Call of the Wild

Call of the Wild

About Chapter 3: The Dominant Primordial Beast

The Setting

Characters

Tone

Buck- Eminent & Loyal

(pg. 104)

• Most of the novel takes place in the Yukon Territory, which is between Alaska and present-day Canada.
• "One night there was a heavy snowfall, and in the morning Pike, the malingerer, did not appear. He was securely hidden in the nest under a foot of snow" (London 35).
• The story takes place during the Klondike Gold Rush, shortly after gold was discovered in the Klondike in 1896.
• "And this was the manner of dog Buck was in the fall of 1897, when the Klondike strike dragged men from all the world into the frozen north" (London 5).

Plot Summery

The chapter we chose was chapter 3 "The Dominate Primordial Beast", the tone that best fits chapter is Monopolize. Monopolize means to govern and rule which is exactly what this chapter is trying to portray. "Only Spitz quivered and bristled as he staggered back and forth, snarling with horrible menace, as though to frighten off impending death. Then Buck sprang in and out; but while he was in, shoulder had at last squarely met shoulder. The dark circle became a dot on the moonflooded snow as Spitz disappeared from view. Buck stood and looked on, the successful champion, the dominate primordial beast who had made his kill and found it good" (London 43). This quote is the perfect quote to describe this chapter!

Spitz- Barbarous & Narcissistic

"...Spitz never lost an opportunity of showing his teeth" (London 27).

• Spitz starts picking fights with Buck, doing annoying things like stealing his warm sleeping spots. Stealing his sleeping spot is the last straw for Buck, and the two finally go at it.
• The fight is interrupted by a group of raving mad, starving huskies (a kind of sled dog). Some people might call this a deus ex machina.
• Everyone gets violently injured.
• Later on the trail, the dogs are on thin ice, literally, and they fall through a few times. Buck is like an anchor, keeping them from their tragic deaths in the icy water.
• The men, although they work the dogs hard, respect the animals as well, taking care of them at night by rubbing their feet.
• Dolly goes nuts and is frothing at the mouth and attacking Buck. We know what you’re thinking – who is Dolly?
• OK, fine, Dolly is one of the dogs. When she goes nuts, François kills her.
• Spitz, seeing that Buck is tired from having run away from the crazed dog, believes this is a fair and opportune moment to fight. Spitz vs. Buck, Round 2:
• Spitz sort of has the upper hand, but François puts an end to the fight by whipping Spitz.
• The two men debate over who will win the next fight. Our money is on Buck.
• Buck joins in on some nightly howling sessions with the wolves.
• Mutiny in the ranks – against Spitz, who is the current leader.
• Buck starts chasing a rabbit in a crazy, bloodthirsty sort of way.
• He and Spitz fight over the rabbit – Round 3: it’s a close one, but Buck wins.

John Thornton- Prideful & Presumptive

"...'Buck can start a thousand pounds'" (London 83) "He did not know whether Buck could start a thousand pounds" (London 83 & 84).

• The setting affected the mood in chapter three because they were in a cold isolated camp and they were more ferocious and angry because of hunger and isolation.