The Call of the Wild by Jack London - Key Themes and Plot Summary

Setting and Context

• Location: Yukon during the Klondike Gold Rush
• Protagonist: Buck, a St. Bernard mix
• Plot: Buck's journey from domestication to embracing his wild instincts

Plot Overview

• Buck's Initial Life:
  • Raised on Judge Miller's estate in California
  • Considered himself the prince of the estate
• Kidnapping and Transition:
  • Sold by a servant to a stranger
  • Shipped to Seattle and disciplined with a club
  • Significance of violence motif: law of club and fang
• Northland Journey:
  • Purchased by Francois and Perrault
  • Learns to be a sled dog and distrusts leader Spitz
  • Law of club and fang imprinted through survival and adaptation
• Conflict with Spitz:
  • Confrontation leading to Spitz's death
  • Buck becomes leader of the sled team

Life with John Thornton

• Transition to Freedom:
  • Purchased by inexperienced Hal, Charles, and Mercedes
  • Misunderstanding of wilderness symbolized by Mercedes' belongings
  • Thornton saves Buck, symbolizing freedom from harness
• Strong Bond with Thornton:
  • Wins a bet by pulling heavy sled
  • Thornton, Buck, and friends search for gold

Themes

Civilization vs. Wild

• Buck's Transformation:
  • From domestication to primal instincts
  • Final stage: leader of the wolf pack

Law and Order

• Contrasting Rules:
  • Law of Club and Fang vs. Law of Love and Brotherhood
  • Buck's internal struggle between affection for Thornton and wild instincts

Knowledge and Power

• Adaptation:
  • Learning and embracing instincts leads to power
  • Failure to adapt leads to downfall (Hal, Charles, and Mercedes)

Belonging and Community

• Yearning for Community:
  • From Judge's estate to Thornton's camp
  • Final belonging to wild wolf pack

Analysis and Critique

Psychoanalysis

• Freud and Darwin Influence:
  • Darwinian themes of survival, moral sense, and environmental influence

Nietzschean Themes

• Superhero Archetype:
  • Buck's evolution into a super canine through control and creative use of passions

These notes provide a comprehensive summary of the main themes, plot points, and character transformation in Jack London's "The Call of the Wild." They are structured to assist in understanding the narrative arc and thematic depth of the novel.