Quiz: The Call of the Wild — Chapter I: "Into the Primitive"

Multiple Choice

1. Where does Buck live at the beginning of the story?
A) A cabin in the Klondike
B) Judge Miller's place in the Santa Clara Valley
C) A ranch in San Diego
D) A kennel in San Francisco

2. Why did men suddenly need strong, heavy dogs with furry coats?
A) To compete in dog shows
B) A yellow metal (gold) had been discovered in the Arctic, and men were rushing to the Northland
C) They wanted new pets for their children
D) The dogs were needed to guard steamships

3. Who was Manuel, and what was his "besetting sin"?
A) A gardener's helper who loved playing Chinese lottery
B) Judge Miller's son who loved gambling
C) The saloon-keeper who bought Buck
D) A dog trainer who mistreated Buck

4. Who were Buck's parents?
A) Two Scotch shepherd dogs
B) Elmo, a St. Bernard, and Shep, a Scotch shepherd dog
C) Toots and Ysabel
D) Two unnamed St. Bernards

5. How much money did Manuel receive for selling Buck?
A) Fifty dollars
B) One hundred dollars
C) One hundred and fifty dollars
D) The text doesn't say how much Manuel received directly, only that money "chinked" between him and the stranger

6. What happened to Buck when he was first put in a cagelike crate?
A) He accepted it calmly and slept peacefully
B) He nursed his wrath and wounded pride, unable to understand what was happening
C) He escaped immediately
D) He was given food and water right away

7. What happened to Buck during the two days and nights in the express car?
A) He was treated kindly by the messengers
B) He ate and drank normally
C) He neither ate nor drank, and his anger grew into a fever-pitched rage
D) He slept through the entire journey

Short Answer

8. Describe Buck's life and status at Judge Miller's place before he was kidnapped. What made him different from the other dogs there?

9. Explain how Buck was kidnapped. Who was involved, and how did they trick and capture him?

10. By the end of the chapter excerpt, how has Buck's treatment changed him? Use details from the text to support your answer.

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Answer Key

1. B
2. B
3. A
4. B
5. D
6. B
7. C
8. Sample answer: Buck ruled over Judge Miller's entire estate as "king." He was neither a house-dog nor kennel-dog but had freedom to swim, hunt, and roam with the Judge's family. He was respected and treated with dignity, unlike other dogs such as Toots and Ysabel who stayed hidden indoors, or the fox terriers who were kept in check.
9. Sample answer: Manuel, a gardener's helper who needed money for gambling, lured Buck away from the estate at night under the pretense of a stroll. He led Buck to a stranger at a flag station, tied a rope around Buck's neck, and sold him. When Buck resisted, the stranger choked him with the rope until he passed out, then the men threw him into a baggage car.
10. Sample answer: Buck went from a proud, dignified "king" to a raging, wrathful animal. The mistreatment—being choked, teased, deprived of food and water for two days—filled him with fury and fever. The text says he was "metamorphosed into a raging fiend," so changed that even the Judge wouldn't have recognized him.