alters his tactics策略 after first failing to penetrate his enemy’s defenses. In the wilds, he himself becomes wild, stalking追踪 and killing prey, including a moose. Eventually he becomes the leader of a wolf pack. In contrast to Buck, the good-natured Newfoundland, Curly, fails to survive because she acts civilly in a savage environment. She does not adapt. 

Transformation

 

.......In adapting to his new way of life, Buck transforms himself from a happy-go-lucky domestic pet to a predatory wild animal. 

Cruelty vs Compassion

 

.......Buck experiences cruelty at the hands of his captors捕捉者,  the  man in the red  sweater, and compassion at the hands of his liberator, John Thornton. Each experience sharpens his ability to evaluate humans. 

Love and Friendship

 

.......Buck and John Thornton become loyal and loving friends after Thornton rescues Buck from the doomed sled train of Hal, Charles, and Mercedes. Even though Buck is developing into a fierce creature of the wilds, he remains docile and loving in the presence of Thornton. After Indians kill Thornton, Buck never forgets him—even when he becomes leader of a wolf pack. 

 

 

If our body is still tender skin, rather than hard armor; if we still use parents’ help to seek asylum, rather than independent-minded; if we would hide in the corner alone and lick the wound, rather than face the enemy firmly and tell him” I will not succumb under your feet”, you will be thrown out of the life game and lose everything, and at that time game is over. The dark environment, the intensity of competition make us to have no slight hesitation. Maybe the outcome of victory or defeat will come into being in a flash. Only conquering the difficulties ultimately in the face of challenge is the kingcraft. Perhaps this is the life and the meaning or the life  

 

 

 

       

08英语一班

陈晨

200830560327