pull a sled. During the process of pulling a snow-sled, he understood that only when one follows the law of nature and obeys the master could one survive. Afterwards, Buck’s nature had been liberated, which made him be able to survive in the harsh environment. This is a brief introduction to the call of the wild. And the novel belongs to the genre of animal fiction, when you read it, you will find that Buck is endowed with the character of human nature and human thoughts. So he is more like a man than a dog. In the story, Buck would be certain to give you a deep impression with his wisdom and strength.
Ⅱ. Survival of the fittest theory
\of describing the natural selection. (Net. 1)We are endowed with incredible potential and
ability to fight and compete. Obviously there are winners and losers existing in this world we live. Just like animals fight a bloody battle for the sexual partner or prey. They are doing their utmost to extend the life and get a high status in front of their same species. The world is greatly cruel, survival of the fittest. The strong get the opportunity to survive and receive rewards, and the weak will be eliminative and disappeared in this world. That means the weak are doomed to die out. It is because that the strong making possible impelling the weak move in decline or the dead direction. Even if you are a spectator, you might be the one who makes grief to others; therefore everyone might be a culprit in someone else’s life directly or indirectly in this brutal world. The big bullying the small, the strong bullying the weak and the big fish swallowing the little fish. What we should have learned from that statement is that the strong survived, and the weak eliminated. This is not just a phenomenon confined to the whole animal world, but the human society as well. In the ecology environment of animals, there exists the law of the jungle and survival completion, and that is their survival state. We live in a world that is constantly bombarding us with changes. Humankind’s response has got to be immediately to new signs of sudden situation. Because that’s what life is. Whether you are willing or not, the world would move forward. Ain’t nobody gonna have no pity on you. Aint’t nobody gonna have no understanding on you. Only by working hard can we reveal ourselves. Nature always follows the rule of selecting the superior and
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eliminating the inferior. There is a theory about the society that no progressive opportunities can be seen if do not strive to perform any competitive action, since ancient times. Competition is more ruthless than what we have thought it should be. However, only in this way can reveal one’s incredibly excellent ability in human society as well as in animal world.
Ⅲ. The change of Buck’s fate
3.1 Falling into a snare and leaving home
Buck was a dog of 140 pounds. He had lived in judge Miller’s residence for 4 years. During that time, buck was supplied with satisfied food and a comfortable environment. It seemed that he never worried about lives because he could reach whatever he wanted. Due to the superior living environment, he received a great number of favors and did not need to do some hard works or chores. In this regard, Buck formed a few good habits such as docility and gentleness. However, all of this was ended on an awful night.
Manuel,a gardener of Judge Miller, who liked gambling. It was a man of misbehavior. One day he lost his money in a gamble and wanted to get his loan back. Therefore, he made Buck fall into a snare and abducted Buck get out of house and sold him to a strange man with a fortune of 100 dollars. When the train was coming along the railway and two people threw it in the luggage trunk. All of a sudden he realized that he was kidnapped and it was too late to do anything for him. From that moment on, there were no any differences between Buck and other dogs. His entire halo had been removed and there was an unknown road ahead him.
3.2 Going into the wild
It seemed apparently that Buck had played a key role in Judge Miller’s home. As a pet, Buck lived in a civilized society originally, in which residents lived under good social order. Buck is more a pet than a beast in this world. He need not work for his master, Mr. Miller; besides, he neither did have to nurse his master or secure home. It was because that Buck was primarily a playmate or a family member to Mr. Miller. Living in such a cozy environment, Buck had never feared the shortage of food and the struggle with his species. On the contrary, he kept enjoying what the civilization had brought to him, including the warm sunshine, beautiful garden and the fruit fields. However, Buck's rich life did not last long. Gone away
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from the sunny and civilized south, Buck had come to the arctic region in which there is full of ice and snow. He was not the boss any more with a fancy status to rule other companions, Where Buck stayed after kidnapping was a totally wilderness, it’s a place without peace and repose, and as well filling with dangers. “Here was neither peace, nor rest, nor a moment's
safety. All was confusion and action, and every moment life and limb were in peril. There was imperative need to be constantly alert, for these dogs and men were not town dogs and men. They were savages, all of them, who knew no law but the law of club and fang”. (Jack London, 1981:45)In this regard, they had to be careful and remain focused every moment.
Buck was forced to arrive in an unfamiliar world. In his eyes, both the dogs and people here were full of barbarism. It was the first time that he saw those dogs attacking their companions with fellness. That scene would be an unforgettable experience in his life and he started figuring out what the real situation was in wild environment. 3.3 Living in a desperate environment
Buck had lived a carefree life in Mr. Miller's luxurious house till he was kidnapped. But since then, Buck’s living environment became worse and worse. Every day he had little food to eat, so that he was almost always hungry. In this regard, Buck had to fill the belly by stealing the foods from his host and learning to eat fast. Moreover, while fetching water to quench his thirst, he tried to break the ice by his strong feet under freezing condition. Even though, he met a good host John Thornton who treated Buck with much care and love, unfortunately, it didn’t last long. As a human being, Thornton had to fight against the harsh environment together with those dogs. Ultimately, he was not successful and he was murdered by local Indians. So Buck exploded into a rage about Thornton’s death and revenged the murder of his master. After that, he was determined to head to the wilderness, becoming a part of the wolves. In fact, Buck was an undisputed warrior, he defeated other wolves and became a leader with his wisdom and strength. As Buck got away from civilized society gradually, he became an intrepid beast eventually.
Buck had gone through a large amount of trials. First, his living environment had undergone a huge shift and the carefree life had gone forever. And, second, the new environment was full of all kinds of dangers and challenges, he had to adjust himself to it as soon as possible. In such a desperate environment, Buck had to accept new things and learn
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essential survival skills. It was sharp changes of his living environment that enabled him to obey the rules of nature. 3.4 Working as a sled dog
Buck was abducted to the cold area and started doing physical labor as a horse. Buck felt strongly that his dignity was deeply hurt but he knew that there was no use resisting. He had got to obey orders. If he came out against he would be punished. In that case, the violence enabled him to quickly learn how to pull the sledge to please his master. It was very hard for those dogs to pull a sled in freezing condition. On the one hand, the dogs were supposed to run hundreds of miles a day. On the other hand, when working, the dogs had to gone through the hunger and cold. In the period of pulling the sledge, Buck had gained a lot from sled work, which was beneficial to his further life in primitive world.
Ⅳ. Acquiring the survival skills in the new environment
4.1 Learning the lesson of primitive law
The primitive law is a basic rule, which must be followed in the primitive world. It implies that cruelty is an essential part of the primitive world and obeying the power is a must for men and animals in the wild world. Buck had lived a cozy life in Mr. Miller’s house in the Santa Clara Valley, because he had no need to work for Mr. Miller. To his delight, Buck had got a really easy job, what he had to do was to play with his hosts. It must be a nice living in such a civilized environment and never having to worry about food or struggling with others, let alone dangers. During his time in Mr. Miller’s home, he believed that human beings were friendly until he was directly to be sold to the dog trader without any precautions by Manuel who was a gardener of Mr. Miller’s. By the time he realized that he had been sold to a stranger, it’s too late and Buck felt extremely humiliated. He had privately resolved he would revenge the men who maltreated him. To complete the revenge, Buck tussled with other dogs. Only in this way, could he get dog trainers’ attention and show them his power. Later, there was a chance for him, so he bursted out of the cage, he couldn’t wait to vent out his anger at once. Actually it’s not that easy, Buck was knocked down every time, so that the idea he wanted to jump on the man in red for revenge was beaten out of his head by reality.
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