The Call of the Wild

Literary Naturalists in The Call of the Wild

"Those who were looking on heard what was neither bark nor yelp, but a something which is best described as a roar, and they saw Buck's body rise up in the air as he left the floor for Burton's throat" (London 45). Buck was a civilized dog before he became a primordial dominant beast. In order to survive, Buck must delude and hoodwink others. Looking at the story of Buck, it expresses many ideas of literary naturalists. Jack London, the author of The Call of the Wild, uses ideas of literary naturalists to express common ideas, such as: Life is a struggle for survival, humans are animals and nature is a powerful force.

Life is a struggle for survival, one of the literary naturalism, that occurs often in the story. An example of this is Buck trying to survive in the Yukon Territory. Even in the beginning, Buck knew he had to try to adapt, "[Buck] was too busy adjusting to his new life....he did not pick fights"(London 15). Adapting to new environments is hard to survive sometimes. Buck was trying to survive to Yukon by adjusting and trying to stay away from to other dogs so they wouldn't fight or cause trouble. Another example is when Buck and the other dogs fight a pack of huskies to save their food. Even as they were fighting they fought for their survival, "...fighting bravely side by side" (London 16). Food is one of the key items when it come to survival. Buck knew that they were fighting for their survival and saving the food from the anorexic huskies was key to their survival. This theme, Life is a struggle for survival, is a recurring literary naturalism in the book.

Humans are animals, one of the many literary naturalism, that appears in the story often. An example of this is when Buck is faced with Hal and his club. Buck refuses to go on the trail because he know danger is lurking ahead, "...last sensation of pain left