ExtensivereadingUnit7Book1TheCalloftheWildby JackLondonLearningobjectivesInthisunityouwill:ubefamiliarwithJackLondonandhisworksugetsomeknowledgeoftheKlondikeGoldRushuappreciatethelanguageandwritingskillinthisnovelutakeatestonfastreadingulearntoguessmeaningsofwordsfromcontextUnitoverviewuuuuuuuPre-readingdiscussionBackgroundinformationTextanalysisPost-readingdiscussionExercisesReadingskillsRelatedinformationPre-readingdiscussion1.Howdoyouunderstand theword“call”inthetitle?2.How does The Call of the Wild present thehuman-dogrelationship?Background informationJackLondon(18761916)JackLondonwasthemostpopular novelist and shortstory writer of his day. Hewrotepassionatelyandprolifically about the greatquestionsoflifeanddeath,thestruggletosurvivewithdignityandintegrity.JackLondonIn 1898, Jack London went to Klondike for gold mining.AftersufferingtheSepsis(败败血血症症),hisdreamofbeingagold miner broken. At thesame time, he got plenty ofwriting materials. He wovethese elemental ideas intostories of high adventurebased on his own firsthandexperiences.JackslifeexperiencesBeing a laborer, factory worker, oyster pirate ontheSanFranciscoBay,memberoftheCaliforniaFishPatrol,sailor,railroadhobo(流流浪浪汉汉),andgoldprospector,hislifeexperiencescontributedalottohisprolificwritings.TheSailorTheGoldProspectortheRancherJackLondonsbelief“I would rather be ashes than dust! I would rather that my spark should burn out in a brilliant blaze than it should be stifled by dry-rot. I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet. The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them. I shall use my time.”TheCalloftheWildThe Call of the Wild (1903) is a world famousanimal story. Set in Alaska during the KlondikeGoldRushofthelate1890s,Thestoryrecordsthe“decivilization”ofBuckasheanswers“thecallofthewild”,aninherentmemoryofprimitiveoriginstowhichheinstinctivelyresponds.TheCalloftheWildThe Call of the Wild isthefirstandforemoststoryabout a dog, it displays a philosophical depthabsentinmostanimaladventures.“Old longings nomadic leap, “野野性性沉沉入入长长眠眠，Chafing at customs chain; 希希望望终终难难泯泯灭灭，Again from its brumal sleep 挣挣脱脱习习惯惯锁锁链链，Wakenstheferinestrain.”踏踏入入冰冰雪雪荒荒野野间间。”TheKlondikeGoldRushTheKlondike Gold Rush (克克朗朗 代代 克克 淘淘 金金 热热 ） wasamigrationby an estimated100,000prospectorstotheKlondikeregionoftheYukoninnorth-westernCanadabetween 1896 and1899aftergoldwasdiscovered there by localminersonAugust16,1896.PrespectersascendingtheChilkootPass,1898TheKlondikeGoldRushKlondike could only bereached by the YukonRivereitherupstreamfromitsdelta,downstreamfromitsheadorfromsomewhereinthemiddlethroughitstributaries.Travelingeneralwasmadedifficultby both the geographyandclimate.TheKlondikeGoldRushAidsforthetravelerstocarrytheirsuppliesvaried;some had brought dogs, horses, mules or oxen,whereas others had to rely on carrying theirequipment on their backs or on sleds pulled byhand.TheKlondikeGoldRushThe events of the Klondike goldrush rapidly became embedded inNorthAmericanculture,beingcapturedinpoems,stories,photographsandpromotionalcampaignslongaftertheendofthestampede. ThewriterJackLondonincorporated scenes from the goldrush into his novels set in theKlondike, including The Call of the Wild,anovelaboutasledgedog.Text analysisDeterminingthemainideaThemainideaofthetextisthat_.a.itwasnoteasyforBuck,adogfromthesouth,toliveinthenorthb.Buck, a dog from the south, began to learnlessonfromthehardlifeinthenorthc.somepeoplewereevilenoughtostealdogsandsellthemformoneyd.BuckthedogwasexposedtoharshexperiencesinthenorthWhile-readingquestions1.Howmanypartscanthetextbedividedinto?Whatsthemainideaofeachpart?2.In what aspect was Buck different from thedogsinJudgeMillersplace?3.WhatisthefunctionofthedetaileddescriptionofBuckscomfortablelifeinMr.Millershouse?4.Whatisthe“lawofclubandfang”?Whatdoesitrepresent?HowisBuckintroducedtoit?TextstructureParts ContentsMainideas11Buckshappylifebeforehewenttothenorth2219Onthelongjourney,Buckexperiencedalotofthings.32031BucksfirstdayatDyeaBeachPart1Happylifeinthesouth1.WhatkindoflifedoesBucklive?2.In what aspect was Buck different from thedogsinJudgeMillersplace?3.WhatisthefunctionofthedetaileddescriptionofBuckscomfortablelifeinMr.Millershouse?Part1Happylifeinthesouth1.WhatkindoflifedoesBucklive?The opening of the novel sets in the sunny,comfortableworldofJudgeMillersestate,whereBucklivesinspoiled,lordlycontentment.Part1Happylifeinthesouth2.In what aspect was Buck different from thedogsinJudgeMillersplace?Buckwaschiefdog.Buckwasbornhereandhasbeenlivedhere.BuckhasbeenregardedasonefamilymemberandenjoyedthelifewiththeJudgeMillerfamily.Part1Happylifeinthesouth3.WhatisthefunctionofthedetaileddescriptionofBuckscomfortablelifeinMr.Millershouse?Toformasharpcontrastbetweentwoworlds:thesunny,comfortableworldofJudgeMillersestate,andtheharsh,frigidworldoftheKlondike,whereheisdraggedagainsthiswill.Part2Onthejourney1.How could Manuel lead Buck away from theestate?2.WhatdidthemaninaredcoattaughtBuck?3.How do you understand the sentence “Buckwasbeatenbuthewasnotbroken”?Part2Onthejourney1.How could Manuel lead Buck away from theestate?WhenBuckwasledoutbyManuel,thegardener,whoneededmoneyforhisbigfamily,hethoughtitwasjustanormaleveningwalk.Part2Onthejourney2.WhatdidthemaninaredcoattaughtBuck?Bucklearnedthathestoodnochanceagainstamanwithaclub.Part2Onthejourney3.How do you understand the sentence “Buckwasbeatenbuthewasnotbroken”?Outwardly Buck was now in a miserable shapeand condition, but inwardly he maintained hisfirmnessandsteadiness.Part3Lifeinthenorth1.WhydidBuckhateSpitz？2.Whatisthe“lawofclubandfang”?Whatdoesitrepresent?3.HowisBuckintroducedtoit?4.CanyouusesomewordstodescribeBuck?Part3Lifeinthenorth1.WhydidBuckhateSpitz?StoleBucksfoodKeptlaughingwhenCurlydiedPart3Lifeinthenorth2.Whatisthe“lawofclubandfang”?Whatdoesitrepresent?Itreferstothatman,havingthegreaterforce,isthemaster. TheweakmustsubmitandservethewilloftheconquerororbekilledStrength,notjustice,isthecentralvalue.Part3Lifeinthenorth3.HowisBuckintroducedtoit?Bucklearnsthislessonfromtwoevents.Thefirst one teaches him about the power ofviolence and about the need to give in whenthreatenedbyasuperiorforce.BucklearnsthelawofthefangwhenhearrivesinCanadaandwatchesoneofhisfellowdogs,afemaledognamedCurly,torntopiecesbyapackofhuskies.Part3Lifeinthenorth4.CanyouusesomewordstodescribeBuck?Intelligentunderstandtoobeyamanwithaclub;learntosledwellquicklyRebelliousreactingtothekidnapHardworkingenjoyedhisworkStrongRelated informationMajorthemesThefollowingthemesareevidentinthestory:AdaptionAdventureConflictCourageanddeterminationDeathInterdependenceLeadershipSurvivalNaturesunpredictabilityInfluenceofCharlesDarwinsandFriedrichNietzschestheoriesDarwin, the founding father of evolution theory,taughtthatlifeinthenaturalworldconsistedofaconstant struggle for survival, in which only thestrong could thrive and produce offspring. This“survival of the fittest,” as Herbert Spencer, anEnglishphilosopher,termedit,wastheenginethatdroveevolution.TheworldthatLondoncreatesinThe Call of the Wild operatesstrictlyaccordingtoDarwinistprinciplesinitsbrutalityandamoralityonly the fitsurvive in the cruel landscape of theKlondike.influenceofCharlesDarwinsandFriedrichNietzschestheoriesNietzsche was a German philosopher whopreachedthedoctrineofthe“willtopower”asthedrivingforcebehindsociety. Moralconsiderationsweremeaningless,hedeclared,andallmembersof humanity were either masters, driven todominate others, or slaves, driven to submit.London transposes this scheme to the animalworld, using Nietzschean language repeatedly todescribe Bucks quest to achieve mastery anddominionoverhisenemies.Post-readingdiscussion1.WhatroledoMercedes,Hal,andCharlesplayin the novel? How do they function asembodimentsoftheworstsideofcivilization?2.ComparetherolesofJohnThorntonandJudgeMiller. Who,fromthenovels pointofview,isthebettermaster?Defendyouranswer.3.Whatisthe“callofthewild”?HowdoesitaffectBucksbehaviorthroughoutthenovel?Reading skillsGuessingMeaningsofWordsfromContext(I)ConceptSynonymcluesAntonymcluesConceptContextheremeanswords,phrases,orsentencessurroundingawordandthesituationinwhichitisused.Whenyoucomeacrossanewwordinyourreading,beforelookingitupinadictionary,veryoftenyoucanguessitsmeaningfromitscontext.Thereareoftenspecificwords(contextclues)inasentence or paragraph that can help youdeterminethemeaningofanunfamiliarword.SynonymcluesSynonymsarewordsorphrasesthataresimilarinmeaningtootherwords.Asentencewithadifficultwordoftencontainsamorefamiliarwordtomakeit easy to understand. You may recognize somesynonymsbecausetheyaresetapartbycommas,dashes, or parentheses. Usually, a synonymcontext clue appears to be of the same part ofspeechasthenewword.SynonymcluesForexample:The hullabaloo expresses peoples high spirits at holiday time.Many years ago, however, the loud noises were meant to scare away the evil spirits, thus giving the new year a fresh start.“Hullabaloo”isanouninthesentence.Thephrasethathasthesamemeaningandpartofspeechis“loud noises”. So “loud noises” is a synonymcontextclueto“hullabaloo”.AntonymcluesAntonymsarewordsorphrasesthathaveoppositemeaningstootherwordsorphrases.Recognizingthatcertainwordswhichoftensignalanantonymcluecanhelpyouunderstandnewwords.Wordsorphraseslike“or”,“but”,“while”,“asopposedto”,and “on the other hand” often signal antonymclues.AntonymcluesForexample:Linda manages money judiciously while I manage money unwisely.The word “while” signals the antonym “unwisely”youcanreasonthat“unwisely”istheoppositeof“judiciously.”thus,“judiciously”means“unwisely”.PracticeADeterminethemeaningofeachitalicizedwordbyidentifyingitspartofspeechandlocatingitssynonym.B. Locate the word or phrase that signals theantonymclueandunderlineit.Thenunderlinethe antonym clue. Finally, select the bestmeaningfortheitalicizedword.PracticeA1.NewYearsDayisthoughtofasagoodtimetomakeNewYearsresolutionsthedecisionstodobetterintheyearjustbeginningthanyoudidintheyearthatjustended.resolutionsisa(an)_.Itmeans_.noundecisionsPracticeA2.Makesure,too,thatthecostofyourhobbydoesnot go beyond your budget or your estimatedincomeandexpense.budgetisa(an)_.Itmeans_.nounestimatedincomeandexpensePracticeA3. Before the Crusades, kings had existed, buttheirrolewasmoreorlessthatofafigurehead,achiefinnameonly,inthecomplicatedfeudalsystem.figureheadisa(an)_.Itmeans_.nounachiefinnameonlyPracticeBB. Locate the word or phrase that signals theantonymclueandunderlineit.Thenunderlinethe antonym clue. Finally, select the bestmeaningfortheitalicizedword.PracticeB1.TheOvegesmethodofteachingmadescienceandmathematicsfuninsteadofachore.chore means_.a.attractionb.tiringtaskc.dutyPracticeB2.Though he was often shy in social settings,sciencebroughtouttheshowmaninhim.showman means_.a.personalityattractingpublicattentionb.timidcharacterc.quicktemperPracticeB3.AlthoughtheGreeksweresaidtobedemocratic,slavesandwomenhadfewright.democratic means_.a.respectingpeoplesrightsb.warlikec.peace-lovingExercisesTextA.bB.14cdaa58dccdC.15daacd610bdabaFastreading15dabdd610bacbd1115daabaHomereading14bdcb58bbdb