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   akannan Teacher
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   It seems to me that there are several conflicts in London's work.  The entire structure of the plot leads to one conflict after another.  Yet, for me, Buck's loyalty to Thornton is probably where the climax lies.  This is because it is Buck's last connection to humanity, to the world of humans, and the last chance to deny the "call of the wild."  In this understanding, the climax would be Buck's slaughter of the tribe that murdered Thornton, making Thornton's murder upon the finding of the gold mine the rising action.  I think we can sense that the events leading to the climax would be Thornton finding the gold mine, and then Buck coming back to find Thornton and the other dogs murdered.  The climax is Buck engaging in a slaughter of the tribesmen and the falling action is that Buck never again goes back to the "civilized" world.

   In a work of multiple conflicts, there are many from which to choose.  Yet, given what is at stake with this last conflict, I think that this constitutes the climax and rising action of the work.

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   Posted by akannan on Tuesday July 7, 2009 at 6:46 AM