Dear CP English 10/ English 10 Student:

This summer, before beginning your sophomore English class, you will be expected to read and begin to understand one novel: The Call of the Wild by Jack London.

Jack London was an “American novelist and short-story writer whose works deal romantically with elemental struggles for survival” (Encyclopedia Britannica).The Call of the Wild, published in 1903,is his most well-known novel. It is celebrated both for its sense of adventure and for its unusual choice of using a dog as the protagonist of his complex story.

You will need to complete two tasks before the first day of class:

  1. Read The Call of the Wild.
  2. Create a Dialectic Journal with at least 25 entries from throughout the novel (making sure that your entries span the length of the novel).

Dialectic Journal Instructions

As you read The Call of the Wild keep in mind this essential question:

How does Buck transform from a domesticated pet to a rugged animal who can survive in the wild, and how does this transformation contribute to the theme of the novel?

In order to track Buck’s transformation, create a dialectic journal by creating three columns on your paper.

  1. The first column will contain direct quotations (NOT paraphrased information) from the text that you believe support the essential question. You might look for text that shows a change in Buck, look for a change in his environment, or look for any other major event that demonstrates Buck’s transformation from a domesticated pet to a wild animal.
  2. In the second column, record the page number(s) of where you found the text.
  3. The third column is where you should explain how your selected text supports the essential question. How does your textual evidence support the idea of a transforming Buck? What does he gain and/or sacrificewith each change?

Below is an example of a few entries from a dialectic journal on Night by Elie Wiesel that focuses on Elie’s loss of innocence.

Direct quotation / Page # / How does this textual evidence support the essential question?
“I continued to devote myself to my studies, Talmud during the day and Kabbalah at night. My father took care of his business and the community. My grandfather came to spend Rosh Hashanah with us so as to attend services of the celebrated Rebbe of Borsche. My mother was beginning to think it was high time to find an appropriate match for Hilda.
Thus passed the year 1943.” / 8 / Elie’s life in Sighet, Hungary continued normally throughout the first part of the war. He and his village were innocent of the knowledge of the Final Solution. This innocence made it difficult to believe the evil that was about to enter their lives.
”Never shall I forget those flames that consumed my faith forever.
Never shall I forget the nocturnal silence that deprived me for all eternity of the desire to live.
Never shall I forget those moments that murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to ashes.” / 34 / The atrocities Elie witnesses in the camps force him to abandon the religious beliefs he held so dear as a youth. He can no longer look at the world and believe there is a loving God directing it.

This assignment should reflect your best work and should be completed individually. Plagiarized assignments will be given a zero. It will be collected by your teacher on the first day of school. After a brief class discussion and review of the novel, your teacher will also ask you to write an in-class essay over the novel. We hope that you enjoy the reading and that you gain insight into character development. We look forward to seeing you at the start of school.

Sincerely,

The Grandview English Department