Call for Human -Animal coexistence in White Fang and The Call of the Wild

Abstract

The research examines the relation between humans and animals in Jack London’s novels White Fang and The Call of the Wild from the perspective of animal studies. , animals are supposed to lack rationality and are considered inferior to human beings. However, in the novels of Jack London selected for this study, the dogs, Buck and White Fang, are presented as sentient beings with rationality. Regarding this issue, the study argues that London— by representing the dogs as and humans and thus advocates for egalitarian relation between them. This is how London advocates for agency, rights and justice for animals. In order to develop a theoretical framework to analyze the selected primary texts, the study derives the insights from the animal studies, especially from Peter Singer’s idea of animal rights. To some extent, in both the novels, animals are domesticated to fulfill the human needs and purposes. In the process of domesticating, White Fang and Buck are treated badly that their natural animals' rights are violated in the different human camps. Because of the exceptionalism, human beings mistreat Buck and White Fang ignoring their sentiments, emotions, feelings, desires, dreams and duties. However, human beings and animals, as observed in these novels, are both the ecological selves of the same ecosphere. If both respect each other's rights, emotions, feelings and experiences, the bond between human beings and animals grows stronger. Keywords: Animal agency, animal rights, domestication, earth jurisprudence, animal welfare, coexistence