The four-line poem that begins the novel summarizes the essential theme of the entire work. As noted in the section at the end of this study guide, entitled “Critical Theories,” we see that London is writing in a certain literary tradition and under the influence of a literary philosophy called Naturalism. The concepts of Naturalism are summarized in these first four opening lines—that is, within every individual, however civilized, there lies deep within a “ferine strain,” which means that there is a “primitive beast” within each of us that can emerge at any particular moment, and it will emerge more quickly in periods of extreme stress. The “brumal sleep” refers to these forces that are hibernating and which will, at the proper moment, awaken and assume their bestial qualities.
In conjunction with the above ideas, London will use Buck, the enormous, extraordinarily powerful dog, as an anthropomorphic example of similar qualities for all of humankind. (Anthropomorphic simply means attributing human qualities to an animal.) For example, throughout the novel, Buck will be seen to possess various types of qualities that are traditionally attributed only to human beings. In one instance, we will see him possessing such qualities as loyalty, love, revenge, ambition, and other qualities usually associated with human beings. Other qualities will also be pointed out as we progress through the novel.
To emphasize his essential theme, London has the dog Buck being born on a large estate in the Southland (Santa Clara Valley, California). Buck does not know that there is a “yellow metal” recently discovered in the Far North and that strong, powerful dogs are desperately needed and will bring a rather large price. While Buck is a very large dog—his father was a huge Saint Bernard and his mother was a Scotch shepherd—Buck has lived a comfortable life of ease in very civilized surroundings. London writes that Buck “had lived the life of a sated aristocrat.” Buck’s master was the gentle and kind Judge Miller, the epitome of a highly civilized society. The fact that London chooses the Judge for Buck’s master strongly underscores the fact that we are to be aware of civilization’s laws, its customs, and all of the machinations of order.
Having established Buck, then, as a product of civilization, London will, as his chapter title “Into the Primitive” indicates, now show the contrast between Buck, the civilized dog, and the dog he becomes when be is suddenly thrust into a life completely different. This change comes about because one of Judge Miller’s servants, Manuel, has amassed significant gambling debts and in order to repay the debts, Manuel sells Buck to some traders dealing in dognapping. These dogs will later be sold to gold prospectors in the North. We must always remember the contrast that London is utilizing in this novel: Buck comes not only from civilization, but also from a life of unusual ease and comfort, where all of his food is provided for him; he is not accustomed to killing in order to eat. In fact, “over this great demesne [Judge Miller’s estate] Buck ruled.” Later in the North, Buck will also rule, in effect, as the “king” of the dogsled group, but he will have to fight—literally fight for his life—in order to have the right to rule over the other dogs.
Buck’s gigantic size makes him a special prize for the dognappers. While Manuel receives only $50 for his part of the transaction, Buck will later bring a price of $300, and later on, he will bring even larger sums. In Chapter 6, for instance, $1200 will be offered as a buying price for Buck.
At present, Buck is a trusting dog, and he has no idea what fate holds for him; therefore, he has no inkling of Manuel’s treachery: “he had learned to trust in men he knew, and to give them credit for a wisdom that outreached his own.” But now that Buck is tied by the throat by strangers and is treated violently, he becomes enraged, and in his “unbridled anger,” he closes his jaws on the hand of the man who is holding him, and Buck does not let go until he is tied around the throat so tightly that his senses are choked out of him and he collapses.
Eventually, Buck regains consciousness, but every time he resists his tormenters, he is thrown down and choked repeatedly. He is totally confused by the meaning of such brutality from these strange men and is “oppressed by the vague sense of impending calamity.”
