The Call of Wild was written by Jack London. The story begins in California, where Buck is a strong St. Bernard cross with a shepherd dog who lives a comfortable life. But he was stolen by gardeners' helpers and sold to dog dealers to meet the demand for sled dogs during the Klondike Gold Rush. Buck was transported to the harsh Yukon Territory, where he was trained as a sled dog. After experiencing several cruel owners, Buck gradually learns the harsh reality of survival. He has learned to adapt and has shown great strength and resilience in becoming the lead dog. Later, Buck meets his kind owner, John Thornton, who is full of love and respect for Buck, forming a deep emotional bond. Buck, however, was increasingly drawn to the call of the wild. He begins to wander the forest, meeting wolves, listening to the most primal calls within. When Thornton is attacked and killed by a group of natives, Buck takes revenge on his master, fully embracing his wildness. He joins the pack and becomes a legend in the wilderness, living a life of freedom.
Survive and adapt can provide individual a change from obedient to wildness which demonstrates resilience and instinctive power for survival. When people or animals survive in the wild environment for a long time, their ability to survive will naturally become stronger, which also strengthens their perseverance and resilience. He must master or be mastered; while to show mercy was a weakness. Mercy did not exist in the primordial life. It was misunderstood for fear, and such misunderstandings made for death. Kill or be killed, eat or be eaten, was the law. This quote captures the brutal realities of the wild that Buck learns to navigate. It highlights how he must shed his domesticated instincts and adapt to the harsh laws of survival in the wilderness. Adaptation is the key to survival, animals must enable the ability of adaption fast in the new enviroment in order to survive.
For an animal to undergo such a huge change from domestic to wild, it must go through an extreme environment. People and animals or humans all have a wild side, but it may not be developed depending on the living environment of the animal phylum. When an animal is kept as a pet and lives a domesticated, comfortable and protected life, then Obviously it cannot inspire the wild side, but when an animal has been living in extremely dangerous environments, such as forests and deserts, then its wild side will definitely be developed. "He was mastered by the sheer surging of life, the tidal wave of being, the perfect joy of each separate muscle, joint, and sinew in that it was everything that was not death, that it was aglow and rampant, expressing itself in movement, flying exultantly under the stars and over the face of dead matter that was alive." This quote reflects Buck felt the awakening of vitality in the wilderness, got rid of the shackles of civilization, and completely integrated into nature. This is a sign that his wild nature is gradually taking over. Every animal is prone to civilization when it is born, and wildness is stimulated later in life.
The relationship between humans and animals is a very important existence in this world. Humans take good care of the animals, then the animals will repay the humans, so that both sides get benefits to achieve coexistence, but if humans and animals have been fighting and killing, then the final result will only be mutually destructive. "But one night, the gardener, Manuel, took him to a little flag station known as College Park; and Buck accepted the rope with quiet dignity. To be sure, it was an unwonted performance: but he had learned to trust in men he knew, and to give them credit for a wisdom that outreached his own." This quote shows that Manuel betrays Buck's trust and hands him over to the dog dealer. Completely unaware that he is about to be sent into a life of slavery, Buck still believes in human goodness, and the Gardener takes advantage of it."Love, genuine passionate love, was his for the first time. This he had never experienced at Judge Miller's down in the sun-kissed Santa Clara Valley. With the Judge's sons, hunting and tramping, it had been a working partnership; with the Judge's grandsons, a sort of pompous guardianship; and with the Judge himself, a stately and dignified friendship. But love that was feverish and burning, that was adoration, that was madness, it had taken John Thornton to arouse."This quote shows the opposite, Buck feels sincere love in Thornton's side, which is the first time for him to feel such profound emotion. Through these two examples, it can be clearly seen that Gardener's indifference and Thornton's warmth reflect the complexity and different levels of human-animal relationship.
In conclusion, The Call of the Wild explores three key ideas: survival and adaptation, the awakening of wild instincts, and the bond between humans and animals. Buck’s journey from a safe, easy life to the tough wilderness shows how survival and strength are needed to handle challenges. His change also shows how wild instincts can come alive when animals or people face difficult situations, connecting them back to nature. The story also compares betrayal, like Manuel selling Buck, with kindness, like John Thornton’s care, to show how humans and animals can affect each other. These ideas together tell a powerful story about strength, growth, and the pull of nature that lives in every creature.
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