18 not take Curly’s gestures nicely. Therefore, Buck makes a mental note that he will
never get down. He sees the impact that will come upon him if he ever gets down. Curly’s tragic death makes Buck watches his action, thinks more thoroughly, and
never attacks other dogs without a proper plan. The Law of Club and The Law of Fang are harsh. The two internal conflicts teaches Buck many things, he learns to
restrain himself from fighting against something that he cannot win and he always remember to never get beaten and knocked down by other dogs. Through those
laws, Buck emerges to become a stronger, a mature, and a wise dog. In the next section, the writer will discuss about the external conflicts of Buck.
2. The External Conflicts Faced by the Main Character
In the novel, there are seven external conflicts faced by Buck, namely the conflicts of Buck with Manuel’s friend, the four men in a saloon, the man in the
red sweater, Spitz, Hal, Black Burton, and the Yeehats. These seven conflicts challenge Buck and make Buck struggle to survive.
a. The Conflict between Buck and Manuel’s Friend
Buck is kidnapped by a gardener named Manuel from his master’s house, Judge Miller. Buck does not have any idea or any suspicion that he is being
kidnapped, he thinks Manuel is just about to give him a walk. The minute Manuel gives the end of the rope which circled Buck’s neck to his friend, Buck starts to
feel cautious. Hammond 2010 states that an external conflict which is a conflict that exist outside a character can take a form of a fight or violence between two
19 characters. The quotation below shows the first violence that Buck gets from a
man. But to his surprise, the rope tightened around his neck, shutting off his
breath. In quick rage, he sprang at the man, who met him halfway, grappled him close by the throat, and with a deft twist threw him over in
his back. Then the rope tightened mercilessly while buck struggled in a fury, his tongue lolling out of his mouth and his great chest panting futilely
pp. 23 – 24.
Buck is a newcomer to this kind of world, a world where violence swiftly given, he simply does not know yet how to respond to that. Buck is a house-dog,
he has a good master, Judge Miller, who care about him and never treats him badly. Buck’s activities are varies, from being a companion for his master until
escorting his master’s family to the yard. Buck never knows about violence, particularly physical violence. Anyone back at home never treats him badly.
Trying to defend himself, Buck attempts to attack the man, and succeeds. The man sprang for his throat, but Buck was too quick for him. His jaws
closed on the hand, nor did they relax till his senses were choked out of him once more.
“All I get is fifty for it,” he grumbled, “an’ I wouldn’t do it over for a thousand, cold cash.”
His hand was wrapped in a bloody handkerchief, and the right trouser leg was ripped from knee to ankle p. 24.
According to Hammond 2010, a conflict which includes a fight and a
physical violence between one character and another is a conflict that often exists. The quotation above shows Buck’s first fight with a man, the man torments him,
and he attacks back. This might be Buck’s first time to bite and hurt someone. In some aspects, as a dog, Buck has an advantage, he is quick, and the man does not
expect anything from Buck. Manuel’s friend is the first external conflict encountered by Buck.
