Nature Versus Nurture In Call Of The Wild

Nature versus Nurture

Since creation, all creatures have had to use their survival intuition to adapt to their surroundings in order to survive. "The Call of the Wild" shows the conflict of nature versus nurture. In order to endure the harsh conditions in "The Call of the Wild", Buck must use his natural instinct to with stand the tasks set before him.

Nature versus nurture debates concern the relative importance of an individual's innate qualities versus personal experiences in determining or causing individual differences in physical and behavioral traits. When Buck is pulled from his familiar territory, the nurture begins to change. As everything that was once familiar are now foreign, Buck struggles to adapt to the never ending changes. Not only does Buck have to become accustomed to the new climatic conditions, but also the way he is treated. Buck goes from being treated like a prince, to being the beaten without a second thought.

Though not used to the extreme treatment and weather, Buck quickly learns the ways of a sled dog. The strenuous conditions only push Buck to work harder, learn faster, and be better. Jack London purposely creates a tension between lead dog Spitz and Buck. There is an unavoidable opposition between the two dogs. Buck could not stand to let his dignity be crushed. London wrote "Buck wanted it. He wanted it because it was his nature." Buck patiently waits for his time to come. The wildness that has been bottled up inside of him for these years is released.

After watching Spitz from the shadows, Buck chooses his time to strike ve