Quote 61
This was the first time Buck had failed, in itself a sufficient reason to drive Hal into a rage. He exchanged the whip for the customary club. Buck refused to move under the rain of heavier blows which now fell upon him. Like his mates, he barely able to get up, but, unlike them, he had made up his mind not to get up. (5.58)
Buck’s resilience takes many forms, sometimes a determination to act, sometimes a decision not to act.
Quote 62
For half a day this continued. Buck multiplied himself, attacking from all sides, enveloping the herd in a whirlwind of menace, cutting out his victim as fast as it could rejoin its mates, wearing out the patience of creatures preyed upon, which is a lesser patience than that of creatures preying. (7.29)
Buck’s superiority to other creatures is largely a result of his mental patience and determination.
Quote 63
From then on, night and day, Buck never left his prey, never gave it a moment's rest, never permitted it to browse the leaves of trees or the shoots of young birch and willow. (7.32)
Determination in the wild is linked with the kill, a necessary skill that Buck acquires as he adapts.