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Buck
A
powerful dog, half St. Bernard and half sheepdog, who is stolen
from a California estate and sold as a sled dog in the Arctic. Buck
gradually evolves from a pampered pet into a fierce, masterful animal,
able to hold his own in the cruel, kill-or-be-killed world of the North.
Though he loves his final master, John Thornton, he feels the wild
calling him away from civilization and longs to reconnect with the
primitive roots of his species.
Read an
in-depth analysis of Buck.
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John Thornton
Buck’s final master, a gold hunter experienced in the
ways of the Klondike. Thornton saves Buck from death at the hands
of Hal, and Buck rewards Thornton with fierce loyalty. Thornton’s
relationship to Buck is the ideal man-dog relationship: each guards
the other’s back and is completely devoted to the other. The strength
of their bond is enough to keep Buck from acting on the forces he
feels are calling him into the wild.
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in-depth analysis of John Thornton.
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Spitz
Buck’s archrival and the original leader of Francois’s dog team.
Spitz is a fierce animal—a “devil-dog,” one man calls him—who is
used to fighting with other dogs and winning. He meets his match
in Buck, however, who is as strong as Spitz and possesses more cunning. Spitz
is an amoral being who fights for survival with all of his might,
disregarding what is right and wrong.
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Francois
A French Canadian mail driver who buys Buck and adds him to his
team. Francois is an experienced man, accustomed to life in the
North, and he impresses Buck with his fairness and good sense.
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Perrault
A French Canadian who, together with Francois, turns Buck into a
sled dog for the Canadian government. Both Perrault and Francois
speak in heavily accented English, which London distinguishes from
the rest of the novel’s dialogue.
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Hal
An
American gold seeker, Hal comes to Canada with his sister, Mercedes,
and her husband, Charles, in search of adventure and riches. The
three buy Buck and his team and try to drive them, but their inexperience makes
them terrible masters, as they run out of food during the journey
and bicker among themselves. Hal and his companions are meant to
represent the weakness of overcivilized men and to embody the man-dog
relationship at its worst.
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in-depth analysis of Hal.
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Mercedes
Charles’s wife and Hal’s sister. Mercedes is spoiled and pampered,
and her unreasonable demands slow her, Hal, and Charles on their
journey and contribute to its disastrous ending. Her civilized manner,
however, contrasts that of her unprepared brother and husband in
that she initially feels sympathetic for the worn-out sled team.
Her behavior, London suggests, demonstrates how civilized women
are unsuited for life in the wild, having been spoiled and babied
by the men around them.
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in-depth analysis of Mercedes.
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Charles
Hal’s
brother-in-law and Mercedes’ husband. Charles shares their inexperience
and folly.
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in-depth analysis of Charles.
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Dave
A
dog on Buck’s team. Dave becomes ill on one of the team’s journeys
but refuses to leave the harness, preferring to die pulling the sled.
In his stubbornness at this task, Dave is an example of gritty determination.
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Sol-leks
An older, more experienced dog on Buck’s team.
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Curly
A friend of Buck’s, met on the journey to the North. Curly’s death,
when she naively tries to be friendly to a husky, acts as a warning
to Buck of the harshness and cruelty of his new home.
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Judge Miller
Buck’s
original master, the owner of a large estate in California’s Santa
Clara Valley.
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Manuel
A gardener’s helper on Judge Miller’s estate. Manuel kidnaps Buck
and sells him in order to pay off his gambling debts.
