A Critique of The Call of the Wild, a Novel by Jack London

The Call of the Wild is an extraordinary novel about de-domestication. It recounts the tale of Buck, a 140-pound Scotch shepherd and Saint Bernard mix, and follows his journey from “coddled Californian pooch,” to a wild, vicious animal. Throughout the novel, London makes the primitivization that Buck goes through explicit, through a vast number of literary techniques. These include the anthropomorphism used throughout the book, which gives readers valued context into Buck’s mind; the symbolism, shown in the novel in instances such as the club, and the emotive and descriptive language used throughout the novel, increasing our empathy for Buck.

Firstly, anthropomorphism, the attribution of human characteristics or behaviour to a god, animal, or object, is used throughout the short story to help readers understand Buck’s frame of mind. This technique can be seen in examples such as: “Another lesson. So that was the way they did it, eh? Buck confidently selected a spot, and with much fuss and waste effort proceeded to dig a hole for himself…”

Without a doubt, this technique provides an essential piece of context and contributes to the reader’s sense of empathy or relatability.

Without the influence of this anthromoporism, it is more than likely that readers would not be as close and attentive to Buck as they might, which would have led to a very different reception for Buck. Secondly, symbolism is a very blatant and explicit technique throughout the Call of The Wild. There are a few objects in particular that London, the author uses in the novel.

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These include the club, used to beat Buck into submission, and the traces, which held the dogs tied to the sledge and created slack for dogs to pull. “… that pride which holds dogs in the toil to the last gasp, which lure them to die joyfully in the harness, and breaks their hearts if they cut out of the harness.”

As symbolism is practically just another term for hard-to-understand-metaphors, these symbols can be understood in very different ways among readers, which helps to increase the reader’s attentiveness towards the novel. Like the anthropomorphism, which provides subtext to Buck’s personality, these symbolisms offer context and relatability to Buck’s environment, making these two techniques irreplaceable.

Arguably, the use of emotive and descriptive language is the most essential technique in the story. “Dazed, suffering intolerable pain from throat and tongue, with the life half throttled out of him, Buck attempted to face his tormentors…”

There was no doubt that the fact that Buck was a canine was a considerable influence on the critical and everyday reaction of readers everywhere. Emotive words provoke the readers, and therefore, it can create a positive, or adverse effect on the reader’s mind. This is important in this novel, as London knows how to invoke relatability and understands that is a crucial aspect of the book and attracts readers. Therefore, the commonly used technique of emotive and descriptive language is one that cannot afford to be left out

In conclusion, without a doubt, if London had not explored the many beautiful and content adding techniques he did, the world would potentially have been without such an extraordinary novel. These techniques have highlighted and enhanced what otherwise might be a standard story, to a masterpiece about the ‘call of the wild.’ “There is an ecstasy that marks the summit of life, and beyond which life cannot rise. And such is the paradox of living, this ecstasy comes when one is most alive, and it comes as a complete forgetfulness that one is alive. ”