Never Cry Wolf By Farley Mowat

Never Cry Wolf by Farley Mowat


     For my book report, I have chosen the novel Never Cry Wolf by Farley

Mowat.  In this report I will give a brief summary of the novel as well as why I

have chosen it for my report. Finally, I will give my reactions to the novel

with regards to its analysis of the place of human beings in nature, whether the

destiny of humans and nature is intertwined, and how nature is regarded by the

different religious and political philosophies demonstrated in the novel.

     Never Cry Wolf is based upon the true story of the author's experiences

during two years spent as a biologist studying a family of wolves in northern

Canada during the mid nineteen fifties.  When Mowat is sent on his expedition

his goal is to bring back proof of the wolves decimating effect on the northern

herds of Caribou.  After arriving at the remote location, he finds a group of

wolves and begins his research.  He then discovers the differing peculiarities

of the wolves and finds that they are more than the savage and merciless hunters

that he had previously believed them to be.  He discovers that they are in fact

a very efficient and resourceful and have their own distinctive culture.  For

example he discovers that they in fact have a symbiotic relationship with the

caribou in that they keep the caribou population strong by hunting down only the

sick and weaker members of the herd. This leads to a situation where the

strongest caribou survive and thus the herd is made stronger.   As well they

have their own social orders that ensure peaceful co-existence with one another

instead of being reduced to fighting amongst themselves.  Before Mowat's

excursion conventional wisdom thought  that that was the only interraction that

the wolves were capable of.  In his group he finds a monogamous pair who are

raising their litter with assistance from another male wolf who Mowat terms to

be an "uncle".  His previous assumptions which portrayed the wolves as cold

heated killers who lived only for the hunt, is challenged as he observes these

animals play and interact within their environment   his previous assumptions

about the role that these animals play in nature.  His attitude metamorphosis'

from one of disdain and contempt to one of genuine respect and admiration.

     I chose this novel for study instead of Siddhartha because I felt that

this novel speaks more directly to me.  I felt this way firstly, because of the

location of the novel, northern Canada, in which I traveled for a summer, and

secondly because I enjoy spending time in the outdoors.  This meant that I could

more easily identify the setting and thus relate better to the author's feelings

and perceptions.  Meanwhile, Siddhartha was set in India and in my mind was

dated and unreal humankind (society) seems today to have more of a desire and a

need to get back to nature and the simple life.  The spirit of peace that

emanates from Mowat's book allows one to focus on what is possible when one has

time to reflect   In this I mean that Never Cry Wolf seemed to hold a more

meaningful message for modern times.  As well I found the style of writing in

the Mowat novel to be clearer then in Siddhartha.  These were some of the

factors that combined to produce a situation where Never Cry Wolf captured my

attention more than Siddhartha.  It was for these reasons that I chose the novel

by Farley Mowat.

     In my opinion, Never Cry Wolf placed humans in the role of intruders as

far as nature is concerned.  Mowat cites several instances where humans violate

nature and represent a threat to its sanctity.  Even though this threat is not

reciprocated by nature, humans continue to infringe upon nature and then deny

the consequences of their actions.  Two prevalent examples of this occur:  when

Mowat accidentally wanders into the wolves den when the wolves' are there, and

again when he discovers a herd of deer that have been slaughtered by hunters.

Both examples show humans intruding upon nature and using it for their own

purposes.

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