When John falls into the rapids of a river, Buck aids Hans and Pete in rescuing him and breaks three ribs. Sol-leks didn't like to have other dogs come up on his blind side, and Buck, making this mistake, paid the price. He expresses his love with real bites, and he receives love by allowing John Thornton to roughly dominate him. Thornton realizes that Buck will literally do anything he says, even jump off a cliff. The bet is on, and all of the occupants of the town pour into the streets, the men all placing great odds that Buck cannot budge the sled. A man named Matthewson bets Thornton that Buck cannot do such an incredible feat; in fact, he is willing to bet a thousand dollars that Buck cannot do it. Thornton, at this point, momentarily becomes unsure whether or not Buck can actually perform such an enormous and appalling task, and he is confused as to what to do, since neither he, nor Hans, nor Pete has a thousand dollars. Furthermore, he says, Buck can break the sled loose — even if it is frozen fast — and, furthermore, that he can pull it a hundred yards. Yet, unlike the other two dogs, Buck does not force Thornton’s attention upon him; Buck is content to lie at a distance, watching Thornton with love and admiration. Buck depended on those dogs for his life, but he depends on John Thornton for his happiness. Buck's love compounds every day. But Buck does not seek these tokens of affection. Under certain circumstances, especially after a man has saved a dog’s life, the dog can be expected to save his master’s reputation. London also reminds us that Buck’s body is scarred, “scored by the teeth of many dogs,” so much so that other dogs would quickly acknowledge his supremacy in a fight. with his knowledge that “kill or be killed, eat or be eaten, was It begins in a saloon, where some men are boasting of the exploits of their dogs. Each day mankind slips further away; Buck roams the forest, only love for John Thornton bringing him back. what will happen if and when he and Thornton separate. and the stage is set for the developments of the final chapter. “He had miscalculated once, but he would not be guilty of it a second time.” This time, he reaches Thornton, who is able to grab the rope, and almost “strangling and suffocating,” the man and the dog, both bruised and battered, are dragged back to the shore. Later on, in Circle City, Buck has yet another opportunity to demonstrate his devotion to John Thornton. Hal overfed them and, as food ran out, underfed them. He feels loyalty only to Thornton. . Chapter III: The Dominant Primordial Beast. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Call of the Wild. As you love me.” Buck answers this plea by taking “his master’s mittened hands between his jaws, pressing in with his teeth . or with the pure cruelty and struggle for mastery of a Nietzschean and not for mankind in general; he has learned well, especially worldview. As this chapter begins, we learn a bit of the history about John Thornton and how he came to be camped next to the river. love. Once on shore, Hans and Pete tie a long rope to Buck’s collar and send him back into the water with it. At this point, London shifts his point of view from Buck to the character of John Thornton, and we discover that during their dual recuperation, Thornton develops a great admiration for Buck. At times he does not want to let John out of his sight, fearing that he will lose him as he has lost other masters. Furthermore, in contrast to the events in the last chapter, where dog and man could not work together at all, here in Chapter 6, we are shown the great heights to which a dog can rise if he is inspired by love and admiration for his master. The famed “King of Skookum Bench” offers to pay Thornton a thousand dollars for Buck, but Thornton rejects the offer. Having frozen his feet that past December, John walks with a slight limp. The dogs manifest no jealousy towards Buck. (Luke 10:27, ESV) Buck launches boldly out into the stream, but finds that he cannot travel straight enough, and he misses Thornton by only a few yards. London, however, does not suddenly make Buck into an all-good, ideal, one-dimensional dog. Despite this great love, however, the "strain of the primitive" remains alive and active in Buck. In For the Love of Men, Liz offers a smart, insightful, and deeply-researched guide for what we're all going to do about toxic masculinity. He has no qualms about stealing from other camps, even though he leaves John's supplies alone. Evidently, Thornton does this in order to demonstrate to Hans and Pete that Buck is totally devoted to him. Sol-leks grabbed Buck and slashed his shoulder to the bone. . Although the call beckons Buck into the forest, he remains devoted to Thornton, returning to his fireside, whenever tempted. Inside Buck lives all the dogs that came before him. For both women looking to guide the men in their lives and men who want to do better and just don’t know how, For the Love of Men will lead the conversation on men's issues in a society where so much is changing, but gender roles have remained strangely stagnant. He is welcomed into their frolicking games. He is content to adore from a distance. He recognizes Buck's desire to work and to labour. . it was the answer, in terms, not of speech, but of love.” Thornton orders the dog to “MUSH,” and so Buck, mustering every last bit of strength he has, every muscle and sinew straining under the tremendous weight, heaves forward. In fact, for a long time after Thornton rescues Buck, Buck is uncomfortable when Thornton is out of his sight, because Buck remembers how people like Perrault and Francois, and even the Scotch half-breed — all good masters — had, one day, suddenly disappeared, leaving Buck finally at the mercy of Hal, Charles, and Mercedes. John Thornton, it turns out, had frozen his feet during the previous winter, and he and his dogs are now waiting for the river to melt and for a raft to take them down to Dawson. Thus he orders Buck back to the shore, and even though Buck hates to desert his master, he nevertheless obeys Thornton’s commands. eventual break with the world of men by telling us that this love Call of the Wild literature essays are academic essays for citation. kill or be killed, eat or be eaten was the law.” During these times, Buck relishes living with John Thornton, yet there are other, deeper claims to him also. The lovable Skeet and Nig also take pleasure in the work John Thornton gives them, but only Buck is eager and ready to do anything that John Thornton asks of him. The ouside dogs were dogs whose digestion was not trained to make the most of food. Buck does not hesitate to act; he swims out to Thornton, who knows that they are not strong enough to conquer the turbulent rapids. Buck's muscles swell, and flesh returns to cover his bones. He expresses his love with real bites, and he receives love by allowing John Thornton to roughly dominate him. His muscles were built up again, his wounds healed, and he appeased his starving stomach. because to show mercy was a weakness. GradeSaver, 20 July 2006 Web. Buck remains merciless, for one thing, holding on to the lessons John Thornton and Buck's connection goes far beyond the working relationship that Buck had with Francois and Perrault. Chapter 7: The Sounding of the Call Summary and Analysis, Chapter 5: The Toil of Trace and Trail Summary and Analysis. Call of the Wild E-Text contains the full text of Call of the Wild. him into the deep forests and wilderness. Buck merely tolerates them, which they accept, as they travel to Dawson and beyond. from Hal and Charles, that mankind at large does not deserve his He grasps Buck's head and rests his own upon it. When Buck wins him 1600 dollars or saves him from a deadly rapid, John Thornton is honoring Buck, honoring his power and his loyalty. The image of Buck sitting by a fire does not convey a permanent place for him. Buck had indeed “learned well the law of club and fang . Copyright © 1999 - 2020 GradeSaver LLC. Later that winter in Dawson, Buck wins a $1600 bet for his master by pulling a sled loaded with a thousand pounds of flour. But while Buck’s love is strong, it is for Thornton alone Jesus asked him what was written in the law, and the man responded: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself." He was called Sol-leks, which means the Angry One. Meanwhile, Buck has never felt this way before. Call of the Wild study guide contains a biography of Jack London, a complete e-text, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. A meeting is immediately called, and it is decided that Buck had sufficient provocation for defending his master against violence. Thus, Buck Under Thornton's care, Buck recovers. An evil-tempered and malicious man named “Black” Burton is bullying a young “tenderfoot” in a bar (a tenderfoot is an inexperienced person in the frontier). Under John's ministering, Buck's horrible wounds heal, but he is as wild as ever. One day, therefore, after Hans and Pete’s arrival, Thornton and his friends are sitting on the edge of a chasm, into which Thornton suddenly orders Buck to jump. He understands the power struggle of the humans around him as well as he understands that of the dogs. He often ponders the nature of these mysterious calls, and he often thinks of running toward them, except for the fact that “the love of John Thornton drew him back to the fire again.” When Thornton’s partners, Hans and Pete, arrive with the long-awaited raft, Buck refuses to acknowledge them, except as friends of Thornton.