Professor Meyer
English 102
4/4/2013
Call of the Wild: The Ideal Master In Jack London’s famous novel, Call of the Wild, he gives detail explanation of Buck’s life at two different homes. This helps us determine the ideal master for Buck. At his first home Buck did not have any dog responsibilities. Changing homes was the best thing that happened to Buck because he learns to be independent. Judge Miller and John Thornton are both masters of Buck who affected his experience in transitioning. Judge Miller made Buck’s life easy and simple by pampering him and taking care of his every need. Buck was a free dog at Judge’s. John Thornton, on the other hand, was a very respectful and loving owner for Buck. He did not treat Buck like a dog; he nurtured him as if he was one of his children. Thornton was the ideal master for Buck in his transition from pet to independent. Judge Miller did not require Buck to do the things a normal dog does. Buck walks around like a King at Miller’s house. Miller is a good owner for Buck because he takes real good care of him. A dog is just like human being. Human have to learn to be independent, so does a dog. Buck did not experience anything other dogs’ experience. Dogs should be loved and respected as a human, but they need to be able to face things on their own. Miller loved Buck, but he did not teach Buck things he need to know as a dog. He should have trained Buck for the wild. Because Miller’s failure to teach Buck doggy things, he has to learn on his own and almost did not survive at it. When Miller’s gardener took Buck and sold him, he became a dog. He had to learn to fight, scavenge for food, and sleep beneath the snow on winter nights. Normal dogs have already done these types of things and Buck was just a beginner at living the life of a dog. Buck went to a lot of different owners before he reached the best one, John Thornton. Thornton and Buck’s relationship was totally different from others. Thornton