March Edition Field Trip Special: Jack London: Stories Born from Adventure

“Life is not always a matter of holding good cards, but sometimes, playing a poor hand well.” 

John Griffith “Jack” London, famous American novelist, journalist, and activist, was one of the most popular and prolific authors of his time. Born in January 1876 and based in the San Francisco Bay Area until his untimely death in November 1916, his novels and short stories focus on the struggle for survival and individualism, and often draw from his own adventures and experiences around the world. London lived a short and sometimes controversial life, marked by financial hardship, travel, and political activism. 

Growing up in a working-class area of Oakland, London spent his youth navigating the Oakland estuary. London’s mother was a spiritualist and music teacher, and his stepfather worked as a farmer, grocer, and night watchman. London first went to work to support his family at age 10. He held several jobs, including working as a farmhand, delivering newspapers, and setting up pins in a bowling alley. At age 15, London bought a small boat, teaching himself to sail and beginning a brief career as an "oyster pirate”—something considered highly illegal and punishable by spending a lifetime in jail. Despite his long hours working, London found time to read and was guided by librarian Ina Coolbrith of the Oakland Free Library. Many of the works London read were by Charles Darwin, Karl Marx, and Friedrich Nietzsche, which greatly influenced his perspective of the world and his writing style. Eighth-grade History teacher, Mr. Miller emphasized London’s historical importance as a socialist from the Progressive Era, when America was ruled by the rich and the majority was poor.

London soon decided that he wanted to see more of the world. Aboard the schooner Sophia Sutherland, he traveled across the Pacific to Japan and the Bonin Islands in search of seal skins. Many of London’s earliest short stories were based on the journey. A few years after returning to San Francisco, London crammed a four-year high school course into one year and entered the University of California, Berkeley, although he soon dropped out to join the Klondike Gold Rush in 1897. While traveling to the Yukon and navigating danger and cold weather did not lead him to a fortune in terms of gold, the trip was the basis of his first collection of short stories and most famous novels.

Driven by the need for money, London began writing extensively in 1898 as a way to distract himself from his horrible reality. Many of his most famous works were written in this period, including The Call of the Wild, White Fang, The Sea Wolf, and Martin Eden. 

Jack London’s more powerful and popular stories were forged based on what he saw around him during this time full of tensions. These stories, known as the “Northland Stories," are world-renowned and enjoyed by many. Preston Xu, an 8th grader, says that “London’s greatest strength is his [ability to] write from animal perspectives [and how it] really lets humans see animal emotions and thoughts.” This was echoed by Ms. Das, an English teacher for Eighth grade, said that London “has characters that are so strong that they empower any background they have.” 

The Call of the Wild tells the iconic tale of a domestic dog whose life was turned upside down. This concise classic follows Buck, a pampered ranch dog who is kidnapped and brought into the grueling life of a Yukon sled dog. Forced to adapt to a world governed by violence, he must dispose of his kind-hearted ways and toughen up. As he grows stronger and more dangerous, he begins to hear an “ancestral pull” from the forest and ventures forwards. The narrative explores the shedding of civil habits and the return to Buck’s homeland—the wild forests of the Yukon.

Juxtaposing Buck, White Fang is an iconic companion classic to Call of the Wild that follows a wild wolf-dog hybrid born in the frozen northern wilderness of Alaska. The novella follows White Fang, the wild wolf-dog, and his journey from a fierce predator to a creature shaped by the violent, cruel hands of humans. Unlike the transition from domestic to wild, White Fang faces the opposite. After surviving many horrible actions and trauma, White Fang joins a normal house where affection heals his dark, shattered soul. 

While London’s narratives conclude with the healing or wilding of his characters, his literary influence is not to be ignored. It continues to spark conversations within our own school. In recent interviews, both students and staff reflected on London’s stories and how they still have merit in current times. Eighth grade English teacher, Ms. Parke, wanted to let students know that “Jack London loved dogs—I think that’s a fair interpretation. If you choose to read his work, pay attention to how his human characters act, how they treat one another, and how they treat animals and nature. Humans vs. the wild—that's a common theme, more specifically. His stories show his appreciation for the unrelenting power of nature and his less-than-flattering opinions of most humans.” She wants readers to connect with London’s rich, empowering stories and wonder, “What might London think about human civilization and our modern, technologically centered world? What would he think about AI?”

Today, Jack London Square is a waterfront neighborhood located along the Oakland Estuary in Oakland, California. Named after the famous author Jack London, the area combines history with modern attractions. There, visitors can find restaurants, shops, hotels, an Amtrak station (the national passenger railroad service of the United States, operating intercity trains across the country since 1970), and a ferry dock that connects travelers across the San Francisco Bay. 

The square is also home to historic landmarks, including Heinold’s First and Last Chance Saloon as well as a replica of his cabin. Heinold’s Saloon was like a second home for London when he was growing up and struggling financially. The owner, Johnny Heinold, a friend of London’s father, allowed London to sell newspapers and spend time there as a young boy. When London was seventeen, he told Heinold about his dream of attending the University of California nearby in Berkeley and becoming a writer. Heinold helped him by lending him money for school. Although London only attended for one year, he went on and became one of the most successful and widely read authors of this time. Heinold is mentioned several times in London’s books Joan Barleycorn and The Tales of the Fish Patrol. Many of London’s adventurous ideas and stories were inspired by listening to sailors share their experiences in the saloon.

Located across from Heinold’s, there is a wooden cabin replica of the location Jack London lived at during the Yukon gold rush in 1897-98. The original cabin was built on the North Fork of Henderson Creek in the Klondike, and was discovered by trappers who found his signature on the wall.

Beyond national boundaries, London’s writing remains highly influential today in places like Russia, Eastern Europe, and Japan. The Call of the Wild has been translated into forty-seven plus languages, surpassing that of any other American novel, and millions of copies of his short stories are distributed globally. Just as the books he read throughout his life influenced his writing, London’s literary legacy continues to inspire generations of socially aware writers.