Vocabulary in The Call of the Wild

Existing from the very beginning of time; ancient and instinctual, referring here to the deep, wild nature buried within a domesticated animal that awakens under harsh conditions.

Exhausting, grinding labor or hard work, especially the brutal physical effort of pulling a sled over long distances in extreme cold.

One of the straps or chains connecting a sled dog's harness to the sled itself; being 'in the traces' means being harnessed and pulling.

A long, sharp tooth used for biting and tearing; used here to represent the raw violence and tooth-and-claw struggle for survival among sled dogs.

Most powerful and in control over all others in a group; the dog or wolf that has fought its way to the top position in a pack's social order.

The condition of being master — the one who holds authority and control over others, whether a human over dogs or a lead dog over a pack.

Belonging to an early, wild, uncivilized state of nature, before the softening effects of domestication or human civilization.

The act of a call being heard or resonating outward; here it suggests the wild's deep, echoing summons finally reaching and claiming the protagonist fully.

A heavy stick used as a weapon to beat or discipline sled dogs; represents the brutal human authority enforced through physical force in the Klondike world.

The set of straps and fittings buckled onto a sled dog so it can be hitched to a sled and made to pull loads across snow and ice.

To work hard in drudgery; to toil and drudge ceaselessly, used to describe the relentless, exhausting labor demanded of sled dogs on the trail.

A command ordering sled dogs to start moving or go faster; more broadly, to travel by dog sled across snow, a term specific to Arctic and sub-Arctic travel.

A hidden or stored supply of food or goods, especially one buried or stashed along a trail for later use by travelers in the wilderness.

The reappearance of ancestral traits or instincts that had been dormant for generations; the resurgence of wild, wolf-like behavior in a domesticated dog.

Shrewd, instinctive cleverness used for survival, especially the ability to deceive, adapt, and outwit enemies or rivals in a dangerous environment.

A breed of northern sled dog, compact and thick-coated, used in Arctic regions; referenced as one of the types of dogs Buck encounters on the trail.

A large, powerful Arctic sled dog breed with a thick double coat, bred by the Malamute people of Alaska for hauling heavy loads over long distances.

Rendered animal fat, especially from beef or mutton, used as a cheap, high-energy food or grease; here it refers to the raw, fatty food fed to working sled dogs.

Unity and mutual support among a group facing shared hardship; the bond that forms between sled dogs or between a dog and its human companion under extreme conditions.

The northern lights — shimmering, colorful curtains of light visible in the night sky at high latitudes, used here to evoke the wild, otherworldly beauty of the Yukon.

Pale, faint, and lacking vitality; used to describe weak or dim light, such as the pale winter sun of the far north, or a face drained of color by cold or illness.

Impossible to stop or alter; relentlessly continuing regardless of any resistance, describing forces of nature or fate that cannot be argued with or escaped.

One who roams and raids, attacking and plundering; used to describe wolves or rival dogs that move through the wilderness preying on whatever they can find.

A scene of wild, chaotic uproar and confusion; used to describe the frenzied, violent commotion that erupts when a dog fight breaks out in a sled-dog camp.

Savage, violent intensity; the fierce, brutal aggression with which sled dogs fight rivals or predators in the struggle to survive and dominate.