Examples Of Materialism In The Call Of The Wild

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Human nurture and materialism can be connected in many ways, as demonstrated by Jack London in the novel The Call of the Wild. For example, at the beginning of the novel, Buck lives at Judge Miller's house. Judge Miller nurtures Buck. He is willing to give Buck anything he wants He lives with many other dogs. He feel like he rules the world. He ignores everyone, and does whatever he wants whenever he wants to. London writes that “The whole realm was his,” to rule and “He utterly ignored” “Toots and Ysabel,” as they were not as important to him, “because he was king.” (5) Here, London demonstrates that because judge Miller nurtures Buck, he is a materialist. Later in the book, Buck becomes a sled dog, and eventually is sold to Hal, Charles and Mercedes. Hal, Charles and Mercedes mistreat the dogs immensely. In addition, Hal and Charles treat Mercedes too well. They giver her a lot of food, a tent to sleep in, and let her ride in the sled. However, once they get deep into their journey, they realize that they can not continue to do this, as they are running out of supplies and the dogs are very tired. As London states “Mercedes nursed a special Grievance- the grievance of sex. She was pretty and soft, and been chivalrously treated all her days.” (95) This quote shows that Mercedes is accustomed to getting what she wants. She is accustomed to getting what she wants because she is nurtured by the people around her because they view her as weak and incapable of …show more content…
Later in the book, John Thornton adopts Buck, and they live together. London does not require much to live. London demonstrates this when he writes “With a handful of salt and a rifle he could plunge into the wilderness and fare wherever he pleased.” This proves that Thornton needs little supplies to live, making him a minimalist. It also shows how he can rely on nature to survive because all he needs to live is