Literature Laboratory: The Call of the Wild (FLEX)

Into the primitive...

This course is designed to be interactive, including significant communication between the teacher and learner and between the learners themselves. As this is a flexible course, we will use asynchronous communication such as e-mail and discussion boards. Once per week the teacher will post questions, conversation starters, and activity worksheets. The teacher will dedicate at least 3 days per week to responding to learner questions. Learners will also create a running journal of Buck’s character and degree of “wildness” throughout the novel. Learners will document each situation that changes Buck and tell how he changes or adapts. Learners will be encouraged to share their journal entries with others enrolled in the course. 

A great journal writer, London recorded his adventures in the “Northland” including the countless stories he heard from fellow travelers while stranded in an abandoned trappers’ cabin for his first long winter in the Yukon. London's “last” story grew into his masterpiece, The Call of the Wild. Published in The Saturday Evening Post June 20-July 18,1903, the story of Buck, the Southland dog that must use long buried instincts to survive in the cruel Northland, received critical acclaim and made London a writer of renown at age 27. The novel showcases London’s Naturalistic style while providing plenty of action. We will read the book together and conclude the course by watching and discussing Disney's 20th Century Fox movie of the same name (starring Harrison Ford) - releasing in theaters February 21, 2020. 

Topics covered include:
1.) Dog breeds and adaptations for life in the Arctic Circle
2.) Hardships of the Yukon Territory
3.) Impact of the Gold Rush on Alaska Natives, racism, and ideas of wilderness
3.) Scientific principles of heat retention
4.) Temperature, weather conditions, and the aurora borealis in the Northwest
5.) Wolves and dog behaviors/pack mentality
6.) Symptoms of rabies and the disease's treatment during the time of the Yukon Gold Rush

This flexible course will be available for 4 weeks. Each week the teacher will post discussion questions and activities. 

Week 1: Chapters 1-2 
Week 2: Chapters 3-4
Week 3: Chapters 5-6
Week 4: Chapter 7 + Movie

Transplant yourself to the exotic wilds of the Alaskan Yukon today...