TEACHER'S GUIDE
JACK LONDON'S
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The
Call
of the Wild
NATIONAL
ENDOWMENT
FOR THE ARTS
Ul
*
READ
JACK LONDON'S
The
Call
of the Wild
TEACHER'S GUIDE
The
National
Endowment
for the Arts
—both new and
excellence in the arts
is
a public agency dedicated to supporting
established
—
NATIONAL
and providing leadership
ENDOWMENT
independent agency of the federal government, the
bringing the
in arts education. Established
annual funder of the
and
cities,
:•..
•V:
MuseunriandLibrary
The
arts,
bringing great art to
50
states,
is
in
1
Americans,
965
as
an
the nations largest
including rural areas, inner
military bases.
of Museum and Library Services
Institute
SERVICES
the nations 122,000 libraries
strong libraries and
works
all
by Congress
Endowment
FOR THE ARTS
arts to all
heritage, culture,
the primary source of federal support for
and 17,500 museums. The
museums mat connect
at the national level
is
and
Institutes mission
people to information and ideas.
with
in coordination
state
and
is
to create
The
Institute
local organizations to sustain
and knowledge; enhance learning and innovation; and support
professional development.
Am
MIDWEST
Midwest connects people throughout the Midwest and the world
Arts
opportunities, sharing creativity, knowledge,
in Minneapolis, Arts
Midwest connects the
and understanding
arts to
States, Arts
One
meaningful
arts
across boundaries. Based
audiences throughout the nine-state
region of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota,
Dakota, and Wisconsin.
to
of six non-profit regional
North Dakota, Ohio, South
arts organizations in the
United
Midwest's history spans more than 25 years.
Additional support for the Big Read has also been provided by the
W.K. Kellogg
Foundation.
Published by
National
1
Endowment
for the Arts
100 Pennsylvania Avenue,
N.W
Washington, D.C. 20506-0001
(202) 682-5400
Sources
Berton, Pierre. The Klondike Fever: The Life
Graf Publishers,
Fisher,
Inc.,
and Death of the
Last Great Gold Rush.
New York:
Carroll
&
1985.
John. Think Dog!
An
Owner's Guide
to
Canine Psychology. Chicago: Trafalgar Square Publishing,
1991.
London,
-
—
.
The Call of the Wild. 1903.
Jack.
New York: Aladdin
The Portable Jack London. Ed. by Earle Labor.
Millan, Cesar. Cesar's Way:
Problems.
The Natural Everyday Guide
New York: Harmony
Walker, FxwcMm. Jack
New York:
to
Paperbacks, 2003.
Viking, 1994.
Understanding and Correcting
Common Dog
Books, 2006.
London and the Klondike. San Marino, CA: The Huntington
Library, 1966.
Acknowledgements
NEA Director of National Reading Initiatives
Sarah Bainter Cunningham, PhD, NEA Director of Arts Education
David Kipen,
and Dan Brady
for the National
Endowment
for the Arts,
Molly Thomas-Hicks
for the National
Endowment
for the Arts
Writers: Erika Koss
Series Editor:
with a preface by
Dana Gioia
Graphic Design: Fletcher Design/Washington D.C.
Image Credits
Cover
Portrait:
John
&
© Bettman/Corbis.
courtesy of Simon
Sherffius for the Big Read.
Schuster, Inc. Page
1:
Page
iv:
Photo
© Paul Souders/Corbis, book cover
Caricature of Dana Gioia by John Sherffius. Inside back cover:
8
Table of Contents
Introduction
1
Suggested Teaching Schedule
2
Lesson One: Biography
4
Lesson Two: Culture and History
5
Lesson Three: Narrative and Point of View
6
Lesson Four: Characters
7
Symbols and Metaphors
8
Jack London's Writing Style
9
Lesson
Five:
Lesson
Six:
Lesson Seven: Character Development
Lesson Eight:
The
Lesson Nine:
Themes of the Book
Lesson Ten:
Plot Unfolds
What Makes
a Great Book?
10
11
12
13
Essay Topics
14
Capstone Projects
15
Handout One: The Klondike Gold Rush
16
Handout Two: Pack Mentality
17
Handout Three: Jack London and Naturalism
1
Teaching Resources
19
NCTE Standards
20
"There is an ecstasy that
marks the summit of life,
and beyond which life
cannot rise. And such is
the paradox of living, this
comes when one is
most alive, and it comes as
ecstasy
complete forgetfulness that
one is alive. This ecstasy...
came
to Buck, leading the
pack, sounding the old wolfcry, straining after the food
that was alive and that fled
swiftly before him through
the moonlight."
—from The
*^*
IV
*
THE BIG READ
National
Endowment
for the Arts
Call of the Wild
*
**ff"
# fty*H
Introduction
Welcome
to the Big Read, a major
initiative
from the National Endowment
in
American
Read hopes to unite communities through great
literature,
for the Arts. Designed to revitalize the role of literary reading
culture, the Big
as well as inspire students to
become
life-long readers.
This Big Read Teacher's Guide contains ten lessons to lead you through
Jack London's classic novel, The Call oftheWild. Each lesson has four
sections: a focus topic, discussion activities, writing exercises, and
homework
assignments.
In
addition,
we
have provided capstone projects
and suggested essay topics, as well as handouts with more background
information about the novel, the historical period, and the author. All
lessons dovetail with the state language arts standards required
in
the
fiction genre.
The
Big
Read teaching materials also include a CD. Packed with interviews,
CD
commentaries, and excerpts from the book, the Big Read
first-hand accounts of
than a century after
why The
its initial
Call
presents
oftheWild remains so compelling more
publication.
Some
of America's
most
celebrated writers, scholars, and actors have volunteered their time to
make these
Finally,
Big
Read
CDs
exciting additions to the classroom.
the Big Read Reader's Guide deepens your exploration with
interviews, booklists, timelines, and historical information.
We
hope
this
guide and syllabus allow you to have fun with your students while
introducing
them to the work
of a great American author.
From the NEA, we wish you an
exciting and productive school year.
"^UAU H$l&H^
Dana Gioia
Chairman, National Endowment for the Arts
National
Endowment
for the Arts
THE BIG READ
•
|
edule
HBBI
1
4
Day One
Day Four
FOCUS:
FOCUS: Characters
Biography
Activities: Listen
to the Big Read CD. Discuss
Reader's Guide essays. Have students write
Activities:
Discuss Handout Three. Analyze
each dog's personality and place
in
the pack.
about their work experience and reading
Write an essay considering the importance of
habits.
the
Homework: Read Chapter
Primitive" and
I
fight
between Buck and
Spitz.
."Into the
Homework: Read Chapter
Handout One.
4:
"Who
Has Won
to Mastership."
2
5
Day Two
FOCUS:
Day
Culture and History
Activities:
Discuss the Klondike and the gold
seekers' arduous journey across the Yukon
Territory.
Map
FOCUS: Symbols and Metaphors
Activities:
Discuss the symbolic meaning of
the "mysterious song" Buck hears as he
Buck's journey.
Homework: Read Chapter
Five
2: "The
Law
of
adjusts to
the
Club and Fang."
life in
Alaska. Write an essay about
man Buck "sees"
squatting by the
campfire.
3
Homework: Read Chapter 5:"TheToil of
Trace and Trail" and Handout Three. Ask
Day Three
students to select a favorite passage from the
book, and note three characteristics of
FOCUS:
Narrative and Point of
Activities:
View
London's writing
Discuss the book's narrative point
of view. Analyze passages that reveal Buck's
perspective. Write a story
from the
perspective of an animal.
Homework Read
"The Dominant
Primordial Beast" and Handout Two.
2
•
THE BIG READ
Chapter
3:
National
Endowment
for the Arts
style.
6
8
Day
Day Eight
Six
FOCUS: Jack London's Writing
FOCUS: The
Style
Plot Unfolds
Discuss Naturalism. Analyze
Activities:
Discuss the book's turning points
favorite passages to better understand
and what
we
Activities:
London's
style. Write
an essay considering the
parallel
London makes between the
soldier,
and Buck.
Homework: Read Chapter
artist,
learn
moments. Write an essay on the
Homework: Consider whether
6:
"For the Love
would have
differed
survived.
7
9
Day Seven
Day Nine
FOCUS: Character Development
FOCUS: Themes
human
Discuss the parallels between the
characters and the dogs. Discuss
Activities:
Homework: Read Chapter
Homework:
the
John Thornton had
of the
Civilization. Write
epigraph.
Sound of
if
Buck's actions
Book
Discuss themes of Nature and
London's view of humans and animals.
7: "The
novel's
conclusion.
of a Man."
Activities:
about Buck during those
an essay about the novel's
Begin working on essays.
Call."
10
Day Ten
FOCUS: What Makes
Activities:
work
of
Book?
Explore the qualities of a great
fiction.
Homework: Work on
National
a Great
Endowment
essays.
for the Arts
THE
BIG
READ
3
The authors life can inform and expand the reader's understanding of a
work of fiction. One practice of examining a literary work, biographical
through the lens of an authors experience. In
criticism, looks
explore the author's
life
to
more
fully
understand the book.
Jack London's formal education stopped after
teenager,
up
FOCUS:
Biography
freshman
grammar
he held a variety of jobs to help support
his goal
this lesson,
school.
his family,
As
but never gave
of pursuing an education. At age 19, London enrolled
at
Oakland High School while working
a
as a
there as a janitor.
He
quit
school after one year, but was eventually admitted to the University of
California, Berkeley. Frustrated
out
after
by the slow pace of his
one semester and began a
reading and studying
more than
life-long practice
fifteen
classes,
he dropped
of self-education, often
hours a day.
His brother-in-law, Captain James Shepard, asked London to join him
in
897 Klondike gold rush. They began the ill-fated adventure that
summer. Shepard died in the Klondike, and London became stricken with
the
1
scurvy that winter.
London
returned to San Francisco in July 1898, but this
one year provided inspiration and material
for
many stories.
Discussion Activities
Read CD. Have students take notes
Listen to the Big
Ask students
London" and "London
as they listen.
to read the following essays from the Reader's Guide: "Jack
and His Other Works." Have them present the three most important points they
learned from the
CD
and Reader's Guide.
London often encouraged unpublished writers to work hard, write
consistently, and "have a philosophy." In a letter to one such writer, London wrote,
Jack
"There's only one
way to make
a beginning, and that
hard work, patience, prepared for
before
I
all
own
to begin; and begin with
the disappointments
succeeded." Ask your students
they plan their
is
how
this
[.
.
.]
which were mine
advice might apply to
them
as
educations and careers.
Writing Exercise
London belonged to the working-class poor until he achieved literary fame.
Even without a high school education, he was voracious reader, spending several
hours reading before he fell asleep every night Ask your students to write a onepage essay about their work experience and reading habits. Can they relate to any
Jack
part of Jack London's struggle to obtain an education?
How
does education
fit
into
the pursuit of their goals and dreams?
C3
Homework
Read The
this guide.
Call of the Wild,
Why
does Manuel
red sweater" teach Buck?
4
•
THE BIG READ
National
Endowment
Chapter
for the Arts
steal
l:"lnto the Primitive"
and
sell
Buck?
What
and Handout
One from
does the "man with the
Cultural and historical contexts give birth to the dilemmas and themes at
work of fiction. Studying these contexts and appreciating the
intricate details of the time and place can assist us in comprehending the
motivations of the characters. In this lesson, use cultural and historical
contexts to begin to explore The Call of the Wild.
the heart of a
Preparing for the journey to the Klondike was no easy task.
The Canadian
government enforced a law that required every team of prospectors
FOCUS:
make it over the mountains.
weight came from food (including the recommended 20
one thousand pounds of supplies with them
Most of this
Culture and
History
to carry
to
pounds of flour, 12 pounds of bacon, 12 pounds of beans, 3 pounds of
coffee, and 5 pounds of corn meal). Heavy equipment and the warmest
clothing available
made up
the
rest.
found much of the land already
Once
staked.
team reached Dawson, they
a
Many obtained
jobs
working
for
other miners, in hotels, bars, or supply shops. Mail, carried entirely by
dogsled,
was often delayed
Dawson were
also rife
for
months
at a
time in the winter. Cities
with conmen. From
its
impassable
trails
to
like
its
sawdust bar rooms, the Klondike was a dangerous place.
Discussion Activities
The Yukon Territory is so large it could cover two-thirds of the western United
States. Gary Paulson gives a clear comparison of what the gold rushers went
through:"put a hundred-pound pack on your back and then walk from New York
to Chicago through dense forest and over huge mountains, subsisting only on what
food you could hunt along the way, while working twenty-four hour days, panning
and picking for gold
When
in
every stream or rock gorge."
news of the Gold Rush came
in
1897,
thousands of people (ninety percent
were men) left their homes and families to search for gold, with no certainty they
would be successful. Ask your students to describe the Klondike based on what
they learned from listening to the CD and reading Handout One. Would your
students be motivated to undergo such a treacherous journey? What was life like
in your city or town during the 1890s?
Writing Exercise
In
Chapter
I
,
Buck
is
stolen
Perrault and Francois.
new
the
R3
Make
from
a
place. In preparation for
way London
his
map
home and
sold north as a sled
dog to
of Buck's journey, noting what he learns
in
each
Lesson Three, students should also pay attention to
describes each place from a dog's point of view.
Homework
Read The
Call
learn after he
oftheWild, Chapter 2:"The
is
Law
of Club and Fang." What does Buck
"suddenly jerked from the heart of
heart of things primordial"?
From
this chapter,
civilization
and flung into the
describe several specific things Buck
learns by either experience or instinct.
National
Endowment
for the Arts
THE BIG READ
•
5
The
narrator
tells
the story with a specific perspective informed by his or
The
her beliefs and experiences.
The
narrator weaves her or his point of view, including ignorance
into the telling of the
of the book using
"I."
tale.
narrate the story.
minds of all
The
perspective of the
(he, she, they) to
main
is
of narrator determines the
told.
from third-person point of view by a limited
Wild'is told
omniscient narrator. This narrator
View
bias,
distanced narrator can be omniscient, able to read the
characters. Ultimately, the type
The Call of the
and
(often not a character) does not
of the story and uses third person
point of view from which the story
Narrative
and Point of
character.
A first-person narrator participates in the events
A distanced narrator
participate in the events
FOCUS:
minor
narrator can be a major or
the story entirely from the
tells
Shepherd
character, Buck, a St. Bernard/Scotch
dog. In order to understand The Call of the Wild, students must
understand Buck's personality and motivations. This lesson
designed to
is
prepare your students to understand Buck's actions in the novel's
last
chapter.
Discussion Activities
Divide the class into groups, and give each one of the following passages to analyze.
Ask students to answer the
following questions:
about Buck's view of himself?
What does
What does
the passage
tell
the passage reveal
us about his view of his
world, especially the humans around him?
•
Chapter
was
his
Judge
•
:
I
[.
.
"But Buck was neither house dog nor kennel dog. The whole realm
for he
.]
Miller's place,
Chapter
I
was
humans
2:
"This
first
environment.
It
marked
conditions
.]
It
[.
.
creeping, crawling, flying things of
that);
no chance
in all his afterlife
theft
all
included."
that he stood
all,
learned the lesson, and
Chapter
king over
Buck "was beaten (he knew
:
once and for
•
—
king
marked Buck
against a
man
he never forgot
fit
to survive
his adaptability, his capacity
in
with a club.
it"
the hostile Northland
to adjust himself to changing
marked, further, the decay or going to pieces of
nature, a vain thing and a handicap
in
He saw,
He had
but he was not broken.
his
moral
the ruthless struggle for existence."
Writing Exercise
Try to imitate London's storytelling devices by narrating a story from your
from the point of view of a pet (or an imaginary
difficult?
What
animal).
Is
this
own
life
technique easy or
other novels, poems, or stories are told from an animal's point of
view?
Q
Homework
Read The
Call
of the Wild, Chapter 3:"The Dominant Primordial Beast" and
Handout Two from this guide. Why do Buck and
the way it does? Why or why not?
6
*
THE BIG READ
National
Endowment
for the Arts
Spitz fight?
Does
it
have to end
The main
character in a
work of literature
is
protagonist often overcomes a weakness or ignorance to achieve a
understanding by the work's end.
courage
may
be called a "hero."
questionable virtue
is
The
new
called the "protagonist."
A protagonist who acts with great
A protagonist of dubious tenacity and
an "antihero." Readers often debate the virtues and
motivations of the protagonists in the attempt to understand whether they
are heroic.
FOCUS:
Characters
The
protagonist's journey
presented by characters with different
protagonist so as to highlight
character.
more
The most important
foil,
is
made more dramatic by
beliefs.
challenges
A "foil" provokes the
clearly certain features
of the main
the "antagonist," opposes the
protagonist, barring or complicating his or her success.
Buck
is
the protagonist of the novel. Several antagonists oppose
humans, even the harsh climate and landscape. For
him
—
dogs,
on
this lesson, focus
the
canine characters; Lesson Seven will focus on the humans.
Discussion Activities
Discuss Handout Two, "Pack Mentality." Assign each group one dog other than
Buck from Chapters
1-3:
Curly, Dave, Spitz, Sol-leks, Billee,
find passages that reveal information
dog
fit
into the pack?
What
about the dog's
does Buck think of
this
or Joe. Ask students to
personality.
Where does
the
dog? What does the dog think
of Buck and of the humans? Have each group present the key attributes of their
dog's character, giving specific
examples from the text to support their answers.
Writing Exercise
Chapter
3 centers
on the
fight
between Buck and
—one
Spitz
of the novel's
most
How does the narrator prepare the reader for this scene? Who
fight? Why does Buck win? Did the fight have to end in Spitz's death?
important scenes.
initiates this
Why or why
E3
not?
Homework
Read The
Call
of the Wild, Chapter
to interpret the dogs as symbolic?
4:
"Who
What
Has Won to Mastership."
Is it
passages might suggest they are
possible
more
than just characters?
National
Endowment
for the Arts
THE BIG READ
7
Symbols
Most frequently, a specific object
symbolize) a more abstract concept. The
are interpretive keys to the text.
be used to reference (or
will
repeated appearance of an object suggests a non-literal or figurative
—above and beyond
meaning attached
to the object
often found in the
books
title,
or personality of a character.
thing
is
FOCUS:
similarities,
Symbols and
Metaphors
While Jack London does not use
characters
A metaphor
which, in a
else,
Symbols
are
within a profound action, or captured by the
name
something
face value.
is
a statement that
literal sense, it is
not.
By
revealing
metaphors provide insight into characters, events, and
figurative language frequently,
and themes may be interpreted
as
one
issues.
some of his
symbolic or metaphorical. For
instance, the land in
The Call of the Wild holds
beyond weather and
terrain.
significance that extends
Discussion Activities
Buck begins to hear a mysterious song only
after
he
is
removed from
his
as a
life
domesticated pet and taken to the harsh environment of Alaska. Ask students to
reread a significant passage from Chapter
coldly
overhead
only
was pitched
it
more the
[.
.
.]
pleading of
minor
a
life,
key,
discuss
what
this
the articulate
song
ways the song functions
the
full
borealis flaming
is literally.
travail
this
of existence." There are several
song to Buck
Then, ask your students to consider the
as a metaphor.
passage suggest a major
life,
with long-drawn wailings and half-sobs, and was
other passages that describe the allure of
First,
"With the aurora
song of the huskies might have been the defiance of
this
in
3:
Is
this
song only heard by Buck?
theme of the novel
for both
How
does
humans and dogs?
Writing Exercise
Q
After the great fight with
Spitz,
campfire (see Chapter
Who
4).
Buck begins to "see" a hairy man, squatting by
is
he?
What
might he symbolize to Buck?
Homework
Read The
Call
of the Wild, Chapter 5:"TheToil of Trace and
Three "Jack London and Naturalism." Ask students to
Trail."
*
THE
BIG
READ
National
Endowment
for the Arts
Read Handout
find a favorite passage
the novel, and note three characteristics of London's writing
8
his
style.
from
A little background information may help students appreciate the
complexity of the novel despite London's straightforward
Jack
letter,
but the
me
—
London
last several
the world
is
wrote, "Never a night (whether
hours are spent in bed with
writing schedule throughout his
He
world.
FOCUS:
Jack London's
Writing Style
day. After
He
so very good."
life,
I
style.
In a 1900
have gone out or not),
my books. All
things interest
maintained a disciplined, rigorous
even while travelling and exploring the
spent the mornings writing with the goal of 1,000 words each
he married
maintained a
second wife, Charmian Kittredge in 1905, they
his
new daily schedule
until his death.
While he wrote 1,000 new
words, she would type and prepare the manuscript for the previous day's
work.
Discussion Activities
Using Handout Three, ask your students to identify
Naturalism. Have
they
them share some of their
the passages reflect a
feel
Other than the subject
matter,
realistic
is
some
of the characteristics of
favorite passages
from the book.
Do
view of nature and the environment?
there a quality that makes London's writing
seem
"natural"?
were often misunderstood. In his essay, "The Other
Animals," London explained: "The writing of [The Call of the Wild and White
London's
artistic intentions
Fang]., .was in truth a protest against the 'humanizing' of animals.
again.
.
.1
wrote, speaking of
merely did them'... and
I
my
did
it
.
.Time and
dog-heroes: 'He did not think these things; he
in
order to
hammer
into the average
human
understanding that these dog-heroes of mine were not directed by abstract
reasoning, but by instinct, sensation, and emotion, and by simple reasoning." What
does London mean by
specific
Discuss this quote and
this?
examples from the
its
relevance to the book, using
text.
Writing Exercise
One
most famous and important passages occurs in
Chapter 3: "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." Read the
full
of The Call oftheWild's
passage closely as a
soldier,
parallel
class.
Notice that the
and Buck. This comparison may
London
is
drawing
among
come
passage unites the artist the
what
as a surprise, but consider
these three types. What insight does
passage offer into London's writing style and
Ci
full
this
artistic vision?
Homework
Read The
Thornton
Call
of the Wild, Chapter
differ
6:
"For the Love of a Man."
How
does John
from Buck's previous masters? Why does Buck respond to
Thornton with such devotion?
National
Endowment
for the Arts
THE BIG READ
•
9
Works of fiction
trace the
development of characters
who
encounter a
series
of challenges. Most characters contain a complex balance of virtues and
and
vices. Internal
overcome
change.
fears,
external forces require characters to question themselves,
or reconsider dreams.
The
protagonist undergoes profound
A close study of character development maps the evolution of
motivation, personality, and belief in each character.
Still,
the tension
between a characters strengths and weaknesses keeps the reader guessing
FOCUS:
Character
about what might happen next, affecting the drama and the
Lesson Four focused on the dogs in The Call of the Wild;
focus
Development
on
the humans. In
us be very humble.
move through
plot.
this lesson will
"The Other Animals" London admonishes, "Let
We who are so very human
this lesson,
consider what
are very animal."
As you
London might have meant by
this
statement.
Discussion Activities and Writing Exercise
What do you
London meant by the statement cited above? As your
class discusses the human characters, ask each student to write about the parallels
between one human character's behavior and one dog's. (You might ask students
think Jack
to review their notes from Lesson Four.)
•
Judge
Although
Miller:
we
never meet Judge
Miller,
what do we
learn
about him
from Buck? Does Buck respect or love him?
•
The "man
the red sweater":
in
Upon
first
reading, this
man may seem
unreasonably brutal and cruel. But from another perspective, could
lesson
—
to Buck
survive
•
in
Perrault and Francois:
will lose
a
member
Hal, Charles,
Call
exactly
man's
what Buck needs to
the Klondike?
they allow Buck to
•
—be
"the law of club and fang"
this
What
special qualities
fight Spitz
does Perrault see
to the death, even though this
in
Buck? Why do
means
their sled
of their sled team?
and Mercedes: Can these three inept humans be viewed as The
oftheWild's primary antagonists?
What
might London be suggesting by
humans who seek gold at the expense of their own well-being?
John Thornton: Why does Buck develop genuine love for Thornton? Why does
Thornton admire Buck so much?
including three
•
23
Homework
Read The
Call
of the Wild, Chapter
adoration for Thornton,
why does
active" in Buck?
|
*
THE
BIG
READ
National
Endowment
for the Arts
7:
"The Sound of the
Call."
Despite Buck's
the "strain of the primitive" remain "alive and
The author
suspense,
artfully builds a plot structure to create expectations, increase
and inform character development. The timing of events from
beginning to middle to end can make a book predictable or
plot, propelled
by a
crisis, will
reach a climax,
and
close
riveting.
A
with a resolution
(sometimes called denouement). Foreshadowing and flashbacks allow the
author to defy time while
by
reader entranced
telling the story.
confounding a simple plot by
The
The Call of the Wild is
reader witnesses
Unfolds
telling stories
within
stories.
any flashbacks. The
told chronologically without
Bucks transformation from the contented,
Judge Miller to the "dominant primordial beast"
hunger and
sometimes
clever pacing built within the tale,
FOCUS:
Plot
A successful author will keep a
fatigue,
and eventually answers the
who
call
civilized pet
kills his rival,
of
endures
of his wild ancestors.
Discussion Activities
Map
will
the book's major turning points, plots, and subplots.
map
In
small groups, students
a timeline of The Call oftheWild's major events. Students should identify
the arc of the story including rising action, climax, and resolution.
Make sure they
include the following significant events:
•
Chapter
3:
Buck defeats
his rival, Spitz.
How
does
more
this fight trigger Buck's
"primitive" nature?
•
Chapter
6:
How does
dollars for Thornton in a bet at
Buck wins $1,600
Buck accomplish
this feat?
Why
does
this lead
Dawson
City.
to Buck's fame
throughout Alaska?
•
•
Chapter
7: John
Thornton discovers gold "like yellow
new
respond to
this
Chapter
Buck
7:
lifestyle,
leaves John
out the entire camp.
How
butter."
How
does Buck
compared to the other dogs?
Thornton, unknowingly missing a
raid that
wipes
does Buck respond to Thornton's death?
Writing Exercise
many events foreshadow its conclusion.
or why not? Ask students to find specific
Flashbacks are absent from the book, but
Was
the ending a surprise to you? Why
textual references
civilization
R]
where the narrator
and follow
suggests that Buck
will ultimately reject
his nature.
Homework
Pretend that John Thornton survived the brutal massacre.
Thornton, or would Buck
would
stay with
What
might London be suggesting by
National
still
killing
Endowment
Do
you think Buck
follow the wolves into the forest?
Buck's beloved master?
for the Arts
THE BIG READ
•
|
I
Profound questions
to explore the
raised
by the story allow the character (and the
meaning of human
life
and
investigate topics explored for centuries
and theologians.
scientists, historians,
extract themes.
by philosophers,
Classic
and
justice,
spiritual faith versus rational
challenge and explore
Themes of
the Book
Discussion Activities
human
There are many themes
between Nature and
this
complex theme
Buck
call
of
his
captivates Buck.
"Deep
in
commitments.
Use
this
Ask your students to
discuss the various
ways
call
and
his love for his master,
Ask students to
was sounding, and
find specific
luring,
it,
he
felt
as often as
moments when
human
he heard
compelled to turn
his
and to plunge into the forest
Thornton drew him back to the
describe an archetypal
John Thornton, and the
this
passage from Chapter 6 to begin your discussion:
and the beaten earth around
love for John
situations to
oftheWild, but none as central as the tension
Coll
between
ancestors.
thrilling
new
A work of fiction
revealed.
is
the forest a
mysteriously
The
intellectual
nature.
Civilization.
ultimately struggles
enigmatic
call
in
politicians,
in relation to political
can shed light on these age-old debates by creating
FOCUS:
Themes
themes include
freedom versus censorship, personal moral code
reader)
fire again."
this call,
back upon the
[.
How
.
.]
but
does
[.
this
.
.]
fire
the
passage
conflict?
Writing Exercise
The
Call
oftheWild opens with a four-line epigraph from "Atavism," a
John Myers O'Hara, published
in
1902. Jack
London wrote to O'Hara
poem
in
by
I907:"l
poem 'Atavism,' in a detached fragment Never
knew who wrote them, and never knew the rest of the poem. Won't you PLEASE
send me the whole poem? Of all the poetry know, there were no four lines
ran across those lines from your
I
within a hundred million miles as appropriate for the key to Trie Coll oftheWild as
EJ
were those four
lines
lines articulate a
major theme of the novel?
of yours that
I
used."
Do
you agree or disagree that these
Homework
Begin working on essays, choosing one of the Essay Topics
are due at the next
|
2
*
THE
BIG
READ
National
Endowment
class.
for the Arts
in this
guide. Outlines
Works of fiction
illustrate
the connections between individuals
and
questions of humanity. Great stories articulate and explore the mysteries of
our daily
lives,
while painting those conflicts in the larger picture of human
bonds with the story
struggle. Readers forge
sense of poetry inform the plot, characters,
and themes. By creating
opportunities for learning, imagining, and reflecting, a great
of art that
FOCUS:
affects
many
generations of readers, changing
assumptions, and breaking
What Makes
and
as the writer's voice, style,
book
lives,
is
a
work
challenging
new ground.
Discussion Activities
a Great
Ask students to make
the board.
some
In
a
list
of the characteristics of a great book. Write these on
small groups, ask students to discuss specific
of these characteristics.
Do
books that include
any of these books remind them of The
Call
of
theWildl
A great writer can
be the voice of a generation. What kind of voice does Jack
London create through The
is
a dog,
what does
this
Call
oftheWild 7 Although the protagonist of the novel
.
story suggest about the concerns and motivations of
people during the 1890s Gold Rush? Are these concerns and motivations
relevant
in 21
st
century America? Why or
why
still
not?
Writing Exercise
Ask students to write
like
a persuasive letter to a friend, perhaps
one who does not
why The Call oftheWild is a good book. Develop an
explains why the novel has meaning for many people, not just
to read, explaining
argument that
a
particular group.
Have students work on essays
their thesis.
in class.
Have students partner to
Be
available to assist students in developing
edit outlines and/or rough drafts. Provide
students with the characteristics of a well-written essay.
E3
Homework
Continue working on
the next
essays. Students will turn in a
rough draft of their essays at
class.
National
Endowment
tor the Arts
THE BIG READ
•
|
3
.
opics
The
as
and writing
discussion activities
do the Discussion Questions
own
exercises in this guide provide
in the Reader's
you with
Guide. Advanced students can come up with their
and compelling. Other
essay topics, as long as they are specific
possible essay topics,
ideas for essays are provided
here.
For
essays, students
should organize their ideas around a
should be focused, with clear reasons supporting
thesis
about the book. This statement or
thesis
its
conclusion.
The
thesis
and supporting
reasons should be backed by references to the text.
Why
1
might Jack London choose to focus on a
dog's point of view during the
rather than a
from the
different
the
How
were
might the story be
told
from
his
titles
How
humans? Choose one human
novel.
if it
Gold Rush
Discuss the significance of the novel's
or her point
5,
On
from
Hal.
Buck
in this
become
Buck endures
one
level,
scene. But
the only
a severe beating
in California,
Buck's
what
quality allows
member
Buck
Sara
brutal himself
first
theft
marks him "as
the
fit
to survive
fittest
Wild
a
is
asserts,"Jack
a quality of being
in
some
order to survive.
in
and he knows
that.
life
The
It's
hands
way,
survival of
Call
of the
a timeless classic of literature because
book about
issue for
with the red sweater had beaten
him a more fundamental and primitive
survival,
and
survival
is
an
everyone no matter whether we're
surviving a bad relationship or
in
code." What happens to Buck's "moral
consideration" after this transformative
Hodson
in
it's
man
S.
able to adapt to whatever situation
the significance of the description: "but the club
into
suggest the changing
to them. Buck has to become,
of his pack to
the hostile Northland environment." Explain
of the
titles
London and Buck both share
John Thornton saves
survive?
3.
do these
Literary Manuscripts at the Huntington Library
Chapter
to
of each of the book's seven chapters.
London scholar and the Curator of
Jack
In
and
character of Buck?
of view?
2.
title
whether we
live
the Klondike." Using your knowledge of Jack
London's biography, do you agree with her
first
assessment? Identify
some
specific parallels
theft?
between the author and
certain
amount
survival,
I
4
*
THE
BIG
READ
National
Endowment
for the Arts
his protagonist.
Is
of "brutality" necessary for
even today?
a
.
Teachers
may
community
consider the ways in which these activities
events.
Most of these
may
be linked to other Big Read
projects could be shared at a local library, a student assembly, or
a bookstore.
1
Gold has
a fascinating history. Research
4.
its
compared to its
contemporary uses and value. As a class, create
ancient uses and values
a
map
Graphic designers and
imagined
many
London's The
book cover
of the world, indicating the places that
Ask each student to
choose one country and analyze the way the
gold has been found.
have
illustrators
different covers for Jack
Call
of the Wild. Create your
you
using a scene
feel
own
embodies a
major theme.
5.
Research the history of working dogs. What
discovery of gold can transform a country's
economic
2.
situation
sorts of jobs are particularly suited to different
—
for better and for worse.
breeds?
How many
different types of
Expanding on Lesson Two, ask students to
mentioned
consider what
the Gold
display that highlights these breeds
would they
their
dominant
Buck
is
Rush of
1897.
it
would take to
What
need to carry?
join
kinds of things
How much money would
they
6.
need for the journey? Students should learn
Fang,
more about Dawson
City,
the Chilkoot Pass,
to contract. Students with an interest
Dawson
in
Call
of the Wild Create a
.
and
lists
attributes.
who "becomes"
a wolf;
features a wolf that
Do
in
White
"becomes"
a
wolves deserve such a negative
reputation from humans?
many
the food that would have been eaten, or the
would have been popular
London
and wolves.
in
food might consider focusing their research on
recipes that
dog
The
dog. Research the relationship between dogs
and the diseases that many gold rushers were
likely
a
in
dogs are
7
Why
fairytales, folk legends,
do you think so
and myths feature
wolves as antagonists?
a
7.
City hotel.
Compare
the Klondike of 1897 to today. Have
the geographic boundaries changed? Highlight
3.
Use photography or artwork to create
gallery of
life
family
photo
during the Gold Rush. The photos
may come from books, from the
from
a
Internet,
the similarities and differences, including details
about the climate, animals, plant
life,
and
rivers.
or
photo albums.
National
Endowment
for the Arts
THE
BIG
READ
|
5
—
6
HANDOUT ONE
The Klondike Gold Rush
In
May of 896
prospector Robert Henderson
1
came upon George Carmack,
animals died along
and
his wife Kate,
two American Indians, Skookum Jim and Tagish
on the Thron-diuck
Charley, as they fished
Henderson
Carmack
called
aside
and
River.
him of a
told
better. In the
Carmack and
not
far
August
own
stake
from Hendersons
th
1
that the
,
site. It
—
a claim
Of the
was there on
by Skookum Jim. The next day Carmack
claim
filed
the
by an American Indian would not
have been recognized
stampeders faced rain and
as the trail rose 1,000 feet in the last
Winter conditions were even worse.
and avalanches were
—and word began
to spread
up and down the Klondike. Within weeks
who came
during the arduous mountain journey. Those
make
did
it
already staked, but striking gold wasn't the only
to get rich in the Klondike.
became known
in town. Saloons
lucrative,
By mid-July
1897, the
first
in
Many enterprising
establishing businesses
and supply shops were the most
preying on the exuberant spending of
ships loaded with gold
those
docked
who
were disappointed to find the land
newcomers found wealth by
Bonanza Creek.
to the Klondike,
only 40,000 arrived in Dawson, most turning back
way
the
100,000 people
surrounding land was claimed, and Rabbit Creek
as
regular occurrences.
on Rabbit Creek,
nugget of gold was found
first
much
his
Blizzards
friends sought their
summer
Chilkoot Pass wasn't
by the thaw. Pack animals and extra supplies were
half-mile.
tip,
injury.
course from exhaustion,
fog in their climb over enormous boulders exposed
abandoned
small prospect he had found in a nearby creek.
Encouraged by Hendersons
and
starvation,
this
San Francisco and
Seattle.
The
who
struck gold and the naivety of would-be
Seattle
miners.
Post- Intelligencer chartered a tugboat for
meet the Portland steamer before
reporters to
reached shore.
The
headline read
bound
for Alaska
it
"GOLD!
GOLD! GOLD! GOLD!" Almost
ships
its
immediately,
were nearly bursting with
those seeking a quick fortune, including the
young
1899, the Klondike
the
good land claimed, many stampeders went
Gold Rush was
home empty-handed. Others
Alaska, where gold
Spanish-American
had
just
set
—
memory
Most people could not
later
War took
the attention of the
until revived imaginatively a
and Chilkoot
White
ice,
Pass
Pass, the
"Golden
was narrow and
steep,
and overcrowded with novice
fortune hunters.
Upwards of 3,000 pack
THE
National
I
6
•
BIG
READ
few years
by Jack London's White Fang, The Son of the
Wolf, and The Call of the Wild.
covered with
Nome,
been discovered. The
forced to
choose between two deadly overland routes
Staircase."
out for
afford the relatively easy
Dawson City and were
steamship ride to
Pass
over.
country and the Klondike Gold Rush faded into
Jack London.
White
With
By
Endowment
for the Arts
HANDOUT TWO
Pack Mentality
A dog
defined by his or her status in the pack.
is
Status determines
sleeps.
When
as one,
each
when he
the pack
works, plays, and
eats,
stable, the
is
dogs act almost
whole. This stability can only be achieved
strong, confident
dog
is
deference, always eating
the survival of the
fulfilling its role for
—
in the lead
the
when
The Alpha, of course,
paws.
disturbed
infringe
when
on the
most
receives the
and not being
first
asleep. If any
of the pack members
Alpha's privileges,
takes only a
it
harsh look to restore order.
a
Alpha dog.
Alpha dog
If the
not living up to his duties, he
is
The Alpha must be calm but
powerful to maintain
will
the respect of the others.
his responsibility to
receptive to the Alpha's rules, but will not accept a
lead, organize,
It is
and protect the pack,
The Alpha makes
hunt, and defend the den.
tolerate.
When Buck is
judgment was
required,
quick acting," he
sets
clear
it
which behaviors he approves of and which he
not
weak
initiate the
will
"where
in the lead
and quick thinking and
Buck's heels,
his
who
"Pike,
and who never put an ounce more of
pulling
ere the first
more than
day was done he was
ever before in his
not accepted in
is
dog
is
may
weak, he
of the pack
is
more
important than any one dog. This
is
illustrated
be
killed.
survival
in
upon
weak but
by
friendly Curly
approaches a superior husky. "They closed
her, snarling
and
and she was
yelping,
mass of bodies." Perhaps the best follower in The
Call of the Wild is Dave
compelled to do, was swiftly and repeatedly shaken
and
The
If a
are
buried, screaming with agony, beneath the brisding
pulled at
weight against the breast-band than he was
for loafing;
any member of the pack.
after she
other sled dogs, correcting the bad habits that slow
them down. For example,
weakness
leader. In fact,
the pack's killing of the
the ground rules with the
The pack dogs
be challenged and replaced.
and
fiercely
pack
—
relaxed in his
hardworking in the
until his
body
traces,
downtime
he serves the
gives out.
life."
Domesticated dogs bring the pack mentality into
An Alpha expects
the other dogs to follow, but does
not force them. Aggression
a sign of weakness in
is
an Alpha dog and a destabilizing force within the
pack.
The
Alpha's position
the constant deference
is
to
him by
food, dogs
the other
dogs, rather than by force. In the case of Spitz,
that between ten
dogs began to
maintained through
shown
their relationships
who
loads,
with humans. Biologists believe
and twelve thousand
live
years ago,
with humans. In exchange for
worked herding
livestock, pulling
heavy
and hunting game. The domesticated dog
a healthy household views
its
owner
From John Thornton's
as the
Alpha of
"never lost an opportunity of showing his teeth,"
the pack.
Buck
he establishes himself as the Alpha. Thornton's
is
able to
become
the
Alpha dog when
Spitz's
aggression threatens the whole pack.
"kindliness
and
largeness"
respect. "Buck's love
Most dogs
are comfortable being followers.
first
win Buck's
was expressed
in
appearance,
loyalty
and
in adoration.
It is less
While he went wild with happiness when
stressful to live
within the boundaries set by the
Thornton touched him or spoke
leader than to set the rules.
Some
to him, he did
behaviors that
not seek these tokens. .Buck was content to adore
.
evidence the hierarchy in a pack include allowing a
Buck
at a distance."
higher-ranking dog to proceed
first
dogs had found
narrow passage, to
eat
first,
to sleep
and not greeting
that
Thornton,
as the other
in
Buck, a leader
fair in his
where he
discipline
pleases,
finds in
through a
dog with
and
at ease in his
power.
teeth or
National
Endowment
for the Arts
THE BIG READ
•
|
7
HANDOUT THREE
Jack London and Naturalism
Naturalism
the style of fiction in which
is
characters are forged
by
their
environment.
jockeying for dominance displayed by Buck, Dave,
First
and
Sol-leks,
London's talent for Naturalism
Spitz.
introduced by the French writer Emile Zola in the
is
1880 s, Naturalism, an extension of Realism, was a
protagonist. Sara S.
reaction to the tenets of Romanticism,
idealized
which
Manuscripts
emotion and adventure. While Realism
attempts to depict characters and their situations as
truthfully as possible, Naturalism
realistic
moves beyond
and evolutionary
in
Library, notes that
the story through a dog's point
of view, London could have "skated very closely to
anthropomorphism, but he never
you
forces that
tell
Hodson, Curator of Literary
Huntington
at the
choosing to
This
description to also address the
psychological
evident in his unsentimental view of his canine
crosses the line.
one of his crowning achievements:
is
inside the
mind of a dog and make
and have
and so
contribute to a characters decision making.
realistic
Characters must confront their limitations and
without ever crossing into caricature."
it
ring so clear
it
to put
so
truthfully
adapt in a world that can be violent, powerful, and
The
landscape of the Klondike shaped the destiny
destructive.
of all those
At the
close
of the 19 th Century, the typical setting
might be a posh drawing room, pastoral
for a novel
farm, or gruesome battlefield.
The
it
was
in reality.
began publishing
North
stories
When Jack London
from the Great White
it,
some
leaving as
Klondike Kings, others heartbroken and penniless,
or
still
more
in 1916,
writers.
The Son of the WW/0900), The
like
entered
perishing along the pass.
the Klondike in 1898
ruthless
wilderness of the Klondike was as unexplored in
fiction as
who
London
left
and by the time of his death
he was one of America's highest paid
His Naturalist writings were not
restricted to tales
of the Gold Rush. His semi-
autobiographical works such as
The Road and The
Daughter of the Snows (1902), The Call of the
People of the Abyss exposed issues of poverty and
W7£/(1903), and The Sea-Wolf{\<)04),
abuses of power. His
vivid prose brought the harsh living
his strong,
work influenced
a generation
of American Naturalists including Upton Sinclair
and hard
who
decisions of the frontier into the imaginations of
and
American
Naturalist theory to social issues in hopes of
readers.
Sinclair Lewis,
continued to apply
reform. Like London, they aspired to
tell
authentic
Hardships in nature force London's characters to
be
flexible
and
sometimes,
—and
stories
about the
fail.
Often
an inner
intuition, characters like
Buck
function within Charles Darwin's construct of
survival
I
8
'
of the
THE
BIG
of American
society,
the bustling city to the farthest reaches of the
rejecting civilization in order
Western
to follow
realities
resourceful in order to survive
fittest
READ
—
a
model made
National
clear
by the
Endowment
for the Arts
terrain.
from
Books
Web sites
Berton, Pierre. The Klondike Fever: The Ufe and Death of the
The Huntington
Last Great Gold Rush.
Inc.,
New York: Carroll &
Library's archive of
numbering about 60,000 items,
Graf Publishers,
1985.
collection
in
is
London's papers,
the largest London
the world.
http://www.huntington.org/LibraryDiv/JackLondon.html
Labor, Earle, ed. The Portable Jack London.
New York: Penguin,
National Postal Museum's Stories from the Gold Rush
1994.
http://www.postalmuseum.si.edu/gold/gold2.html
Starr, Kevin.
Americans and the
Oxford University
Press,
1
California
Dream.
New York
973.
Public Broadcasting's
The American Experience: Gold Fever
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/gold/
Stasz, Clarice.
American Dreamers.
New York: St. Martin's
University of Washington's Klondike
Press, 1988.
Perilous Journey
Walker, Dale and Jeanne Reesman, eds.
Myself: Jack London on Writing
University Press,
1
999.
No Mentor
but
Gold Rush:The
North
http://www.lib.washington.edu/specialcoll/exhibits/klondike/
and Writers. Palo Alto: Stanford
The web
site
Museum
includes information Alaska's native people,
of the Alaska Gallery at the Anchorage
exploration and settlement, the Gold Rush era, World
II,
War
and Alaska's statehood.
http://www.anchoragemuseum.org/ag.asp
National
Endowment
for the Arts
THE BIG READ
•
|
9
.
.
National Council of Teachers of English
Students read a wide range of print and non-
1
6.
Students apply knowledge of language structure,
of themselves, and of the cultures of the United
punctuation), media techniques, figurative
demands of
new
Among
and nonfiction,
fiction
7.
Students conduct research on issues and
interests by generating ideas
and contemporary
and questions, and
by posing problems. They gather, evaluate, and
works.
synthesize data from a variety of sources
Students read a wide range of literature from
print
many periods
communicate
many genres to build an
understanding of the many dimensions (e.g.,
philosophical, ethical, aesthetic) of human
in
and non-print
suit their
8.
experience.
their discoveries
in
ways that
purpose and audience.
Students use a variety of technological and
information resources
(e.g., libraries,
databases,
computer networks, video) to gather and
comprehend,
synthesize information and to create and
interpret, evaluate,
They draw on
and appreciate
communicate knowledge.
their prior experience,
their interactions with other readers
and
9.
writers, their
knowledge of word meaning and
of other texts, their
strategies,
features
word
Students develop an understanding of and
respect for diversity
identification
and
and their understanding of textual
(e.g.,
in
language use, patterns,
dialects across cultures, ethnic groups,
geographic regions, and social roles.
sound-letter correspondence,
sentence structure, context, graphics).
1
0. Students
whose
first
make use of their
Students adjust their use of spoken, written,
and
(e.g.,
texts, artifacts, people) to
Students apply a wide range of strategies to
texts.
visual language (e.g.,
conventions,
competency
style,
variety of audiences
and for
in
language
first
is
not English
language to develop
the English language arts and to
develop understanding of content across the
vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a
curriculum.
different purposes.
1
1
5.
spelling
discuss print and non-print texts.
these texts are
classic
(e.g.,
language, and genre to create, critique, and
society and the workplace; and for
personal fulfillment.
4.
and
language conventions
information; to respond to the needs and
3.
Standards'
print texts to build an understanding of texts,
States and the world; to acquire
2.
(NCTE)
Students employ a wide range of strategies as
Students participate as knowledgeable,
reflective, creative,
they write and use different writing process
and
critical
members
of a
variety of literacy communities.
elements appropriately to communicate with
different audiences for a variety of purposes.
1
2. Students use spoken, written,
language to accomplish their
(e.g.,
and
own
visual
purposes
for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and
the exchange of information).
*This guide was developed with
NCTE
Standards and State Language Arts Standards
your application of the curriculum.
20
'
THE BIG READ
National
Endowment
for the Arts
in
mind. Use these standards to guide and develop
-*
il
ir
became great who
did not
achieve the impossible. It is the secret of
greatness... But not only must he do the
impossible, he
must continue to do
it...
Brows
are not laurelled for the asking, nor is the earth
a heritage to any save to the sons of toil."
—JACK LONDON
from "The Question of a Name" (1900)
the forest a call was
ounding, and as often as he
leard this call, mysteriously
Deep
in
and luring, he felt
ompelled to turn his back
hrilling
ipon the
fire. . .and
to
tlunge into the forest."
-JACK
LONDON
from The Call of the Wild
"he
Big Read is an
initiative
of the National
Endowment for the Arts designed
i
to restore
reading
ofAmerican culture. The NEA presents
Big Read in partnership with the Institute of
the center
"he
iuseum and Library
Services
and in
cooperation
nth Arts Midwest.
V
great nation deserves great art.