Symbolism In The Call Of The Wild, By Jack London

Jack London was a famous American author who once said, “You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club” (Biography.com Editors). This is exactly what London did in his life. He chased adventure and used his experiences to form his writing. The Call of The Wild is London’s most well known piece of literature. In this novel, a few themes utilized by London are the struggle for dominance, powerful instincts, the rivalry between civilization and wilderness, and the idea of taking part in a group effort. He also makes use of many different symbols in his novel. Jack London was born on January 12, 1876, in San Francisco, California. His original birth name was John Griffith Chaney. His biological parents were Flora Wellman and William Chaney. They lived together for about a year before Flora expressed her desire for marriage and a child. Chaney was too deterred by her vicious temperament to seek something permanent. Flora announced that she was pregnant, and Chaney denied that he was the father. Flora attempted to kill herself causing Chaney to be shunned (Walcutt 463-464).
London’s father was never in his life. His mother married John London, a Civil War veteran. The family lived in Oakland and was very poor. When he was thirteen years old, London bought himself a boat and learned how to sail it on his
Buck’s life with his original owner, Judge Miller, is very relaxed and straightforward while living in the wild is brutal and unforgiving. These two environments seem to be conflicting; both have similar codes for hierarchy. Although the extremes of the two worlds do differ vastly, in either it is general knowledge that the rules must be followed or consequences will ensue. “The novel seems to say that the wild does not allow chaos or wanton behavior but institutes a strict social and natural order different from, but not inferior to, that of the civilized world” (SparkNotes