Whereas Part Two focused on an animal surviving in the wilderness by primitive instinct, Part Three will now reverse this theme and essentially shows the gray cub (White Fang) beginning to learn a more difficult lesson — that of surviving in a civilized society, where he will have to learn to live among men — and friendly dogs. (Whereas Call of the Wild showed us how Buck moved from a comfortable and easy life in civilization into an environment in which he had to learn how to survive in the primitive world, this will be a reversal of that idea.)
White Fang's life in the Indian camp becomes daily more intolerable — principally because of the constant persecution of Lip-lip, who somehow manages to turn all the other dogs against White Fang. For example, whenever White Fang ventures away from Kiche, he is savagely attacked by Lip-lip. Consequently, he never has a chance to allow the genial, playful, "puppy-ish" side of his nature to find expression. He has to be constantly alert to the dangers represented by Lip-lip. But even though Lip-lip is a larger dog, White Fang can run more swiftly, and one time he engages Lip-lip in a chase, and as they dart in and out of the camp, White Fang deceptively leads Lip-lip past Kiche, who, although she is tied up, is able to grab Lip-lip and repeatedly rip and slash him with her fangs. Then, taking advantage of Lip-lip's weakened condition, White Fang sinks his teeth into Lip-lip's hind leg, and he would have destroyed Lip-lip had not the Indians driven him away.
One day, Gray Beaver decides that Kiche will probably not try to escape, and so he releases her. White Fang is delighted with his mother's new freedom, and time and again, he tries to lead her away from the Indian camp. He runs out toward the wilderness, and she follows, but eventually she always returns to the Indian camp. Thus, we see that "the call of the wild" is not as strong in White Fang as is the call of his mother, for he always follows her back. Apparently, Kiche has found an element of contentment in the protection of the man-animals and does not wish to leave them.
