Callofthewildpamphlet

Plot Overview
Briefly, but using the entire space, discuss the plot, conflict, and rising
action to summarize the plot. Use your own words.
The plot is about a dog named Buck, who is stolen

from his home, California. Buck is forced to become
a sled dog and has to face the harsh winter of
Alaska and the Canadian Yukon. Buck must learn
how to survive on his own if he wants to get through
the winter alive. With much difficulty, Buck adapts to
the harsh rules of the wilderness. Buck quickly
adapts to his new surroundings and soon tries to
become the leader of the dog sled team. But first he
must show off his strength and capability to the
other dogs by fighting with the leader of the pack,
Spitz. Buck wins and becomes the leader of the
pack. He then is sold to a different owner, Hal who
abuses him. Lying on the snow with broken bones,
John Thornton comes to his rescue. Thornton takes
Buck away from Hal and creates a special bond with
Buck. Thornton and Buck soon become inseparable.
They travel to a lost mine and set camp there. At
night, Buck wanders off into the wilderness. There,
he meets a young wolf. Momentarily, Buck follows
his wolf brother and wander off together. Buck
suddenly remembers John Thornton and goes back,
leaving the wolf behind. The next night, Buck
disappears from the camp. John Thornton knows
Buck wont come back. Buck wanders off into the
wild and gets into a fight with some wolves. He soon
becomes a respected member of the wolf pack and
meets his wolf brother again. A long period of time
passes and Buck decides to return to the camp for a
visit. He sees the whole camp ambushed by the
Yeehats. From there, Buck knows John Thornton
has been killed. Buck seeks revenge and kills most
of the Yeehat tribe. He runs into the wild with the
wolf pack after his revenge and quietly lives as the
head of the pack. Every year, a mournful howl is
heard, it is the legend of Buck who sings the song of
the pack.
About the Author

Include important information about the author. You may want to
include what inspired them, other works they have written, significant
life events, what time period he or she wrote in, and how the time
period influenced the writing.
Jack London wrote all his novels based on personal

experiences growing up. As a child, he grew up in
poverty. Many of his novels became popular during
his time period, 20th century. Some popular works
were Call of the Wild, White Fang and The SeaWolf. Many of his novels were inspired by his
experience during the gold rush to Klondike in
1897. At age 17, he sailed on sea on a sealing ship,
which influenced his writing of The Sea-Wolf. His
novels were also based on individualism and
Darwinism. The death of London was at age 40 due
to diseases and drug treatments.
Novel Notes
Call of the Wild
Jack London
Angelie Balios
September 25, 2015
Essential Quotes
Add two quotes that capture the essence of the novel. Be sure to cite
the quotations properly.
It was a monotonous life, operating with

machinelike regularity (London 78).
Historical Context
Include information on the time period, social, economical, cultural, and
other significant influences that characterize this novel.
The Call of the Wild was published in the year

1903. The hardships Jack London faced during the
start of the gold rush was replaced in the point of
view of Buck. The Gold Rush started in the year of
1848-1855. During the Gold Rush, many
immigrants moved to San Francisco to look for
gold. In 1852, there was a total of $2 billion worth of
gold. By 1857, gold mining started to decline, so
there was only $45 million per year.
...this song of the huskies might have been

the defiance of life, only it was pitched in
minor key, with long-drawn wailings and
half-sobs, and was more the pleading of life,
the articulate travail of existence (58).
Add Work Cited Here:

http://www.jacklondon.com/
http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/call/
Character Analysis
Themes
Identify each major character in the novel. Describe

the most import traits that characterize this person.
(Speech, Thoughts, Effects on other, Action, Looks)
Identify and analyze some of the significant themes

in the novel.
Buck- Buck is the main character of the book. A

hard working dog who is a St. Bernard and Scotch
shepherd mix. He is kidnapped from his home and
has a hard time adapting to the harsh reality of the
wilderness. But soon he adapts and becomes the
most strongest of the dog pack. He wants to be the
best and loses trust in humans ever since his first
beating from the man in the red sweater. Buck
knows that if he lets others push him around, he will
never be able to survive.
Survival of the fittest

For Buck to stay survive the harsh winters, he has
to learn how to survive on his own. The other dogs
who seem weak and too friendly are usually the first
ones to die. With high competition of being the
leader of the sled pack, fights often occur. Only the
strongest and most fiercest of dogs is appropriate
to become the leader of the pack.
Love of man
In some parts of the book, Buck becomes obedient
and loyal to his master. When Buck is abused by
his master, John Thornton comes in and stops the
beating. By this time, Buck is already weak and
covered in blood. John Thornton takes Buck away
from his master and keeps him. Here, Buck
becomes obligated to protect Thornton as
repayment for saving his life. This is the start of
Bucks love for John Thornton.
Pride
Dogs in a sled pack are put in order based on
stamina and strength. Most leaders of the sled
packs fight with the other dogs in order to show
who's boss. Some of the dogs work so hard to keep
their spot that they pass out or die due to
overexertion. When a fight occurs between the
most strongest of the dogs, they will not give up
until their master breaks up the fight or if one of
them dies.
John Thornton- A mine gold hunter and Bucks

savior. John Thornton first meets Buck as Hals dog.
He sees how Hal abuses Buck so he takes Buck
away and claims him as his own. Together, they
travel to find the lost gold mining area. When they
set camp there, his camp is invaded by the Yeehat
tribe. The Yeehat tribe kills him along with everyone
else who is part of the camp. This causes Buck to
seek revenge for John.
Hal- Hal is Bucks previous master before John

Thornton. He makes Buck the leader of his dog
sledding team. Hal is inexperienced with dogs so he
pushes them over their limit. The dogs become
exhausted and Hal continues to whip them until they
get up again. Buck refuses to get up and gets
whipped until he can no longer feel his bones. Hals
refusal to listen to others leads him towards his
death.
Motifs and Symbols

Identify and interpret some of the major motifs and
symbols in the novel.
The dominant primordial beast

The dominant primordial beast symbolizes the
beginning of Bucks new character. He strips
his old personality with the beast of the
wilderness.
Instinct
Instinct is repeated throughout the book. Bucks
instinct represents the instincts of a wolf. Dogs
are descendants of wolves so in the wild, the
first animal that is usually thought of is a wolf.
As Buck wanders off into the wilderness by
himself, his wolf instincts appear.
The wild
The wild represents the environment Buck is in.
The wild does not only portray the physical
area Buck lives in, but also illustrates the
thinking of every character in the book. Buck
and all the other dogs have the mentality to
fight and compete with one another.

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Plot Overview

The plot is about a dog named Buck, who is stolen

About the Author

Jack London wrote all his novels based on personal

It was a monotonous life, operating with

The Call of the Wild was published in the year

...this song of the huskies might have been

Add Work Cited Here:

Identify each major character in the novel. Describe

Identify and analyze some of the significant themes

Buck- Buck is the main character of the book. A

Survival of the fittest

John Thornton- A mine gold hunter and Bucks

Hal- Hal is Bucks previous master before John

Motifs and Symbols

The dominant primordial beast

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